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A construction company uses 12 pieces of plywood to make 3 sheds. The foreman will be making 6 sheds next week. He first finds the unit rate of how many pieces of plywood he uses per shed by dividing 3 by 12. Then, he multiplies the result by 6 to find how many pieces of plywood he needs for 6 sheds. What was the foreman's error?

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Answer:

The foreman's error was he divided 3 by 12 = 3 ÷ 12

The correct step would be to divide 12 by 3 = (12÷ 3)

Explanation:

The foreman's error was he divided 3 by 12 = 3 ÷ 12

A construction company uses 12 pieces of plywood to make 3 sheds. The foreman will be making 6 sheds next week.

Hence , the correct calculation is:

3 sheds = 12 pieces

1 shed = x

3 × x = 12 × 1

3x = 12

x = 12/3

x = 4 pieces

1 shed requires 4 pieces of plywood

The unit rate of how many pieces of plywood he uses per shed is 4 pieces per shed

Hence, the correct step would be to divide 12 by 3 = (12÷ 3)

The number of pieces required for 6 shed is 4 × 6 sheds

= 24 pieces of plywood

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