How many miles is it?

Question

The field out behind farmer John's house was a rectangle 1/2 mile long and 1/4 mile wide.  What is the perimeter of the field in miles?

Answer 1

The perimeter P of a rectangle is twice the length L plus twice the width W. As an equation this is:

 

P = (2 x L) + (2 x W)

 

You are given that the rectangle is 1/2 mile long, so L = 1/2 mi, and it is 1/4 mile wide, so W = 1/4 mi.

Plugging these values for L and W into the equation give you:

 

P = (2 x 1/2) + (2 x 1/4) = (2/2) + (2/4) = 1 + (1/2) 

 

So the perimeter is 1 and 1/2 miles long You could also have written 3/2 or 1.5 miles.