POLYA’S PROBLEM SOLVING STRATEGY

ONE MINUTE TEST

 Perform the indicated operations.
1. 8 + 5 11. 3 x 4
2. 4 + 7 12. 6 x 7
3. 9 + 3 13. 8 x 3
4. 8 + 6 14. (-2) x (5)
5. (-2) + (-4) 15. (-7) x (-9)
6. 7 – 5 16. 8 ÷ 4
7. 8 – 4 17. 12 ÷ 3
8. (-5) – (-1) 18. 24 ÷ (-8)
9. (9) – (-7) 19. (-18) ÷ (-3)
10.(-11) – (7) 20. (-20) ÷ ( 4)
Answers:
1. 13 11. 12
2. 11 12. 42
3. 12 13. 24
4. 14 14. -10
5. -6 15. 63
6. 2 16. 2
7. 4 17. 4
8. -4 18. -3
9. 16 19. 6
10.-18 20. -5
 SEATWORK #1
1. It’s dark. You have ten grey socks and ten blue socks you
want to put into pairs. All socks are exactly the same
except for their colour. How many socks would you need to
take with you to ensure you had at least a pair?
A. 3 C. 16
B. 8 D. 7

2. If 9999 = 4, 8888 = 8, 1816 = 6, 1212 = 0, then 1919 = ?

A. 10 C. 2
B. 4 D. 12
 George polya (1887-1985)
 The father of
problem-solving
 A mathematics
educator who strongly
believed that the skill
of problem solving can
be taught.
Polya’s Four-Step Problem
Solving Strategy

Step 1 : Understand the

problem.
Step 2 : Devise a plan.
Step 3: Carry out the plan.
Step 4: Review the solution
 Step 1 Understand the Problem
*What is the goal?
*What is being asked?
*What is the condition?
*What sort of a problem is it?
*What is known or unknown?
*Is there enough information?
*Can you draw a figure to illustrate the problem?
*Is there a way to restate the problem in your
own words?
 Step 2 Devise a plan
• Act it out.
• Be systematic.
• Work backwards.
• Consider special cases.
• Eliminate possibilities.
• Perform an experiment.
• Draw a picture/diagram.
• Make a list or table/chart.
• Use a variable, such as x.
• Look for a formula/formulas.
• Write an equation or model.
• Look for a pattern/patterns.
• Use direct or indirect reasoning.
• Solve a simple version of the problem.
• Guess and check your answer (trial and error).
 Step 3 Carry out the plan
• Be patient.
• Work carefully.
• Modify the plan or try a new plan.
• Keep trying until something works.
• Implement the strategy and strategies in step 2.
• Try another strategy if the first one isn’t working.
• Keep a complete and accurate record of your work.
• Be determined and don’t get discouraged if the plan
does not work immediately.
Step 4 Review the solution
• Look for an easier solution.
• Does the answer make sense?
• Check the results in the orignal problem.
• Interpret the solution with the facts of the problem.
• Recheck any computations involved in the solution.
• Can the solution be extended to a more general case?
• Ensure that all the conditions related to the problem are
met.
• Determine whether there is another method of finding the
solution.
• Ensure the consistency of the solution in the context of the
problem.
Example #1: The GSW basketball team won three
out of their last six games. In how many different
orders could they have attained three wins and three
losses in six games?

Step 1 Understand the problem

*There are many different ways. GSW may have won
three straight wins and three losses (WWWLLL), or may
be they lost in the first three games and won in the last
three games (LLLWWW). Likewise, there are several
orders.

Step 2 Devise a plan

One can recognize a list of all the possibilities making
sure that no entry will be duplicated.
Step 3 Carry out the plan.
Three Ws must be present in every entry without duplication.
1. WWWLLL 9. LLLWWW
2. WWLWLL 10. LLWLWW
3. WWLLWL 11. LLWWLW
4. WWLLLW 12. LLWWWL
5. WLLLWW 13. LWWWLL
6. WLLWWL 14. LWWLLW
7. WLWWLL 15. LWLLWW
8. WLWLWL 16. LWLWLW

Step 4 Review the solution

The list is organized and has no duplicates, so there are sixteen
different orders in which a basketball team can win exactly three
out of six games.
Example#2 Leonardo da Vinci was famous artist during
the Rennaissance period. He wrote in his notebook
that “from the top to the bottom of the chin is the
sixth part of the face, and it is the fifty-fourth part of
the man”. Suppose the distance from the top to the
bottom of the chin of the person is 1.2 inches.Using
Leonardo da Vinci’s measurements, find the height of
the person.

Step 1 Understand the problem.

Obviously, one needs to find the height of the person in
this problem.

Step 2 Devise a plan.

Let x represent the unknown height of the person. Write an
equation satisfying da Vinci’s measurements.
Step 3 Carry out the plan.
Let x – height of the person
Equation
_1_ x = 1.2
54
x = 64.8 inches or 5.4 ft
Thus, the person is 5.4 ft tall.

Step 4. Review the solution

The solution is quite simple.
Practice conversion from inches to feet and vice versa.
 Homework #1
Solve the following using Polya’s problem solving
strategies.
1. Suppose the NCAA basketball championships
is decided on a best of five series game. In
how many different ways can a team win the
championships?
2. Two times the sum of a number and 3 is equal
to thrice the number plus 4. Find the number.
3. If the length of the top of a rectangle is 15
inches more than its width and the area is
1,350 square inches. Find the dimensions of
the table.