How could Johnny and his classmate check for reasonableness in the problem where Elyse is 26 years younger than her mom who is 32?

To check for reasonableness in the scenario where Elyse is 26 years younger than her mom, who is 32 years old, it is essential to ensure that the relationships between their ages make logical sense.

Choosing to verify that Elyse’s age is less than her mom’s age is a sound method because it relies on the basic arithmetic relationship defined in the problem. If Elyse is indeed 26 years younger than her mom, then her age must naturally be less than her mom’s age.

Calculating Elyse’s age as 32 - 26 results in 6 years old. When confirmed that Elyse's age of 6 is less than her mom's age of 32, it provides a clear affirmation of the initial condition stated in the problem. This method of checking allows students to verify that their calculations align with the logical constraints of the scenario, ensuring that their findings are not only mathematically correct but also contextually reasonable.