Question Video: Writing an Algebraic Expression for a Given Situation Mathematics • First Year of Preparatory School

Video Transcript

Given that Daniel is seven 𝑐 years old now, write an expression for his age five years ago.

If Daniel’s age is seven 𝑐, then his age five years ago will be five less than seven 𝑐. Thus, we need to subtract five from seven 𝑐. We recall that the order of operations, often denoted by the acronym PEMDAS, tells us that multiplication comes before subtraction. We can therefore subtract five from the expression directly and can conclude that Daniel’s age five years ago is given by the expression seven 𝑐 minus five.