Mistake Master
Mistake Master · SAT Math · Unit 1 · Step-Through Animation
Build the Equation Straight from the Words
You'll learnto turn a word problem into one equation, then answer the exact quantity asked.
A word problem is an equation in disguise, and most of the points are lost before any solving starts — in the translation. Watch the phrase that gets written backward, the rate that gets flipped upside down, and the middle-step number that gets reported as if it were the answer.
words → equation
Before you start
What you're looking at
A translation panel pairing phrases like '5 less than n' with their expressions, beside a card naming three moves: translate, solve, answer.
The question
How do you build the right equation straight from a sentence, before any solving starts?
Watch for
Each phrase maps to one operation; watch the direction — '5 less than n' is n − 5, not 5 − n.
What the symbols mean
The left column holds the words; the right column holds the matching algebra — unknown, rate, and relationship pulled from the phrasing.
The four labels
Every sentence here carries four pieces · the unknown, the rate, the starting amount, and the relationship. Label them in the sentence before you write a single symbol.
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