Age problems

Hello, and welcome to Myriora Maths! Dad is thirty-two years older than Sam. In five years, Dad will be three times as old as Sam. How old is Sam now?

Here's the key idea. The age gap never changes. When Sam gets one year older, so does Dad. So in five years, Dad is still thirty-two years older.

Let's draw bars for their ages in five years. Sam's age is one bar. Dad is three times as old, so his age is three bars. The difference is two bars. And the difference is always thirty-two.

So two bars make thirty-two. One bar is sixteen. In five years, Sam will be sixteen. So Sam is eleven now!

Let's check. In five years, Sam is sixteen, and Dad is sixteen plus thirty-two: forty-eight. Forty-eight is three times sixteen. It works!

A common mistake is forgetting the five years. Sixteen is Sam's age in five years, not now. Always check which time the bars are for, then go back to today.

Your turn! Mum is twenty-four years older than Ella. In two years, Mum will be four times as old as Ella. How old is Ella now? You've got twenty seconds, or pause the video if you need more time. Go!

Time's up! Four bars and one bar: the gap is three bars. Three bars make twenty-four, so one bar is eight. In two years, Ella is eight, so she's six now!

Quick review. The age gap never changes. Draw bars for the ages at the time the question talks about. The gap in bars equals the gap in years. Then go back to today. See you next time!