Jen takes 7 minutes more to complete an illustration than Jon. The total time taken by both of them is 6 hours. How d you form an algebraic expression to express this and identify the variable, constant and coefficient of the expression?

1 Answer
Jun 9, 2016

#2x + 7 = 360 #

Explanation:

Start by defining the time taken by one of the people and writing an expression using the information given..

It is easier to let #x# be the smaller value. (Jon's time)

Let #x# be the time taken by Jon (in minutes).

So, #x + 7# is Jen's time. (Jen takes MORE time than Jon.)

#x# is the variable and 7 is the constant

To form an equation, use the expressions we have written.
The total time for both people is 6 hours.
However, the unit of the 7 is minutes, so we need to make sure that the same unit is used. throughout.

(Either change 6 hours to 360 minutes, or write the 7 as #7/60# hours - minutes seems easier.)

#x + x + 7 = 360#

#2x + 7 = 360 " 2 is the coefficient of " x#