Question

There are $13.30 worth of nickels and dimes in a piggy bank. There are 5 more nickels than dimes. How

many of each are in the piggy bank? You must solve this problem algebraically (no guess and check). Show
each step for full credit. Circle your final answer. (4 points)

Answer 1

• 92 nickels
• 87 dimes

Explanation:

You want the number of nickels and dimes that make up $13.30 when there are 5 more nickels than dimes.

Setup

Let d represent the number of dimes. Then (d+5) is the number of nickels. The total value in cents is ...

10d +5(d+5) = 1330

Solution

Simplifying the equation, we get ...

15d +25 = 1330

15d = 1305 . . . . . . . . subtract 25

d = 87 . . . . . . . . . . . divide by 15

(d+5) = 92 . . . . . . the number of nickels

`\boxed{\text{There are 92 nickels and 87 dimes in the piggy bank.}}`