A canteen requires 56 kg of rice for 7 days. Assuming the same daily consumption, how many kilograms of rice are required together for the months of April and May?

Introduction / Context:
This question is a direct application of unitary method and average daily consumption. You are given the total rice needed for 7 days and must scale this daily consumption to cover the combined length of April and May. It reinforces understanding of how to move between weekly and monthly requirements by working with a consistent per day rate.

Given Data / Assumptions:

• Rice required for 7 days = 56 kg.
• Daily requirement is constant.
• Month of April has 30 days and month of May has 31 days.
• Total days considered = 30 + 31 = 61 days.

Concept / Approach:
We first compute the rice required per day by dividing the 7 day requirement by 7. Once we know the per day consumption, we multiply it by the total number of days in April and May combined. This is the standard unitary method: first find the value for 1 day, then scale up to many days.

Step-by-Step Solution:
Step 1: Daily rice requirement = 56 kg / 7 days = 8 kg per day.Step 2: Total days for April and May combined = 30 + 31 = 61 days.Step 3: Total rice required for 61 days = 8 kg per day * 61 days.Step 4: 8 * 61 = 488 kg.Step 5: Therefore, the canteen needs 488 kg of rice for April and May together.

Verification / Alternative check:
We can check that 8 kg per day for a week correctly gives 56 kg, so the daily rate is consistent. Then, extending the same rate to 61 days must simply be 8 times 61. The arithmetic 8 * 61 = 488 can be verified by 8 * 60 = 480 and adding 8 more to get 488.

Why Other Options Are Wrong:
Option 468 corresponds to using a slightly smaller daily value or fewer days. Option 498 and 508 overshoot the needed amount and would require either a higher daily rate or more days. Option 520 is even larger and clearly inconsistent with the given weekly requirement.

Common Pitfalls:

• Forgetting that April and May together have 61 days, not 60.
• Dividing by 30 or multiplying incorrectly due to rushed arithmetic.
• Not reducing the 7 day information to a per day basis before scaling up.

Final Answer:
The canteen needs 488 kg of rice for the months of April and May together.