Matt’s parents pay him $5.50 for each half hour he babysits his sister, plus a two dollar tip. If Matt made $18.50, for how long did he babysit?
Let x be the number of half-hours Matt babysat his sister.
The amount Matt earns for babysitting is 5.5x + 2.
Given that he made $18.50, we can set up the equation:
5.5x + 2 = 18.50
Subtracting 2 from both sides gives:
5.5x = 16.50
Dividing by 5.5 on both sides gives:
x = 3
Therefore, Matt babysat for 3 half-hours.