Fred, Ginger, Julio and Dawn decided to play marbles. Fred emptied his bag of marbles and divided them equally among the four players. Everyone got at least one marble. There was one marble left over.

At that moment Jake arrived and asked to play. They gathered up all Fred's marbles and divided them equally among the five kids. There was still one marble left over.

Just then Maria joined them, so they gathered all the marbles again and divided them equally six ways. There was still one marble left over.

What is the fewest number of marbles that Fred could have had in his bag?

Answer Key:

The smallest number of marbles that Fred could have had in his bag is 61.

If your answer doesn't match ours,

did you understand that each time the marbles were divided, each child got an equal share?
did you remember that there was always one marble left over after dividing them equally?
If your answer is greater than 61, did you remember to look for the smallest number that would work?