Marie is saving money for home repairs. So far, she has saved $1,558. She needs at least $2,158 for the repairs. She plans to
add $60 per week to her current savings until she can afford the repairs.
In this activity, you will algebraically model and solve an inequality based on this situation and interpret the solutions within
realistic guidelines
Part A
Question
Given the situation, which inequality models the number of additional weeks Marie needs to continue saving to afford the
home repairs?
Select the correct answer.
1,558 + 60x 22,158
60x + 1,558 5 2,158
1,558 – 60x s 2,158
2,158 – 60x 2 1,558
The correct Answer and Explanation is:
The correct inequality that models the situation is:
60x + 1,558 ≥ 2,158
Explanation:
In the problem, Marie has already saved $1,558 and plans to save an additional $60 per week. The goal is to determine how many weeks (denoted as xxx) she needs to continue saving until she has at least $2,158.
The total amount of money she will have after saving for xxx weeks can be expressed as:Total savings=Initial savings+(weekly savings×number of weeks)\text{Total savings} = \text{Initial savings} + (\text{weekly savings} \times \text{number of weeks})Total savings=Initial savings+(weekly savings×number of weeks)
This gives us the equation:Total savings=1,558+60x\text{Total savings} = 1,558 + 60xTotal savings=1,558+60x
Marie needs at least $2,158 to afford the repairs, which means the total savings must be greater than or equal to $2,158. Therefore, the inequality that represents this is:1,558+60x≥2,1581,558 + 60x \geq 2,1581,558+60x≥2,158
Now, let’s interpret this inequality:
- The left-hand side, 1,558+60×1,558 + 60×1,558+60x, represents the total amount of money Marie will have after saving for xxx weeks.
- The right-hand side, 2,1582,1582,158, is the minimum amount she needs to cover the home repairs.
- The inequality, ≥\geq≥, indicates that Marie’s total savings must be at least $2,158.
Thus, the correct inequality is 60x + 1,558 ≥ 2,158, and it models the number of weeks Marie needs to continue saving to afford the repairs. To solve this inequality, we would subtract $1,558 from both sides:60x≥60060x \geq 60060x≥600
Then, divide by 60:x≥10x \geq 10x≥10
This means Marie needs to save for at least 10 more weeks to afford the repairs.