I put the story problem in the description

Question

What polonomial equation would I use to solve this?

 

I know the answer is 2 but do not know how to show my work to get to the answer.

 

Four children are playing with their marbles. John and Scott have the same number of marbles and they both have 1 more marble than Denise. Amber has 1 marble less than Denise. If all the number of marbles of each child is multiplied, the product would be 18. How many marbles does each child have?

 

 

How do I show my work to get to that answer?

Answer 1

D represents the number of marbles Denise has

D - 1 represents the number of marbles Amber has

D + 1 represents the number of marbles John has

D + 1 represents the number of marbles Scott has

 

D(D - 1)(D + 2)(D + 2) = 18

 

Not sure how a fourth degree could be solved.

 

I agree that 2 is the solution, by trial and error.

Answer 2

3,3,2,1   Is the right answer.