Step by step
The question
Question: find the mean of 2, 4 and 6.
Mean of 2, 4, 6
The mean is the fair share.
We add them all, then share the total equally.
mean: add them all, then ÷ how many
1 Add them all
We add all the numbers, from left to right.
= 2 + 4 + 6
So the total is 12.
= total = 12
2 Count them
Now we count the numbers.
There are 3.
= how many = 3
3 Share equally
We share the total equally: 12 divided by 3.
= mean = 123
12 divided by 3 is 4.
= mean = 4
4 Check
Let's check: if every number were 4, 3 of them would make 4 times 3.
That is 12, the total.
So it is right!
4 × 3 = 12
Let's look back.
First: add them all.
Then: count them.
Then: share equally.
Last: check.
Answer
= mean = 4