Question

The price of oranges went from $.90 per lb to $1.20 per lb in five years. Find the rate of change of the price of oranges.

A) $0.30 per pound per year

B) $0.06 per pound per year

C) $0.24 per pound per year

D) $0.18 per pound per year

Answer 1

Hmm... an interesting question. What have you tried so far? Any ideas?

Answer 2

Well, nothing really. I'm not good at these sort of questions or math in general.

Answer 3

OK, that's alright. : ) Well, reading the question, obviously the price of oranges has gotten more expensive right?

Answer 4

A commonsense thing to ask next would be, "How much more expensive have oranges got?"

Answer 5

They used to be $0.90, but now they are $1.20, how much more is that? What would you say?

Answer 6

Maybe...two dollars? I don't know. I'm just making myself look like an idiot. :(

Answer 7

No worries, it's totally fine to be wrong in math. It takes time and it's just about thinking through it. Let me think of a way to explain it. : )

Answer 8

Let me make the problem easier for now.

Let's say that oranges used to cost $2 dollars.
Now, oranges cost $5 dollars.

How much more do you have to spend to by the oranges now? Well, you have to spend $3 dollars more, right? They used to be 2, now they are 5.

Does that make sense? Any questions?

Answer 9

It does now that someone explained it to me.

Answer 10

B, since when you multiply .06*5, you get .30, which is the total increase in the price over the 5 years.

Answer 11

Thank you.