Question: Matt wants to repaint his house. He needs to paint three walls in his living room, which is a square 40 feet by 40 feet, and all four walls in his bedroom, which is a rectangle 10 feet by 12 feet. All the walls in Matt's house are 10 feet tall. How many total square feet of wall does Matt need to paint? Think carefully first, then make a decision:
First figure out how many square feet a wall in the living room is: 40 feet length * 10 feet height = 400 square feet. Now multiply by 3 since Matt needs to paint three living room walls: 400 square feet / wall * 3 walls = 1200 square feet. Next figure out how many square feet the long walls in the bedroom are: 12 feet * 10 feet = 120 square feet. There are two long walls, so multiply this figure by 2: 120 square feet / wall * 2 walls = 240 square feet. Next figure out how many square feet the short walls in the bedroom are: 10 feet * 10 feet = 100 square feet. Multiply this by 2, since there are two short walls: 100 square feet / wall * 2 walls = 200 square feet. Finally, add up the square footage from the three living room walls, the two short bedroom walls, and the two long bedroom walls: 1200 square feet + 240 square feet + 200 square feet = 1640 square feet. So the answer is 1640.