How to find the answer to an arithmetic sequence

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SSAT Upper Level Quantitative › How to find the answer to an arithmetic sequence

Questions 1 - 10
1

Find the term of the arithmetic sequence:

Explanation

To find any term in an arithmetic sequence, use the following formula:

  • is the term we want to find
  • is the first term of the sequence
  • is the number of the term we want to find
  • is the common difference

For this sequence,

Now, plug in the information to find the value of the 8th term.

2

Brandon is improving very quickly at math. He improves at a rate of points per test. If he scored a on his first test, on his second test, and on his third test, what score will he get on his test?

Explanation

You should recognize this as an arithmetic sequence:

The question is asking you to find the 8th term in this particular sequence.

To find any term in an arithmetic sequence, use the following formula:

  • is the term we want to find
  • is the first term of the sequence
  • is the number of the term we want to find
  • is the common difference

Using the information given from the question,

Now, plug in the information to find the value of the 8th term.

3

Find the term for the following arithmetic sequence:

Explanation

To find any term in an arithmetic sequence, use the following formula:

  • is the term we want to find
  • is the first term of the sequence
  • is the number of the term we want to find
  • is the common difference

For this sequence,

Now, plug in the information to find the value of the 7th term.

4

Leon makes for the first hour of work, for his second hour of work, for his third hour of work, and so on. How much will he make for his hour of work?

Explanation

You should recognize this as an arithmetic sequence:

The question is asking you to find the 12th term in this particular sequence.

To find any term in an arithmetic sequence, use the following formula:

  • is the term we want to find
  • is the first term of the sequence
  • is the number of the term we want to find
  • is the common difference

Using the information given from the question,

Now, plug in the information to find the value of the 12th term.

5

Julia gets better every time she plays basketball. In her first game, she scored points. In her second game, she scored points, and in her third game, she scored points. If she continues to improve her basketball skills at this same pace, how many points should she be scoring by her game?

Explanation

You should recognize this as an arithmetic sequence:

The question is asking you to find the 12th term in this particular sequence.

To find any term in an arithmetic sequence, use the following formula:

  • is the term we want to find
  • is the first term of the sequence
  • is the number of the term we want to find
  • is the common difference

Using the information given from the question,

Now, plug in the information to find the value of the 12th term.

6

Find the term of the following arithmetic sequence:

Explanation

To find any term in an arithmetic sequence, use the following formula:

  • is the term we want to find
  • is the first term of the sequence
  • is the number of the term we want to find
  • is the common difference

For this sequence,

Now, plug in the information to find the value of the 10th term.

7

The angle measures of a pentagon form an arithmetic sequence. The smallest angle measures . What does the largest angle measure?

Explanation

The measures of the five angles of a pentagon add up to , based on the formula .

If the measures of the five angles form an arithmetic sequence, the angles have measures increasing by a some common difference, .

Given this pattern and the total sum, we can solve for the common difference.

The greatest of the angle measures is given by .

8

Find the term of the following arithmetic sequence:

Explanation

To find any term in an arithmetic sequence, use the following formula:

  • is the term we want to find
  • is the first term of the sequence
  • is the number of the term we want to find
  • is the common difference

For this sequence,

Now, plug in the information to find the value of the 9th term.

9

Find the sum of the first terms of the following arithmetic sequence:

Explanation

To find the sum of a certain number of terms in an arithmetic sequence, use the following formula:

  • the number of the terms you have
  • the first term of the sequence
  • term of the sequence

To find the sum, we need to first find the 9th term of the sequence.

To find any term in an arithmetic sequence, use the following formula:

  • is the term we want to find
  • is the first term of the sequence
  • is the number of the term we want to find
  • is the common difference

Using the information given from the question,

Now, plug in the information to find the value of the 9th term.

Now that we know the 9th term of the sequence, we can plug in that value into the equation for the sum to find what these first 9 terms add up to.

10

Find the term of the following arithmetic sequence:

Explanation

To find any term in an arithmetic sequence, use the following formula:

  • is the term we want to find
  • is the first term of the sequence
  • is the number of the term we want to find
  • is the common difference

For this sequence,

Now, plug in the information to find the value of the 12th term.

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