Skip Navigation

Utah Core  •  Curriculum Search  •  All Mathematics - Secondary Lesson Plans  •  USBE Mathematics - Secondary website

Mathematics - Secondary Curriculum Mathematics Grade 7
Educational Links

Strand: RATIOS AND PROPORTIONAL RELATIONSHIPS (7.RP)

Analyze proportional relationships and use them to solve real-world and mathematical problems (Standards 7.RP.1-3).

Standard 7.RP.3

Use proportional relationships to solve multistep ratio and percent problems. Examples: simple interest, tax, markups and markdowns, gratuities and commissions, fees, percent increase and decrease, percent error.

  • Anna in D.C.
    The purpose of this task is to give students an opportunity to solve a multi-step percentage problem that can be approached in many ways.
  • Buying Protein Bars and Magazines
    The task reads "Tom wants to buy some protein bars and magazines for a trip. He has decided to buy three times as many protein bars as magazines. Each protein bar costs $0.70 and each magazine costs $2.50. The sales tax rate on both types of items is 6½%. How many of each item can he buy if he has $20.00 to spend?"
  • Chapter 4 - Mathematical Foundation (UMSMP)
    This is Chapter 4 of the Utah Middle School Math: Grade 7 textbook. It provides a Mathematical Foundation for Proportional Relationships and Solving Problems.
  • Chapter 4 - Student Workbook (UMSMP)
    This is Chapter 4 of the Utah Middle School Math: Grade 7 student workbook. It focuses on these topics: Proportional Relationships and Solving Problems.
  • Chess Club
    This problem includes a percent increase in one part with a percent decrease in the remaining and asks students to find the overall percent change. The problem may be solved using proportions or by reasoning through the computations or writing a set of equations.
  • Climbing the steps of El Castillo
    The purpose of this task is for students to solve a straight-forward problem involving a proportional relationship in a context. In order to solve the problem, students must assume that the steps are of uniform height, which looks reasonable given the picture.
  • Comparing Years
    This task asks students to compare two quantities and calculate the percent decrease between the larger and smaller value.
  • Double Discounts
    The goal of this problem is to calculate percent decreases in the context of several (sequential) discounts.
  • Drill Rig
    The purpose of this task is to provide a context for multiplying and dividing signed rational numbers, providing a means for understanding why the signs behave the way they do when finding products.
  • Estimating: Counting Trees
    This lesson unit is intended to help educators assess how well students are able to solve simple problems involving ratio and direct proportion, choose an appropriate sampling method, and collect discrete data and record them using a frequency table.
  • Finding a 10% increase
    Students are asked to complete this task: "5,000 people visited a book fair in the first week. The number of visitors increased by 10% in the second week. How many people visited the book fair in the second week?"
  • Framing a House - student task
    This task has students recreate house plans on graph paper and then determine how many linear feet of wall plate material will be needed.
  • Friends Meeting on Bikes
    Students are asked to complete this task: "Taylor and Anya are friends who live 63 miles apart. Sometimes on a Saturday, they ride toward each other's houses on their bikes and meet in between. One day they left their houses at 8 am and met at 11 am. Taylor rode at 12.5 miles per hour. How fast did Anya ride?"
  • Gotham City Taxis
    The purpose of this task is to give students an opportunity to solve a multi-step ratio problem that can be approached in many ways.
  • Grade 7 Math Module 1:Ratios and Proportional Relationship (EngageNY)
    In this 30-day Grade 7 module, students build upon sixth grade reasoning of ratios and rates to formally define proportional relationships and the constant of proportionality. Students explore multiple representations of proportional relationships by looking at tables, graphs, equations, and verbal descriptions. Students extend their understanding about ratios and proportional relationships to compute unit rates for ratios and rates specified by rational numbers. The module concludes with students applying proportional reasoning to identify scale factor and create a scale drawing.
  • Grade 7 Math Module 4: Percent and Proportional Relationships (EngageNY)
    In Module 4, students deepen their understanding of ratios and proportional relationships from Module 1 by solving a variety of percent problems. They convert between fractions, decimals, and percents to further develop a conceptual understanding of percent and use algebraic expressions and equations to solve multi-step percent problems. An initial focus on relating 100% to the whole serves as a foundation for students. Students begin the module by solving problems without using a calculator to develop an understanding of the reasoning underlying the calculations.
  • Grade 7 Unit 3: Ratio and Proportional Relationships (Georgia Standards)
    The units in this instructional framework emphasize key standards that assist students to develop a deeper understanding of numbers. They learn to express different representations of rational numbers (e.g., fractions, decimals, and percents), discover how to identify and explain the constant of proportionality, and represent proportional relationships and scale drawings within real-world contexts. The Big Ideas that are expressed in this unit are integrated with such routine topics as estimation, mental and basic computation. All of these concepts need to be reviewed throughout the year.
  • Grid and Percent It
    This lesson plans provides a 10 x 10 model so that students can understand how to solve percent problems.
  • Hay Bale Farmer
    This lesson helps students understand volume by having them measure round and square hay bales.
  • How Fast is Usain Bolt?
    This task involves a multi-step conversion between two rates, going from meters per second to miles per hour.
  • Inverse Proportions and Shadows in Practice
    in this interactive a figure's shadow is projected on to a screen. Students then observe how the shadow changes as the figure moves farther away . Students also complete a chart that shows the distance of the figure from the light source and the height of the shadow helping them understand inverse proportions. NOTE: You have to create a Free PBS Account to view this web page, but it is easy to do and worth the effort.
  • Inverse Proportions and Shadows in the Real World
    A tour of drive-in theaters is the focus of this video. Students are asked to observe how the size of an object relates to its distance from the light source. In the classroom activity students do a hands-on experiments using a projector of other light source. NOTE: You have to create a Free PBS Account to view this web page, but it is easy to do and worth the effort.
  • IXL Game: Ratios and proportions
    This game for seventh graders is designed to help them understand ratios and proportions, specifically by estimating population size using proportions. This is just one of many online games that supports the Utah Math core. Note: The IXL site requires subscription for unlimited use.
  • Lincoln's Math Problem
    The purpose of this task is for students to solve a multi-step problem involving simple interest. What is most interesting about this task is that it was one that Abraham Lincoln worked on in his youth (probably around the age of 17 years); it was discovered in some old papers that were authenticated as Lincoln's.
  • Living Wages in CA: Ratio and Rate in the Real World
    The use of infographics helps us understand the costs of basic living expenses. The classroom activity has students look at real-life examples and data to calculate whether the minimum wage in their state can be a living wage. NOTE: You have to create a Free PBS Account to view this web page, but it is easy to do and worth the effort.
  • Manipulating Graphs
    This video demonstrates how to use the slope-intercept of a line to the graph of that line. The classroom activity has them demonstrate their understanding by finding equations for a set of lines through the origin. NOTE: You have to create a Free PBS Account to view this web page, but it is easy to do and worth the effort.
  • Measuring the area of a circle
    This goal of this task is to give students familiarity using the formula for the area of a circle while also addressing measurement error and addresses both 7.G.4 and 7.RP.3.
  • Mixtures
    This activity will help students understand percentages and mixture problems by working with two piles of colored chips.
  • Music Companies, Variation 2
    Given a scenario about share prices students are asked to calculate the value of individual shares, the value of groups of shares, and the difference between the two group amounts.
  • One-Dimensional Scaling To Find Unknown Heights
    An interactive activity helps students understand real-world application of ratios and asks them to scale a model of a T-Rex for a diorama. In the classroom activity students are asked to draw scale models. NOTE: You have to create a Free PBS Account to view this web page, but it is easy to do and worth the effort.
  • Ratios and Proportional Relationships (7.RP) - 7th Grade Core Guide
    The Utah State Board of Education (USBE) and educators around the state of Utah developed these guides for Mathematics Grade 7 Cluster "Analyze Proportional Relationships and Use Them to Solve Real-World and Mathematical Problems." / Standards 1, 2 and 3.
  • Sale!
    The purpose of this task is to engage students in Standard for Mathematical Practice 4, "Model with mathematics." The teacher might use this task after formally teaching 7.RP.1-3. Students could be given the task and asked to collaborate in small groups to solve the questions posed using all the formal instruction on ratio and proportional reasoning.
  • Sand Under the Swing Set
    The purpose of this task is for students to solve a contextual problem where there are multiple entry points to this geometry based concept. The student can choose to solve the problem using a scale factor or a unit rate, but must first must analyze the context of the problem to understand the situation and choose their approach. This task provides opportunities for students to reason about their computations to see if they make sense. This task could be used as an assessment question or for guided instruction on scale factoring and/or unit rate.
  • Selling Computers
    Given this scenario: "The sales team at an electronics store sold 48 computers last month. The manager at the store wants to encourage the sales team to sell more computers and is going to give all the sales team members a bonus if the number of computers sold increases by 30% in the next month," students must determine how many computers the sales team needs to sell to get the bonus.
  • Tax and Tip
    Given this scenario: "After eating at your favorite restaurant, you know that the bill before tax is $52.60 and that the sales tax rate is 8%. You decide to leave a 20% tip for the waiter based on the pre-tax amount," students must calculate the tip amount and the total bill including it.
  • The Price of Bread
    The purpose of this task is for students to calculate the percent increase and relative cost in a real-world context.
  • Two-School Dance
    The purpose of this task is to see how well students students understand and reason with ratios.


UEN logo http://www.uen.org - in partnership with Utah State Board of Education (USBE) and Utah System of Higher Education (USHE).  Send questions or comments to USBE Specialist - Lindsey  Henderson and see the Mathematics - Secondary website. For general questions about Utah's Core Standards contact the Director - Jennifer  Throndsen.

These materials have been produced by and for the teachers of the State of Utah. Copies of these materials may be freely reproduced for teacher and classroom use. When distributing these materials, credit should be given to Utah State Board of Education. These materials may not be published, in whole or part, or in any other format, without the written permission of the Utah State Board of Education, 250 East 500 South, PO Box 144200, Salt Lake City, Utah 84114-4200.