In today's topic, we look at Time and Money. You can be faced with questions involving time and converting time is an important skill to have when faced with some of the more obscure problem-solving questions. We also have a look at money as there have been money problems linked to probability and possible combination problems. Other common questions involve currency conversion where you either multiply or dived by the exchange rate.
In today's topic, we look at Units. Many of the questions you will face will include units of some descriptions so it important that you are able to convert between the different types of units (metric). This will involve multiplying or dividing your value by a power of 10 (10, 100, 1000 etc). When it comes to Area and Volume the conversion factors are squared and cubed respectively.
Today we are focusing on Ratio. We start off with an introduction to ratio and how to write ratios (paying attention to sentence structure) and simplify them (much like fractions). We then look at sharing quantities in a given ratio (almost like sharing out profits to shareholders). Make sure you follow the three step process here. A key thing to note here is when you have your answer, do not simplify it as it will take you back to your original ratio. Only simplify ratios when asked.
Ratio is commonly used in map and bearing questions and we cover this element as well using a scale factor multiplier.
The focus for today is on Percentages and percentage change. You should be confident with common conversions as seen in the table as well as converting percentages into a fraction or decimal using the conversion flow chart. We then take a look at increasing/decreasing an amount by a percentage manually using two methods (Unitary method and Decimal method)
A calculator method is explored at the end and shows a quick way to increase and decrease an amount quickly using a multiplier factor. This method will help to work out original price problems. Finally we recap the formula used to calculate the percentage change between two values.
For day 31 we take a look at being able express quantities as fractions of each other and how to calculate a fraction of an amount. We then move onto expressing quantities as percentages of each other and how to find a percentage of an amount.
A nice way to think about these sorts of a problem is to treat it like a test score where the first value is your score (numerator) and the second value is how many marks there were.
On day 29 we are taking a closer look at Converting fractions to decimals. Having a look at the table, there are some simple fraction to decimal conversions you should know. For more complex fractions, there are two methods to consider; the first is using a division method and the other is using an equivalent fraction method.
On day 28 we are taking a closer look at Converting decimals to fractions. Having a look at the table, there are some simple decimal to fraction conversions you should know. If in doubt, use place value to place your number over 10/100/1000 etc. and then look to simplify your answer.