Question 149923
x=short piece
5x=long piece 


5x+x=306------------------because the pieces together are 306 inches long 


6x=306--------------------because we had to combine like terms 


x=51----------------------because we had to divide both sides by 6 to isolate x 


short piece=51 inches-----because short piece=x and x=51
long piece= 255 inches-----because long piece=5x and 5x=5(51) 


5x+x=306.......255+51=306-----------------because we had to check our answer 


Answer: 
short piece=51 inches
long piece= 255 inches