There are 12 monkeys at the zoo.  The zoo keeper wants to put the monkeys in cages. He wants the same number of monkeys in each cage.  There are 3 cages.  How many monkeys will he put in each cage?

Clue #1:  Think about the number of monkeys at the zoo.  

Clue #2:  Do you see any key words that would help you solve the problem?

Clue #3:  Think 3  X ___  = 12

If there are 12 monkeys and he puts them in 3 cages, each cage would have 4 monkeys.  So the answer is 4.  

Mrs. Taylor has a collection of books on EPIC that she wants a group of students to read.  She has books about sharks, whales, sea lions, and penguins.  She wants to assign each student the same number of books.  If she has 15 books and there are 5 students in the group, how many books will each student get?

What do we know?

What are we trying to find out?

What clue words do you see that will help you solve the problem?  

Is there an equation that would help you find the answer?

If there are 15 books and 5 students, each student would get 3 books each.