This is a problem of guess and check; there's no easier way to do it.But in this case you must have an odd number of nickels to make the 5 cents, so your answer is 9 nickels.you can check this by multiplying each one by .05: 9*.05=.45 the rest of the coins left, are 8 of them, and their dimes. .10*8=.80 .80+.45= 1.25