Question

Write a system of equations to describe the situation below, solve using substitution, and fill in the blanks.

Zane and his little brother made up a game using coins. They flip the coins towards a cup and receive points for everyone that makes it in. Zane starts with 20 points, and his little brother starts with 17 points. Zane gets 1 point for every successful shot, and his brother, since he is younger, gets 4 points for each successful shot. Eventually, the brothers will have a tied score in the game. How many points will they both have? How many additional shots will each brother have made?

Answer 1

Each person needs to make one more shot to tie.

Explanation:

The text states that Zane starts with 20 points, and his little brother starts with 17 points. Then, for every successful shot made by Zane, he gets one point, but when younger brother makes a shot, he get 4 points. So I can collect that 17 + 4 = 21 and 20 + 1 = 21.

Answer 2

21 points, 1 shot

Explanation:

Zane : 20 + x

Lil Bro: 17 + 4x

set these equal to each other to find the shots

20 + x = 17 + 4x

3x = 3, x = 1

plug 1 in for x to find how many points

20 + 1 = 21