Maths in the Real World: Numbers That Do a Job

You use maths every single day — even when you don't realise it! Think about the last time you went shopping, shared snacks with friends, or checked how long until lunch. All of those moments needed maths to work them out.

Real-life maths problems are word problems — they describe a situation and ask you to find a missing number. There are four steps to solve any word problem. Step 1 — READ carefully. Read the whole problem once before you do anything. Step 2 — FIND the key numbers. Underline or circle the numbers you are given. Step 3 — CHOOSE the operation. Ask yourself: Am I putting groups together? (add) Am I taking some away? (subtract) Am I working with equal groups? (multiply or divide) • Addition (+) means combining, finding a total. • Subtraction (−) means finding what is left, or the difference. • Multiplication (×) means adding equal groups together quickly. • Division (÷) means splitting into equal groups. Step 4 — WRITE a number sentence and SOLVE it. A number sentence is a maths statement using numbers and symbols, like 3 × 4 = 12. Let's look at each operation in a real-life setting so you can see the difference.