A pseudo- concrete representation of a sales price problem is shown below. This is what I use as an entry point for teaching these problems.
The entire shape represents the total price of $80. This is 100%, which in student language is “the whole thing.”
The discount rate is 25%. Cut with scissors to lop off the 25% which also lops off $20, which is the actual discount. Explain to the student that this 25% is part of the “whole thing.”
What remains is 75% or $60. This is the “new price” which is called the sales price.
The photo above shows a scaffolded handout to break down elapsed time for a student. The problem is divided into 3 parts: time from 10:50 to 11:00, time from 3:15, time from 11:00 to 3:00 (see photo below). This is based on how we may compute elapsed time by focusing on minutes then on hours. Notice the 3 clocks (in photo above) with no hands which allows the student to engage the clocks by having to determine and show how many minutes passed, e.g. 10:50 to 11:00.
