To determine the maximum number of bracelets Mr. Gonzales can buy, we need to account for both the cost of the shirt and the cost of the bracelets. The correct equation should represent the total cost of the shirt plus the total cost of the bracelets not exceeding his budget of $36.
The cost of the shirt is $22, and the cost of each bracelet is $3.50. If \( x \) is the number of bracelets, the total cost can be expressed as:
\[ 3.50x + 22 \leq 36 \]
To reformulate this as an equation, we can set it equal to $36 (since we're looking for the maximum number he could buy):
\[ 3.50x + 22 = 36 \]
So the correct choice is:
3.50x + 22 = 36
Now, let's solve this equation to determine how many bracelets Mr. Gonzales could buy:
- Subtract $22 from both sides of the equation:
\[ 3.50x = 36 - 22 \] \[ 3.50x = 14 \]
- Now, divide both sides by $3.50 to solve for \( x \):
\[ x = \frac{14}{3.50} \] This simplifies to:
\[ x = 4 \]
Therefore, Mr. Gonzales can buy 4 bracelets.
So, the final answer for the number of bracelets is:
x = 4.