Adam was selling candy bars for a school fundraiser. He left home with N candy bars on Saturday morning, and after selling to his friends and neighbors, he came back with 16 candy bars. A quick calculation told him that he sold 31 candy bars that day. What equation would represent the situation of beginning with N bars, selling 31, and having 16 left?
The equation representing the situation would be:
N - 31 = 16
The equation that represents the given situation can be expressed as:
N - 31 + (31 - 16) = 16
To break it down step-by-step, let's go through each part of the equation:
1. N is the initial number of candy bars Adam had before selling any.
2. Adam sold 31 candy bars, so we subtract 31 from N.
3. The result of the above subtraction gives us the number of candy bars left after selling 31.
4. Adam had 16 candy bars left after giving some to friends and neighbors, so we add 16.
5. The final result should be equal to 16, as stated in the question.
Thus, the equation N - 31 + (31 - 16) = 16 represents the described situation.