Question

Shawna made some chili with 1/5 of a can of black beans and 3 1/5 cans of pinto beans. How many cans of beans did Shawna use in all?

Write your answer as a fraction or as a whole or mixed number.

Answer 1

To find the total number of cans of beans Shawna used, we need to add the amount of black beans to the amount of pinto beans.

Shawna used:
- \( \frac{1}{5} \) of a can of black beans
- \( 3 \frac{1}{5} \) cans of pinto beans

First, let's convert \( 3 \frac{1}{5} \) into an improper fraction:
\[
3 \frac{1}{5} = \frac{3 \times 5 + 1}{5} = \frac{15 + 1}{5} = \frac{16}{5}
\]

Now, we can add the amounts of beans:
\[
\frac{1}{5} + \frac{16}{5} = \frac{1 + 16}{5} = \frac{17}{5}
\]

To convert \( \frac{17}{5} \) into a mixed number, we can divide 17 by 5:
\[
17 \div 5 = 3 \quad \text{with a remainder of } 2
\]
Thus, \( \frac{17}{5} \) can be expressed as:
\[
3 \frac{2}{5}
\]

Therefore, the total number of cans of beans Shawna used is:
\[
\frac{17}{5} \text{ or } 3 \frac{2}{5}
\]