Question

Melody used the ratio table at the right to find the number of people served with 15 pounds of ground turkey find her error and correct it
Pounds of turkey 2. 1. 15
People served. 6. 5. 19

Answer 1

The first column is the ratio you start with. The next column in the table should be the reduced fraction. To properly reduce a fraction, you divide the same number on the top and bottom of the fraction. Melody instead subtracted 1 in the top and bottom of the fraction to reduce it. She should have divided the top and bottom by 2 to get the second column of 1 pound of turkey and 3 people served.
The final column is designed to be the answer to the initial question of how many people are fed by 15 pounds of ground turkey. Starting with column 2 (the reduced ratio of 1/3), multiply the top by 15 to get 15 pounds of ground turkey. Then do the same to the bottom of the fraction. 3 x 15 = 45 people fed.
So the table should have been
Pounds of turkey    2    1    15
People served        1    3    45
Melody's overriding error was in believing that adding or subtracting numbers to both the top and bottom of a ratio/fraction keep its value the same. Instead, only multiplying or dividing the top and bottom by the same number creates an equivalent fraction.