To solve this problem using a unit rate, we can divide the number of school-supply kits by the number of minutes it takes to put them together.
40 school-supply kits / 8 minutes = 5 school-supply kits per minute
To determine how many school-supply kits can be put together in 30 minutes, we can multiply the unit rate by the number of minutes:
5 school-supply kits per minute * 30 minutes = 150 school-supply kits.
Therefore, the volunteers can put together 150 school-supply kits in 30 minutes.