Aaron had seven times as many sheep a beth, and both together they had 608. How many sheep did each have

Step-by-step explanation:

First, set up your problem:

(1) a = 7b from "Aaron has 7 times as many sheep as Beth"

(2) a + b = 608 from "both together had 608"

We can choose either equation to start with and solve for one of the two variables. Starting with equation (2), add = b to both sides:

a + b = b = 608 - b

So a = 608 - b

Substitute back into equation (1) replacing a with 608 - b:

608-b = 7b

Now we solve for b. First add b to both sides:

608 - b + b = 7b + b

Therefore:

608 = 8b

Divide both sides by 8 to get:

b = 608/8 = 76

Now substitute back into equation (1):

a = 7 * 76 = 532

So the final answer is

a = 532, Aaron had 532 sheep

b = 76, Beth had 76 sheep