document.write( "Question 201899: The St. Mark’s Community Barbecue served 250 dinners. A child’s plate cost $3.50 and an adult’s plate cost $7.00. A total of $1347.50 was collected. How many of each type of plate was served?
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Algebra.Com's Answer #152180 by PRMath(133)\"\" \"About 
You can put this solution on YOUR website!
Let's just get this to the facts:\r
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\n" ); document.write( "\n" ); document.write( "A child's plate: 3.50 (Let's refer to this as \"C\" for child)
\n" ); document.write( "Adult's plate: 7.00 (Let's refer to this as \"A\" for adult)
\n" ); document.write( "Total dinners served: 250
\n" ); document.write( "Total amount collected: 1,347.50\r
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\n" ); document.write( "\n" ); document.write( "So, there are two equations to think about here:\r
\n" ); document.write( "\n" ); document.write( "C + A = 250 dinners. (Child plates and adult plates = 250)
\n" ); document.write( "3.5C + 7.0A = 1,347.5 (Child cost TIMES the number of plates and Adult cost TIMES the number of plates will total 1,347.5)\r
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\n" ); document.write( "\n" ); document.write( "Ok, at your first equation: C + A = 250, let's just rewrite that and solve for \"C\"\r
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\n" ); document.write( "\n" ); document.write( "C + A = 250
\n" ); document.write( "C = 250 - A (subtract \"A\" from both sides)\r
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\n" ); document.write( "\n" ); document.write( "Now let's look at your 2nd equation: 3.5C + 7.0A = 1,347.5\r
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\n" ); document.write( "\n" ); document.write( "How about \"plugging\" in the value of C that we found above? If C = 250 - A, then let's put 250 - A in place of the \"C\" that is in the above equation.\r
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\n" ); document.write( "\n" ); document.write( "SO, we have:\r
\n" ); document.write( "\n" ); document.write( "3.5C + 7.0A = 1,347.5
\n" ); document.write( "3.5(250 - A) + 7.0A = 1,347.5
\n" ); document.write( "875 - 3.5A + 7.0A = 1,347.5 (I just distributed 3.5 times 250 and 3.5 times -A)
\n" ); document.write( "875 + 3.5A = 1,347.5 (I just combined the \"A\" terms: -3.5A + 7.0A = +3.5A)
\n" ); document.write( "3.5A = 472.5 (I subtracted 875 from both sides)
\n" ); document.write( "A = 135 (I divided both sides by 3.5)\r
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\n" ); document.write( "\n" ); document.write( "So there were 135 adult plates. How many children plates were there? Well there were 250 plates TOTAL, sooooo,\r
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\n" ); document.write( "\n" ); document.write( "250 total plates MINUS 135 adult plates = 115 Child plates.\r
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\n" ); document.write( "\n" ); document.write( "Therefore, our final answer is 135 Adult plates and 115 child plates.\r
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\n" ); document.write( "\n" ); document.write( "Let's check to see if we are right...........\r
\n" ); document.write( "\n" ); document.write( "135 Adult plates tiimes $7.0 = $945.00
\n" ); document.write( "115 Child plates times $3.50 = 402.50
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\n" ); document.write( "250 Total plates $1,347.50 total amount of money raised.\r
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\n" ); document.write( "\n" ); document.write( "We are correct. yay. :-)\r
\n" ); document.write( "\n" ); document.write( "Hope this helped. :-)\r
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