Final answer:
Melissa's bank can hold 387 pennies.
Step-by-step explanation:
To solve this problem, we need to determine how many pennies Melissa's bank can hold. We're given that Melissa's bank is initially 0.25 full and after adding 240 pennies, it becomes 5/8 full.
Let's first find the fraction of the bank's capacity that is filled after Melissa adds 240 pennies. If the bank is 0.25 full initially, then it has 0.25 of its capacity filled. Adding 240 pennies increases the fill level to 5/8 of the bank's capacity. So, we can set up the following equation:
0.25 + 240 = (5/8) * C
Where C represents the capacity of the bank.
To solve for C, we can multiply 0.25 by 8 and find that the fill level after adding 240 pennies is 2. The equation becomes:
2 + 240 = (5/8) * C
Simplifying, we have:
242 = (5/8) * C
To solve for C, we can multiply both sides by 8 and divide by 5:
8 * 242 ÷ 5 = C
So, Melissa's bank can hold 387.2 pennies. Since you can't have a fraction of a penny, Melissa's bank can hold 387 pennies.