Question 780814: Joe and Stephanie live 3 miles apart. They both leave their houses at the same time and walk to meet each other. Joe walks at 2.5 miles per hour and Stephanie walks at 3.5 miles per hour. How far will Joe walk before he meets Stephanie?
This is my 12 year old sons homework. I am horrible at algebra and don't even know where to start. Please help!!! Thank you in advance to anyone who helps!
Found 2 solutions by josgarithmetic, MathTherapy:
Answer by josgarithmetic(39625)   (Show Source):
You can put this solution on YOUR website! You use the fact,  , which in the dimensions is in the form, 
and in measurement units is in the form,  .
You can see how the numbers are like fractions and that a movement rate is a distance divided by a time.
Make a data table with all of the given information.
Person_________Speed____________Time_____________Distance
Joe____________2.5______________h________________(___)
Stephanie______3.5______________h________________(___)
Total____________________________________________(___)
We need a variable for the time, called anything we like, but I choose h, for HOURS. This is an unknown variable. The time is the same for both Joe and Stephanie according to the problem description.
We form expressions for the distances so that we can fill the entries in the table. We use  fact.
Person_________Speed____________Time_____________Distance
Joe____________2.5______________h________________( )
Stephanie______3.5______________h________________( )
Total____________________________________________(3)
The sum of their distances walked will be 3 miles, which is the distance between their houses. They meet someplace between their houses.
...
so can you and your son figure the rest of this, and more importantly, understand the analysis leading up to the necessary equation?
Answer by MathTherapy(10556)  (Show Source):
You can put this solution on YOUR website! Joe and Stephanie live 3 miles apart. They both leave their houses at the same time and walk to meet each other. Joe walks at 2.5 miles per hour and Stephanie walks at 3.5 miles per hour. How far will Joe walk before he meets Stephanie?
This is my 12 year old sons homework. I am horrible at algebra and don't even know where to start. Please help!!! Thank you in advance to anyone who helps!
Let distance Joe walked be D
Then distance Stephanie walked = 3 D
Time equation:
Time Joe took to get to meeting point, equals time it took Stephanie to get to meeting point. Now, since time = distance, divided by speed, or  , this translates to: 
3.5D = 2.5(3 D) ----- Cross-multiplying
3.5D = 7.5 2.5D
3.5D + 2.5D = 7.5
6D = 7.5
D, or distance Joe walked =  , or  miles
You can do the check!!
Further help is available, online or in-person, for a fee, obviously. Send comments, thank-yous, and inquiries to D at MathMadEzy@aol.com
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