Question

Ricardo spent half of his allowance on school supplies. Then he bought a snack for $5.25. When he arrived home, he had $22.50 left. Write and solve an equation to find the amount of Ricardo’s allowance a.

Answer 1

Let \( x \) be the amount of Ricardo’s allowance.

1. First, he spent half of his allowance on school supplies, which can be expressed as \( \frac{x}{2} \).
2. Then he spent $5.25 on a snack.
3. After these expenses, he had $22.50 left.

We can set up the equation based on the information given:

\[
x - \frac{x}{2} - 5.25 = 22.50
\]

Now, let's simplify and solve the equation.

First, simplify \( x - \frac{x}{2} \):

\[
x - \frac{x}{2} = \frac{2x}{2} - \frac{x}{2} = \frac{x}{2}
\]

Now substitute this into the equation:

\[
\frac{x}{2} - 5.25 = 22.50
\]

Next, add 5.25 to both sides:

\[
\frac{x}{2} = 22.50 + 5.25
\]

Calculating the right side gives:

\[
\frac{x}{2} = 27.75
\]

Now, multiply both sides by 2 to solve for \( x \):

\[
x = 27.75 \times 2 = 55.50
\]

Thus, Ricardo’s allowance is \(\boxed{55.50}\).