# Fifth Grade Math Homework Question **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [December 2, 2008, 9:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fifth-grade-math-homework-question/475402 "2008-12-02T21:42:10Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 13\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![ShibbOleth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/848f3c/32.png) [@ShibbOleth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ShibbOleth)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2008, 9:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fifth-grade-math-homework-question/475402/1 "2008-12-02T21:42:10Z")
My son just asked me for help on a math homework problem, and I thought that the wording was a bit awkward, so wanted to check with others to see if it’s “just me”. Here’s the problem, as close to verbatim as I can do from memory: > [@](#): > > An apartment building has 343 apartments that are being remodeled. 3/7 have been re-painted. Another 2/7 have been re-carpeted. How many apartments have been re-carpeted or re-painted? Here’s my problem with this problem: it’s not entirely clear that these sets of apartments are mutually exclusive. I think that they are most likely asking what is the total of 3/7 and 2/7 of 343 apartments. But if they overlap then the answer is “somewhere between 3/7 and 5/7 of 343”. The section this is in is about simplifying fractions, fwiw. Maybe this just bothers me because if I were doing the work, I’d paint the apartments before I re-carpet them (so that I didn’t have to worry about paint on my new carpets). What’s your take? ---
**Author:** ![ivylass](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/9de053/32.png) [@ivylass](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ivylass)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2008, 9:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fifth-grade-math-homework-question/475402/2 "2008-12-02T21:45:19Z")
Well, “another 2/7” implies to me that there is a second set of apartments, separate from the first set of 3/7, that have been re-carpeted. It’s possible the apartments that needed re-carpeting didn’t need re-painting and vice versa. But then again, I tended to suck at work problems. ---
**Author:** ![Kid\_A\_1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ed8c4c/32.png) [@Kid\_A\_1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kid_A_1)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2008, 9:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fifth-grade-math-homework-question/475402/3 "2008-12-02T21:47:49Z")
Seems to me that by saying “Another 2/7 have been re-carpeted” that makes the two groups mutually exclusive. ---
**Author:** ![Typo\_Negative](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/typo_negative/32/484_2.png) [@Typo\_Negative](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Typo_Negative)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2008, 9:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fifth-grade-math-homework-question/475402/4 "2008-12-02T21:51:50Z")
> [@Kid\_A](#): > > Seems to me that by saying “Another 2/7 have been re-carpeted” that makes the two groups mutually exclusive. That’s how I read it. Otherwise, I don’t think there is a way to get a precise answer with the terms provided. ---
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2008, 9:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fifth-grade-math-homework-question/475402/5 "2008-12-02T21:53:36Z")
I agree. “Another” implies it’s a group not represented by the first attribute. Sometimes overthinking these problems does you in. ---
**Author:** ![Folly](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/folly/32/3219_2.png) [@Folly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Folly)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2008, 9:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fifth-grade-math-homework-question/475402/6 "2008-12-02T21:56:01Z")
Its kind of wierd that there is no actual simplification of the fraction going on since you’re in the ‘fraction simplification’ section. The denominator of the two fractions you are adding are the same. ---
**Author:** ![sugar\_and\_spice](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e8c25b/32.png) [@sugar\_and\_spice](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sugar_and_spice)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2008, 9:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fifth-grade-math-homework-question/475402/7 "2008-12-02T21:57:41Z")
I agree, mutually exclusive. “How many” implies a single correct answer, if the problem wanted a range then it would say something like “What is the highest/lowest possible number of apartments …”. Especially so if this is a unit on fractions and not set theory. ---
**Author:** ![Caveat\_lector\_1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ea5d25/32.png) [@Caveat\_lector\_1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Caveat_lector_1)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2008, 11:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fifth-grade-math-homework-question/475402/8 "2008-12-02T23:41:35Z")
> [@Folly](#): > > Its kind of wierd that there is no actual simplification of the fraction going on since you’re in the ‘fraction simplification’ section. The denominator of the two fractions you are adding are the same. Unless you cross cancel in the multiplication part you will have to simplify to get the final answer. ---
**Author:** ![Folly](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/folly/32/3219_2.png) [@Folly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Folly)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2008, 12:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fifth-grade-math-homework-question/475402/9 "2008-12-03T00:52:30Z")
Yeah, I guess technically its 343\*(5/7) = 1715/7 = 245/1 ---
**Author:** ![JFLuvly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ac91a4/32.png) [@JFLuvly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JFLuvly)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2008, 12:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fifth-grade-math-homework-question/475402/10 "2008-12-03T00:56:14Z")
Yeah I got 245 also ---
**Author:** ![Chessic\_Sense](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/7c8e57/32.png) [@Chessic\_Sense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chessic_Sense)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2008, 4:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fifth-grade-math-homework-question/475402/11 "2008-12-03T04:14:35Z")
> [@Folly](#): > > Yeah, I guess technically its 343\*(5/7) = 1715/7 = 245/1 Right, though for the fifth grade level, I just did “343/7=49/1” for the redux. 49\*5=245. Dunno which way the book wants you to reduce the fraction though. 343/7 or 1715/7? OP, \*another \*vote that the word _another_ makes it exclusive. That’s a separate vote, not the vote of \*another \*person, counted again. That’s a separate person, not me counted twice. ---
**Author:** ![Butterscotch](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/dc4da7/32.png) [@Butterscotch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Butterscotch)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2008, 7:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fifth-grade-math-homework-question/475402/12 "2008-12-03T07:00:00Z")
I get 5/7 because that is how many have been repainted OR recarpeted. I think that is right, the ‘or’ seems to imply there is no overlap… Ranty bit: I hate these stupid word problems! They were the bane of my life at school… There are 15 children swimming. There are 5 towels by the pool and 4 towels drying on the line. How may more towels do you need? Correct answer:6. NO!!! Who wants a damp towel? You need 10 more… Teachers need to put more thought into what it is they are asking for… Sorry, end rant… ---
**Author:** ![Sublight](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/439d5e/32.png) [@Sublight](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sublight)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2008, 11:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fifth-grade-math-homework-question/475402/13 "2008-12-03T11:53:46Z")
> [@Kid\_A](#): > > Seems to me that by saying “Another 2/7 have been re-carpeted” that makes the two groups mutually exclusive. That’s how I read it as well.