Question

Here is another problem that can also be solved by working backwards.

Maddy picked 2 times as many tomatoes as carrots from her garden. She picked 4 fewer cucumbers than tomatoes. Maddy picked 5 carrots.

How many cucumbers did Maddy pick?

Answer 1

Let t be the number of tomatoes and c be the number of cucumbers...

t=2c and c=t-4

Using t=2c in c=t-4 gives you:

c=2c-4 subtracting 2c from both sides

-c=-4 dividing both sides by -1

c=4

So Maddy picked 4 cucumbers.

Answer 2

According to my brain, Maddy picked 6 cucumbers.