Aiden measures a book with paper strips. It is actually 10 paper strips long, but he gets an answer if 8. What is his mistake?
The Correct Answer and Explanation is:
Correct Answer:
Aiden’s mistake is that he overlapped the paper strips or did not place them end to end properly when measuring. The correct length of the book is 10 paper strips, but Aiden measured it as only 8, indicating that his method caused him to use fewer strips than needed.
Explanation:
Measurement involves comparing an object to a standard unit, such as a paper strip, to determine its length. For accurate results, it is essential to place the units properly—end to end without gaps or overlaps. In this case, the actual length of the book is 10 paper strips, which means that when measured correctly, the book spans the length of 10 full strips laid in a straight line without space between them.
However, Aiden measures the book and gets a result of only 8 paper strips. This indicates a mistake in how he used the paper strips during measurement. The most likely explanation is that he either overlapped the strips (placed one partially on top of the previous one) or left gaps between them. Both mistakes would result in fewer strips covering the same length.
Another possible error is if Aiden did not start measuring at the very edge of the book or stopped too early, causing an underestimation of the length.
This mistake highlights the importance of accurate, consistent placement of measurement units. In primary math and science, students learn to line up measuring tools carefully, ensuring no spaces or overlaps, and to start measuring from the correct point. Misplacing even a small portion of each strip can add up and lead to significant errors.
So, the correct length of the book is 10 paper strips, and Aiden’s mistake was due to improper alignment or overlapping of the measuring units, which caused him to measure only 8 strips instead of the true 10.
