PROBLEM SOLVING AND

REASONING
A. POLYAs 4 STEPS IN
PROBLEM SOLVING
B. PROBLEM SOLVING
STRATEGIES
C. MATHEMATICAL
PROBLEMS INVOLVING
PATTERNS
D. RECREATION PROBLEMS
At the end of the lesson, the students are expected to:
1. Apply Polya’s four step process to solve
problems involving numbers, consecutive
integers, patterns and recreational problems
2. Familiarize with different problem solving
strategies
 POLYAs 4 STEPS IN PROBLEM
SOLVING
Whether you like it or not, whether you are
going to be a mother, father, teacher,
computer programmer, scientist, researcher,
business owner, coach, mathematician,
manager, doctor, lawyer, banker (the list can
go on and on),  problem solving is
everywhere.  Some people think that you
either can do it or you can't.  Contrary to that
belief, it can be a learned trade.  Even the best
athletes and musicians had some coaching
along the way and lots of practice.  That's
what it also takes to be good at problem
solving.
In 1945 George Polya
published the book How
To Solve It which quickly
became his most prized
publication. It sold over
one million copies and
has been translated into
17 languages. In this The Father of
book he identifies four Problem Solving
basic principles of
problem solving.
Polya’s Four-Step Problem-
Solving Strategy

1.Understand the Problem

2.Devise a Plan
3.Carry out the Plan
4.Review the Solution/ Look
Back
Understand the Problem

This part of Polya’s four-step

strategy is often overlooked. You
must have a clear understanding
of the problem. To help you
focus on understanding the
problem, consider the following
questions:
• Can you restate the problem in your
own words?
• Can you determine what is known
about these types of problems?
• Is there missing information that, if
known, would allow you to solve the
problem?
• Is there extraneous information that is
not needed to solve the problem?
• What is the goal?
Devise a Plan

Successful problem solvers

use a variety of techniques
when they attempt to solve a
problem. Here are some
frequently used procedures
• Make a list of the known
information
• Make a list of information that is
needed
• Draw a diagram
• Make an organized list that shows all
the possibilities
• Make a table or a chart
• Work backwards
• Try to solve a similar but simpler
problem
• Look for a pattern
• Write an equation. If necessary,
define what each variable
represents
• Perform an experiment
• Guess at a solution and then check
your result.
Carry out the plan

Once you have

devised a plan, you
must carry it out
• Work Carefully
• Keep an accurate and neat
record of all your attempts
• Realize that some of your initial
plans will not work and that you
may have to devise another plan
or modify your existing plan
Review the Solution

Once you have found a

solution, check the
solution
• Ensure that the solution is
consistent with the facts of the
problem
• Interpret the solution in the
context of the problem
• Ask yourself whether there are
generalizations of the solution that
could apply to other problems
Apply POLYA’S Strategy

Twice the difference of a

number and 1 is 4 more than
that number.  Find the number.
Step 1: UNDERSTAND THE PROBLEM
Make sure that you read the question
carefully several times. 
Since we are looking for a number, we
will let 
  x = a number
Step 2:  DEVISE A PLAN (TRANSLATE)

 
Step 3: CARRY OUT THE PLAN
(SOLVE)

Remove ( ) by using distributive

property
Get all the x terms on one side

 
Get the inverse of -2 then add it
to both sides of the equation
Step 4:  LOOK BACK (CHECK AND
INTERPRET)

If you take twice the difference of

6 and 1, that is the same as 4 more
than 6, so this does check.
   

FINAL ANSWER:  The number is 6.

PROBLEM SOLVING
STRATEGIES
Problem Solving Strategy
(Guess and Test)
Make a guess and test to see
if it satisfies the demands of
the problem. If it doesn't,
alter the guess appropriately
and check again. Keep doing
this until you find a solution.
Example:
Mr. Jones has a total of 25
chickens and cows on his
farm. How many of each does
he have if all together there
are 76 feet?
Step 1: Understanding the problem
We are given in the problem that there
are 25 chickens and cows.
All together there are 76 feet.
Chickens have 2 feet and cows have 4
feet.
We are trying to determine how many
cows and how many chickens Mr.
Jones has on his farm.
Step 2: Devise a plan
Going to use Guess and test along with
making a tab
Many times the strategy below is used with
guess and test.
Make a table and look for a pattern:
Procedure: Make a table reflecting the data
in the problem. If done in an orderly way,
such a table will often reveal patterns and
relationships that suggest how the problem
can be solved.
Step 3: Carry out the plan:

Number of chicken Number of cow Total number of

Chickens Cows feet feet feet
20 5 40 20 60
21 4 42 16 58
Notice we are going in the wrong direction! The total number of feet is
decreasing!

19 6 38 24 62

Better! The total number of feet are increasing!

15 10 30 40 70
12 13 24 52 76
Step 4: Looking back:
Check: 12 + 13 = 25 heads
24 + 52 = 76 feet.
We have found the solution to this
problem. I could use this strategy
when there are a limited number of
possible answers and when two
items are the same but they have
one characteristic that is different.
Problem Solving Strategy (Working
Backwards)
This is considered a strategy in
many schools. If you are given an
answer, and the steps that were
taken to arrive at that answer, you
should be able to determine the
starting point.
Example:
Karen is thinking of a number. If you double it,
and subtract 7, you obtain 11. What is Karen’s
number?
1. We start with 11 and work backwards.
2. The opposite of subtraction is addition. We
will add 7 to 11. We are now at 18.
3. The opposite of doubling something is
dividing by 2. 18/2 = 9
4. This should be our answer. Looking back:
9 x 2 = 18 -7 = 11
5. We have the right answer.
Problem Solving Strategy (Looking for
a Pattern)
Definition: A sequence is a pattern
involving an ordered arrangement of
numbers.
We first need to find a pattern.
Ask yourself as you search for a pattern
– are the numbers growing steadily
larger? Steadily smaller? How is each
number related?
Example : 1, 4, 9, 16 … find the next 2
numbers. It looks like each successive
number is increase by the next odd
number. 1 + 3 = 4.
4+5=9
9 + 7 = 16
So the next number would be
16 +9 = 25
25 + 11 = 36
Problem Solving Strategy (Make a List)
Example 1: Can perfect squares end in a 2 or a 3?
List all the squares of the numbers 1 to 20.

1 4 9 16 25 36 49 64 81 100 121 144 169 196 225

256 289 324 361 400.

Now look at the number in the ones digits. Notice

they are 0, 1, 4, 5, 6, or 9. Notice none of the
perfect squares end in 2, 3, 7, or 8. This list
suggests that perfect squares cannot end in a 2, 3,
7 or 8.
are Rubik's Cubes, magic squares, fractals, logic puzzles and 
mathematical chess problems, but this area of mathematics
includes the aesthetics and culture of mathematics, peculiar or
amusing stories and coincidences about mathematics, and the
personal lives of mathematicians.
in order to play it.
MAGIC SQUARE
There is an ancient Chinese legend that goes
something like this. Some three thousand years ago, a
great flood happened in China. In order to calm the
vexed river god, the people made an offering to the
river Lo, but he could not be appeased. Each time they
made an offering, a turtle would appear from the river.
One day a boy noticed marks on the back of the turtle
that seemed to represent the numbers 1 to 9. The
numbers were arranged in such a way that each line
added up to 15. Hence the people understood that
their offering was not the right amount.
The markings on the back of the turtle were in fact a
magic square. A magic square is a square grid filled
with numbers, in such a way that each row, each
column, and the two diagonals add up to the same
number. Here's what the magic square from the Lo
Shu would have looked like. It has three rows and
three columns, and if you add up the numbers in any
row, column or diagonal, you always get 15.

The Lo Shu magic square

References:
https://www.wtamu.edu/academic/anns/mps/math/mathlab/int
_algebra/int_alg_tut8_probsol.htm

https://slideplayer.com/slide/6632622/
https://math.libretexts.org/Courses/Monroe_Community_Colleg
e/MTH_155_Mathematics_for_Elementary_Teachers_I_(placeho
lder)/Chapter_1%3A_Problem_Solving_Strategies/Module_1%3A
_Problem_Solving_Strategies

https://www.slideshare.net/iammridul/recreational-
mathematics
OUTPUT 1
I. Apply Polya’s Strategy in answering the following
problems

1. A baseball team won two out of their last four games. In

how many different orders could they have two wins and
two losses in four games?

2. I purchased a new TV at a local electronics store for PHP

54,125, which included tax.  If the tax rate is 8.25%, find the
price of the TV before they added the tax.

3. In a blueprint of a rectangular room, the length is 1 inch more

than 3 times the width.  Find the dimensions if the perimeter
is to be 26 inches.
4. Leonardo da Vinci was a famous artist during the renaissance
period. He wrote in his notebook that “from the top to the
bottom of the chin is the sixth part of the face, and it is the fifty-
fourth part of the man.” Suppose the distance from the top to the
bottom of the chin of Noreine is 1.2 inches. Using Leonardo da
Vinci’s measurements, find the height of Noreine.

5. The ages of 3 sisters are 3 consecutive even integers.  If the sum

of twice the 1st even integer, 3 times the 2nd even integer, and
the 3rd even integer is 34, find each age.
II. Find a Pattern and Work it out!

1.
2. The table below shows numbers placed into groups
I, II, III, IV, V and VI. In which groups would the
following numbers belong?
a) 25
b) 46
c) 269

I 1 7 13 19 25
II 2 8 14 20 26
III 3 9 15 21 27
IV 4 10 16 22
V 5 11 17 23
VI 6 12 18 24
III. Using construction/ color/ art paper make
a tangram pattern and create five (5) object
using the puzzle. Describe your creation. Use
the video below as your guidance.