In an egg and spoon race, children must transport eggs from one end of a course to the other. Points are awarded for each successfully transported, and points are deducted for each egg which drops and breaks.

Jenny transported 5 eggs and dropped 2 eggs for a score of 11 points. Heath transported 8 eggs and dropped 5 eggs, for a score of 5 points.
How many points are deducted for dropping an egg?

How can I solve this problem?
Please help me...

use elimination method in Algebra

Let x be the transported
Let y be the dropped
then make the equation
5x + 2y = 11
8x + 5y = 5
----------------
-8 (5x + 2y = 11)
+5 (8x + 5y = 5)
--------------------
-40x - 16y = -88
+40x + 25y = +25
____________________
+ 9y = -63
----------- divide by 9
9 9
____________________
y = -7
so 7 points were deducted

Thank you very much!

To solve this problem, we need to determine the number of points deducted for dropping an egg.

Let's assume that for every successfully transported egg, Jenny earns x points, and for every dropped egg, she loses y points. Similarly, for Heath, let's assume he earns a points for every successfully transported egg and loses b points for every dropped egg.

Based on the given information, we can set up the following equations:

Jenny's score:
5x - 2y = 11

Heath's score:
8a - 5b = 5

To find the number of points deducted for dropping an egg, we need to determine the value of y and b.

To find y, we can substitute the given values for Jenny's score into the equation:

5x - 2y = 11

Substituting the values we know:
5(x) - 2(y) = 11
5x - 2y = 11

To solve for y, we can isolate the variable:
-2y = 11 - 5x
-2y = -5x + 11
y = (-5x + 11) / -2

Therefore, the number of points deducted for dropping an egg is (-5x + 11) / -2.

Similarly, to find b, we can substitute the given values for Heath's score into the equation:

8a - 5b = 5

Substituting the values we know:
8(a) - 5(b) = 5
8a - 5b = 5

To solve for b, we can isolate the variable:
-5b = 5 - 8a
-5b = -8a + 5
b = (-8a + 5) / -5

Therefore, the number of points deducted for dropping an egg is (-8a + 5) / -5.

To solve this problem, you need to find the number of points deducted for dropping an egg. Let's assume that each successfully transported egg earns 1 point.

First, let's use the given information about Jenny's score to calculate how many points are deducted for dropping an egg.

Jenny transported 5 eggs and dropped 2 eggs, which means she successfully transported (5 - 2) = 3 eggs. Since each successfully transported egg earns 1 point, Jenny earned 3 points.

Her final score was 11 points, so 3 points were earned by transporting eggs. To find the number of points deducted for dropping an egg, subtract the points earned from the final score:

11 points - 3 points = 8 points.

Therefore, 8 points are deducted for dropping an egg.

To confirm the answer, let's also calculate Heath's score using the same logic.

Heath transported 8 eggs and dropped 5 eggs, which means he successfully transported (8 - 5) = 3 eggs. Since each successfully transported egg earns 1 point, Heath earned 3 points.

His final score was 5 points, so 3 points were earned by transporting eggs. To find the number of points deducted for dropping an egg, subtract the points earned from the final score:

5 points - 3 points = 2 points.

The answer is indeed 8 points deducted for dropping an egg, which is consistent with both Jenny's and Heath's scores.