Question

Vincent is building a rectangular pen for his new pet rabbit. The area of the pen is 36 square feet. The length of the fence is 5 feet longer than its width. Write the equation that can be used to model the relationship between the area of the gate and side length

Answer 1

w² + 5w = 36

Explanation:

Since the pen is a rectangle, its area, A = lw where l = length and w = width.

Since the length of the fence is 5 feet longer than its width, we have l = w + 5

So, A = lw = (w + 5)w = w² + 5w

Since A = 36 ft², we have that

36 = w² + 5w

w² + 5w = 36

Which is the required equation.