Mrs. Jacobs asks some students in her class to guess her age. She gives the class the hint that she will be 62 in 8 years. The students determine they can use the following equation to determine Mrs. Jacobs’ age:
x + 8 = 62
Use the equation to determine if Mrs. Jacobs is 54, 56, or 58 years old
To determine if Mrs. Jacobs is 54, 56, or 58 years old, we need to substitute each of these values into the equation and see if it holds true.
For x = 54,
54 + 8 = 62,
62 = 62.
This equation holds true.
For x = 56,
56 + 8 = 64,
64 ≠ 62.
This equation does not hold true.
For x = 58,
58 + 8 = 66,
66 ≠ 62.
This equation does not hold true.
Therefore, Mrs. Jacobs is 54 years old.