Interpreting Charts & Tables - Adult ESL ELL High Beginner
- What is the final price Rosa pays for the jacket as a store member? Answer: $54.00 When a store offers two separate discounts — one for a sale and one for membership — you apply them one after the other, not combined into a single calculation. Here's how it works for Rosa: The jacket's sale price is already $60.00 (25% off $80.00). As a member, Rosa gets an extra 10% off that sale price. So you calculate 10% of $60.00: Subtract that from the sale price: That makes D correct — Rosa pays $54.00. Choice A makes a common mistake: adding the two discounts together (25% + 10% = 35%) and applying them all at once to the original price. This gives $52.00, but discounts applied in sequence don't work the same as one combined discount — you'd be taking 10% off a lower base the second time, not off $80.00. Choice B invents a rule that doesn't exist — no store policy says to "split" a discount in half. The $4.00 reduction described there has no basis in the problem. Choice C misreads the store policy. The passage clearly states members get an extra 10% off all sale items, so the member discount absolutely applies here. Study tip: When you see multiple discounts in a word problem, always apply them in order, one at a time. Never add percentages together before calculating — each discount is taken from the new, lower price.
- Which plan will cost Tom the LEAST per month based on his usage? Answer: The Plus plan at $55/month with no extra charges, totaling $55 per month for his 7 GB usage When comparing phone plans, don't just look at the monthly price — you need to calculate the total cost based on actual usage. Tom uses 7 GB per month, so any plan that includes less than 7 GB will have extra charges added on top. The Plus plan (C) includes 10 GB for $55/month, which covers Tom's 7 GB with room to spare. Since he stays within the included data, there are no extra fees. His total is simply $55/month — the lowest of all four options. Here's why the other choices cost more. Choice A uses the Basic plan, which only includes 2 GB. Tom needs 5 extra GB at $10 each: . That's the most expensive option. Choice B uses the Standard plan with 5 GB included, leaving Tom 2 GB short. He pays: . That's close, but still $1 more than C. Choice D uses the Premium plan at $70/month. Although unlimited data sounds appealing, Tom only uses 7 GB — he's paying for much more than he needs, and $70 is higher than $55. Notice that C is slightly cheaper than B even though B's base price is lower. This is the trap — a cheaper base price doesn't always mean a cheaper total. Study tip: Always calculate the total monthly cost including overage fees, not just the listed price. Write out the math for each option before choosing — this prevents you from falling for the "lowest base price" trap.
- Which brand gives Kevin the lowest price per ounce, considering today's prices? Answer: Nature's Pick at 32 oz for $2.80 When comparing prices across different sizes, you need to find the price per ounce — that is, how much you pay for each single ounce. To calculate it, divide the total price by the number of ounces: Let's calculate for each brand: - Sunrise: per oz - Freshly: per oz - Grove Best: per oz - Nature's Pick (sale): per oz - Happy Farm: per oz Nature's Pick has the lowest price per ounce at $0.0875, making B the correct answer. Because Kevin is shopping today, the sale price is available to him right now. Choice A is tempting because bigger containers often cost less per ounce — and Grove Best is cheaper per ounce than most brands — but it's not cheaper than Nature's Pick's sale price. Choice C reflects a common myth that mid-size containers always offer the best value; you must actually calculate to know. Choice D misses the point entirely — the question asks for the lowest price per ounce today, not which price is most consistent. Study tip: Never assume bigger means cheaper per unit. Always divide price by size and compare the numbers directly — don't guess based on container size alone.
- Which course(s) meet ALL of Sofia's requirements? Answer: Both English 101 and Business 101 When a question asks you to find options that meet all of a person's requirements, you must check every condition — not just some of them. Think of it like a checklist: 3 credits ✓, Mon/Wed ✓, starts at 6:00 PM or later ✓, open seats ✓. A course only qualifies if it passes every check. Looking at the table, Sofia needs a course that is (1) 3 credits, (2) on Mon/Wed, (3) starting at 6:00 PM or later, and (4) has open seats. When you scan carefully, both English 101 and Business 101 satisfy every condition: both are 3 credits, both meet Mon/Wed, both start exactly at 6:00 PM, and both have open seats (12 and 3, respectively). That makes C the correct answer. Choice A is wrong because it claims Business 101 is full — but the table clearly shows 3 open seats. Always read the data carefully before assuming. Choice B makes the opposite error, claiming English 101 has a scheduling conflict. The passage gives no information about Sofia's other courses, so you cannot invent conflicts that aren't stated. Choice D points to Computer Basics, which does meet on Mon/Wed and starts after 6:00 PM — but it is only 2 credits, not 3. It fails Sofia's credit requirement, so it doesn't qualify. A helpful strategy: when multiple conditions are listed, create a mental checklist and test each answer against every condition. On this type of question, wrong answers usually fail just one condition — so slow down and don't stop checking early.
- Which special(s) can Lena order that include both soup and a sandwich, and that she can afford with $10.00? Answer: Special A only When reading a chart like this, your job is to check two conditions at once: does the item match what the customer wants, and can she afford it? Both conditions must be true. Lena wants soup and a sandwich, and she has $10.00. Scan the "Items Included" column for specials that contain both soup and a sandwich. That gives you Special A (Soup + Sandwich) and Special E (Soup + Sandwich + Drink). Now check the lunch prices: Special A costs $9.50, and Special E costs $11.00. Since Lena only has $10.00, she can afford Special A but not Special E . She also arrives at 1:45 PM, which is within the 11 AM–2 PM window, so the specials are available. Answer A is correct. Answer B is wrong because it uses the regular price to decide what Lena can afford, not the lunch price. Always use the price she actually pays — the lunch price. Answer C is wrong for two reasons: Special C includes soup and a salad, not a sandwich, and the question asks about fixed specials, not mixing items separately. Answer D is wrong because Special E does include soup and a sandwich, but its lunch price of $11.00 exceeds Lena's $10.00 budget — "best value" doesn't matter if she can't pay for it. Study tip: On chart-reading questions, underline every condition in the question before looking at the table. Here, that means "soup," "sandwich," AND "within $10.00" — all three must be satisfied together.
- Can Carlos wash and fully dry his 18-pound load, and if so, which machine size should he use? Answer: Yes — Carlos should use the Large machine. Washing costs $4.50 and drying for 60 minutes costs $2.50, for a total of $7.00, which is within his $8.00 budget. When solving a laundromat math problem like this, you need to do two things: find the right machine size for the load weight, then calculate the total cost including both washing and drying. Carlos has 18 pounds of laundry. Look at the capacity column — the Medium machine only holds up to 15 lbs, so it won't fit his load. The Large machine holds up to 25 lbs, which covers 18 lbs. That's the correct machine to consider. Since drying a full load takes 60 minutes, and the price is listed per 30 minutes, Carlos needs two 30-minute drying cycles: That total is under his $8.00 budget, so yes, Carlos can do his laundry — answer A is correct. Answer B is wrong because the Medium machine only holds up to 15 lbs — Carlos's 18-pound load simply won't fit, no matter the price. Answer C incorrectly says Carlos cannot wash his laundry, but $7.00 is clearly less than $8.00, not more — this is a reading trap designed to confuse you. Answer D correctly identifies the Extra Large machine's cost as $8.50, but that exceeds his budget, making it the wrong choice even though the machine would fit the load. The key strategy here: always check capacity first, then calculate costs, and don't forget that 60-minute drying means paying for two 30-minute intervals.
- Based on the schedule above, which class meets ALL of Maria's requirements? Answer: Zumba on Tuesday at 6:00 PM for $10, which is after 5:00 PM and under $11 When a question asks you to find an option that meets all of a person's requirements, treat each requirement like a filter. Eliminate any choice that fails even one condition. Here, Maria has three requirements: (1) she is not a member, (2) the cost must be less than $11, and (3) the class must be after 5:00 PM. Working through the table with all three filters, Zumba checks every box — it is open to non-members, costs $10 (which is under $11), and meets at 6:00 PM (which is after 5:00 PM). That makes B the correct answer. Now let's see why the other choices fail. A (Pilates) looks attractive because it costs $9 and starts at 5:30 PM, but look at the "Members Only?" column — Pilates is restricted to members. Since Maria is not a member, this class is not available to her. C (Cardio Kickboxing) is open to non-members and is after 5:00 PM, but it costs exactly $11 — Maria needs a class that costs less than $11, so $11 does not qualify. This is a classic trap: the question says "less than," not "less than or equal to." D (Swimming) fails two filters at once — it costs $12 and is members only, so it is actually the worst option for Maria, not the most affordable one. Study tip: Whenever a question lists multiple conditions, write them down quickly as a checklist. Cross off any answer that fails even one condition — you'll avoid traps that look partially right.
- How much does Marco owe in late fees when he returns the items? Answer: $12.00 When a question gives you a table of rules, your job is to apply each rule carefully to each item — don't combine items together or use one rule for everything. Here's how to work through Marco's situation: DVDs have a 7-day loan period, and Marco returned them after 10 days, so they are 3 days late. Video games also have a 7-day loan period, making the video game 3 days late as well. Now apply the fees per item, per day: That confirms D is correct. Choice A makes the mistake of treating each item type as one flat charge rather than multiplying by each individual item and each day late — it also invents an extra "additional day's fee" that doesn't exist in the rules. Choice B uses $1.00 per day for every item regardless of type, ignoring that DVDs and video games have different late fees listed in the table. Choice C incorrectly treats the two DVDs as a single group with one flat $1.00 charge, misreading "per day" as "per group." Study tip: When a question has a table, underline or mentally note the units — "per item" and "per day" both matter. Always multiply across all three values: number of items × fee rate × days late.