Their rectangular door frame is 3 ft wide and 6.5ft high. approximate the greatest length of its diameter so that the table can be placed into the dining room?

Question

This is a 6th grade Math Enrichment problem that my son got today.  He learned the pythagorean Theorem today so I believe that is how to solve this problem?

Answer 1

You are correct in selecting the Pythagorean Theorem (and kudos to you for working with your son!).

The table is put in on a slant that is the hypotenuse of a right triangle

 

d² = 3² + 6.5²                    Theorem

d² = 9 + 42.45                   square

d² = 51.25                          combine

d ≈ 7.15891                       take square root of both sides

 

I would say 7 feet is about as big (should leave a little wiggle room).