Monthly Savings Calculation: Pablo's Financial Puzzle
Hey guys! Let's break down this math problem about Pablo's savings. It's a classic example of how we can use math in everyday situations to figure out our finances. We're going to dive deep into understanding the problem, setting up the equations, and solving it step-by-step. So, grab your thinking caps, and let's get started!
Understanding the Problem
First, let's clearly understand the situation. Pablo earns $450 every month and manages to save a certain amount from that. The key piece of information is that after earning a total of $2250, he has saved $112.50. Our mission is to figure out exactly how much Pablo saves each month. This is a pretty common scenario, right? We all try to save a portion of our income, and understanding how to calculate this is super useful.
To solve this, we need to figure out how many months it took Pablo to earn $2250. Once we know that, we can divide his total savings ($112.50) by the number of months to find his monthly savings. Think of it like slicing a pie – we need to know how many slices there are to determine the size of each slice! So, the first step is to find the number of months. This involves a simple division, which we will cover in detail in the following section.
Remember, in math problems, it's essential to identify the core information and what we're trying to find. In this case, the monthly savings is our ultimate goal. This step of understanding the problem thoroughly is crucial, guys, because it lays the groundwork for setting up the solution correctly. If we misinterpret the problem, we might end up solving for something completely different! So, always take that extra minute to really understand what's being asked.
Calculating the Number of Months
Now that we understand the problem, let's calculate how many months Pablo worked to earn $2250. He earns $450 each month, so to find the number of months, we'll divide the total amount earned by his monthly income. This is a straightforward division problem, but it's an important step in solving the overall puzzle. We're essentially figuring out how many '$450 chunks' are in $2250.
The calculation is as follows: Number of months = Total earnings / Monthly income. So, we have Number of months = $2250 / $450. When you do the division, you'll find that $2250 divided by $450 equals 5. This means it took Pablo 5 months to earn $2250. See, math isn't so scary when we break it down into smaller steps, right?
This '5 months' figure is super important because it connects Pablo's total savings to the time it took him to save that amount. Now we know that the $112.50 savings were accumulated over these 5 months. This is like having a timeline for his savings – we know the start (month 1) and the end (month 5), and the total savings during that period. This allows us to move to the final step: finding out how much he saved each of those months. This is where we get to the heart of the problem and find the answer we're looking for.
Determining Monthly Savings
Alright, we're in the home stretch! We know Pablo saved $112.50 over 5 months. To find out how much he saved each month, we need to divide his total savings by the number of months. This will give us the consistent amount he puts away each month. It’s like splitting a reward equally over a period – each month gets its fair share.
The calculation is: Monthly savings = Total savings / Number of months. Plugging in the values, we get Monthly savings = $112.50 / 5. When we perform this division, we find that $112.50 divided by 5 is $22.50. Therefore, Pablo saves $22.50 each month. Woohoo! We solved it!
This is the answer we were looking for, and it gives us a clear picture of Pablo's financial habits. He consistently saves $22.50 out of his $450 monthly income. This demonstrates the power of regular saving, even if it's not a huge amount each month. Over time, those small amounts can really add up, as we saw in Pablo's case.
Checking the Answer
Before we declare victory, let's quickly check our answer to make sure it makes sense. A good way to do this is to multiply the monthly savings by the number of months and see if it equals the total savings. So, we'll multiply $22.50 (monthly savings) by 5 (number of months).
$22.50 * 5 = $112.50
Guess what? It matches the total savings we were given in the problem! This gives us confidence that our calculation is correct. Checking your work is always a good habit in math, guys, just like it's a good habit in real life to double-check important decisions. It ensures that we haven’t made a silly mistake along the way and that our answer is logical within the context of the problem.
Conclusion
So, there you have it! Pablo saves $22.50 each month. We solved this problem by breaking it down into smaller, manageable steps: understanding the problem, calculating the number of months, determining the monthly savings, and then checking our answer. This is a fantastic approach to tackle any math problem, no matter how complex it might seem at first.
Remember, the key is to stay organized, show your work, and double-check your results. Math isn’t about guessing; it’s about logically working through a process to arrive at the correct solution. And, just like in real life, understanding the steps is as important as getting the final answer. Now, you can confidently apply these same steps to solve similar savings or financial problems in your own life. Keep practicing, and you’ll become a math whiz in no time! You've got this!The answer is b. $22.50.