Hi, there--

Problem:
n minus 1 divided by 2 equals 17, how to solve for n? how do u start to solve?

Answer:
Translate the words, "n minus 1 divided by 2 equals 17," into an equation.

We write "n minus 1" as .

Dividing this by two gives us the expression, .

Now we set this expression equal to 17. Here's the whole equation:


Now we'll solve for n. Multiply both sides of the equation by 2.



One the left side, we divided n-1 by 2, and we multiplied it by 2. These operations undo each 
other and we have just n-1. On the right side, 2*17 is 34. So,


We want n by itself on the left side. We have n minus 1. We undo "minus 1" by "adding 1." 
Remember that we need to add 1 to both sides to get an equivalent equation.



Simplify; n-1+1 is just n. 34+1 is 35.


Always check your work in word problems. Go back to the original words.Replace n with 35. 
"35 minus 1 divided by 2 equals 17." Hmmm...35 minus 1 is 34; 34 divided by 2 is 17. Check!

That's it!
Mrs. Figgy