Teach students to read the problem for keywords that translate into algebraic functions. Find words such as "together" and "how many" or "remaining" to figure out what mathematical calculation the question is asking the student to perform. Provide students with a list of keywords and the equivalent algebraic functions to help them learn how to translate word problems.
Assist students with determining the relationship among the numbers and other variables in the problem by drawing a picture of the problem. Instruct students to draw a table, make a list or design a chart to keep track of variables. Cross out and ignore irrelevant variables that have no relationship with other variables.
Explain to students how to write an equation based on the relationship among the variables. Place the variables in order and translate the variables into algebraic terms. Place the variables in order according to how the question that is presented. Place the unknown variable (the answer) to the left or right of the "=" sign as presented in the question, such as "Aaron is ten years older than Billy. How old is Aaron?" write as A=10+B.
Solve the equation using algebra. Check the answer by reversing the equation. Compare both sides of the equation, such as A + B = C and C - A = B.