A clock takes 6 seconds to strike 4 times at 4:00. How many seconds will it take to strike 6 times at 6:00? This is an exercise from a child's elementary school homework. A clock takes 6 seconds to strike 4 times at 4:00. How many seconds will it take to strike 6 times at 6:00? My logic: 6 seconds/4 strikes = 1.5 second/strike. 1.5 seconds/strike x 6 strikes = 9 seconds. The author says the answer is **10 seconds**. In the workbook the student is not yet introduced to fractions, so I assume there is another way to solve this.

Let a dash `-` represent one second. If a clock takes 6 seconds to strike 4 times, then it strikes this pattern:

`bong--bong--bong--bong`

Continue the pattern to strike 6 times:

`bong--bong--bong--bong--bong--bong`

Upon counting, there are 10 dashes!

That said, the question is somewhat ambiguous. One suspects that it's an intentional trap, luring the student into a mistake so that they can be taught about fencepost errors.