Home›Lesson Plans›Mathematics›Ratios & Proportional Relationships · Grade 7

Percent Applications: Tax, Tip & Discount

Students use percents in the real world — calculating discounts at the store, tips at a restaurant, and sales tax — learning to find the percent amount and then add or subtract it from the original price.

Grade 7Percents50 minutes1 class periodGradual ReleaseExplicit teaching4 StandardsCommon Core
Start the Lesson
Lesson at a Glance

Everything you need before the bell rings

Learning Objectives

Students will be able to…

  • ✓Find a percent of a number.
  • ✓Calculate a discount and final price.
  • ✓Calculate a tip and total.
  • ✓Calculate sales tax and total.
Essential Question

A $40 shirt is 25% off, plus you leave a tip and pay tax elsewhere. How do you figure out what you actually pay?

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Lesson Phases
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Vocabulary Terms
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Standards Aligned
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Interactive Task
Model · Interactive Tool

The Percent Calculator

Project this and switch between discount, tip, and tax. Change the price and percent to see the amount and the final total.

💵 Discount, tip, or tax — find the totalTry it
Price: $40
Percent: 20%

The Lesson · Gradual Release (I Do · We Do · You Do)

50 minutes, five moves

Tap any phase to open the teacher moves and student actions.

1

Launch — What Do I Pay?

5 min

A $40 shirt, 25% off — what’s the real price?

👩‍🏫 Teacher Moves

  • Show a discount problem.
  • Ask for the final price.
  • Set the goal: percent applications.

🎒 Student Actions

  • Estimate the price.
  • Wonder how to find it.
  • Predict the steps.
2

I Do — Find the Amount

10 min

Teacher models.

👩‍🏫 Teacher Moves

  • Find the percent amount (25% of 40).
  • Subtract for a discount.
  • Add for a tip or tax.

🎒 Student Actions

  • Find the amount.
  • Subtract for discount.
  • Add for tip/tax.
3

We Do — Calculate Together

13 min

Class drives the Percent Calculator.

👩‍🏫 Teacher Moves

  • Switch modes; change price/percent.
  • Read the amount and total.
  • Estimate to check.

🎒 Student Actions

  • Set the values.
  • Read the total.
  • Estimate to check.
4

You Do — On Your Own

12 min

Students solve percent problems.

👩‍🏫 Teacher Moves

  • Assign discount, tip, tax problems.
  • Show the two steps.
  • Solve a multi-step problem.

🎒 Student Actions

  • Solve each type.
  • Show the steps.
  • Do a multi-step.
5

Close — Close

5 min

One purchase.

👩‍🏫 Teacher Moves

  • Give a price + percent.
  • Find the total.
  • Hand out the exit ticket.

🎒 Student Actions

  • Find the total.
  • Explain the steps.
  • Complete the exit ticket.
Standards Alignment

Built to the standards you report on

Aligned to the Common Core State Standards for Mathematics, including the Standards for Mathematical Practice.

CCSS
7.RP.3

Use proportional relationships to solve multistep percent problems (tax, tip, discount, markup).

CCSS
7.RP.2

Recognize and represent proportional relationships.

CCSS
7.EE.3

Solve multi-step real-life problems with rational numbers.

SMP
MP.4

Model with mathematics using percents.

Differentiation

One lesson, every learner

Multilingual Learners

ELL / EMERGING READERS
  • Percent-of steps with a calculator.
  • Sentence frame: “___% of $___ is $___.”
  • Use real store ads/menus.

Support & Access

IEP / 504
  • Start with 10% and 25%.
  • Use a calculator.
  • Do discount before tip/tax.

Stretch & Extend

GIFTED / EARLY FINISHERS
  • Solve markup problems.
  • Find the original price from a sale price.
  • Combine a discount and tax.
Materials

What to gather

  • 📽️Projector / board
  • 📓Math notebooks
  • 💻The Percent Calculator
  • 📰Store ads/menus
  • 🧮Calculators
  • 🎫Exit-ticket slips
Vocabulary

Key terms — hover for a quick definition

percentout of one hundreddiscountan amount taken off the pricetipextra money for servicetaxmoney added for the governmentmarkupan amount added to a costoriginal pricethe price before changesfinal pricethe price you actually payproportiontwo equal ratios
Evaluate

Exit Ticket

Preview the three formative checks. Tap “Sample answer” to see what mastery looks like — hide them before you print for students.

QUESTION 1
What is 25% of $40?
$10.
QUESTION 2
A $40 shirt is 25% off. What is the sale price?
$30 ($40 − $10).
QUESTION 3
You add a 20% tip to a $30 bill. What is the total?
$36 ($30 + $6 tip).

Going deeper? Work backwards.

Have students find the original price when they know the sale price and the percent off. A printable percent-problems sheet is in the Math library.

Study · Flashcards

Study the key terms

Tap a card to flip it, then rate whether you knew it. Built from this lesson’s vocabulary.

🃏 Percent ApplicationsFlip
Card 1
Term
Tap to flip →
Meaning
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Practice · Quiz

Check your understanding

A quick self-check with instant feedback, drawn from this lesson’s key terms.

📝 Percent ApplicationsQuiz
Score: 0
1 / 6
Question 1
0%

Nice work!

Practice · Worksheet

Printable worksheet

A print-and-go review sheet with a built-in answer key. Tap “Show answer key” to reveal answers, or print the clean version for students.

🖨️ Percent ApplicationsPrint
Name: ________________________
Date: ____________

Part A · Write the word that matches each meaning

Word bank: discount, final price, markup, original price, percent, proportion, tax, tip
  1. an amount taken off the price
  2. money added for the government
  3. out of one hundred
  4. extra money for service
  5. an amount added to a cost
  6. the price before changes
  7. two equal ratios
  8. the price you actually pay

Part B · Show what you learned

  1. What is 25% of $40?
  2. A $40 shirt is 25% off. What is the sale price?
  3. You add a 20% tip to a $30 bill. What is the total?
Answer key — Part A: 1) discount · 2) tax · 3) percent · 4) tip · 5) markup · 6) original price · 7) proportion · 8) final price
Part B: 1) $10. 2) $30 ($40 − $10). 3) $36 ($30 + $6 tip).