A rectangle is 4 times as long as it is wide. If the length is increased by 4 inches and the width is decreased by 1 inch, the area will be 60 square inches. What were the dimensions of the original rectangle?
Solution:
Step 1: Assign variables:
Let x = original width of rectangle
Sketch the figure
Step 2: Write out the formula for area of rectangle.
A = lw
Step 3: Plug in the values from the question and from the sketch.