It’s math challenge time! Engaging in riddles and games is a common past time and a rewarding one. When we try to solve a riddle or play a strategy game we stretch our minds in the same way that my Pre algebra students learn to stretch theirs. In this, our minds grow and we are strengthened. Try stretching your mind on the following puzzle:
Percent square puzzle — fill each empty square with a single positive digit in such a way that the number in the shaded square represents the percent of the row or column as labeled for each row or column.
Practice:
In the square above, the shaded sections are in the upper left and lower right corners. The first row has a percentage of 25%, which represents the value of 2 (the digit in the shaded square). Thus 2 represents 25% of the value of the sum of the numbers in row 1. Thus, the sum of row 1 is 8, with 2 in the first square and 6 in the second. Can you figure out the other remaining values in the square above?
Math Masters: look for your helpful video lesson on how to think through this problem entirely. Try solving the percent square puzzle below
