how to solve word problems

Question

Dean Baldus enjoys scuba diving. He dives to 36 ft below the surface of a lake. His partner Jeff Balius, dives to 42 ft below the surface, but then ascends 24 ft. Find the vertical distance between Dean and Jeff.

Answer 1

To find this answer, you need to find the distance below the surface that Jeff reaches after he ascends (moves up towards the surface) 24 ft from 42 ft which means you have to subtract 42 from 24 which gets him to 18 ft below the surface. Now, you have to find the vertical distance between Dean and Jeff. Dean is at 36 ft below the surface and Jeff is now at 18 ft after his ascension. You would subtract 36 from 18 and your answer would be 18 ft.