6. Maria worked 2 weeks, earning $435.50 the first week and $278.38 the second week. If she paid one-half of her two-week earnings for tuition, how much did she pay for tuition?
Answer: B
Maria paid $356.94 for tuition.
To find out how much Maria paid for tuition, we first calculate her total earnings over the two weeks, which amounts to $713.88. Since she paid half of her total earnings for tuition, this results in a payment of $356.94.
A) $713.88
This option represents the total earnings Maria made over the two weeks, not the amount she paid for tuition. Therefore, it is incorrect in the context of the question asking for the tuition payment specifically.
B) $356.94
This is the correct answer. It reflects half of Maria's total earnings of $713.88, which is the amount she allocated for tuition.
C) $217.75
This option does not correlate with any calculation based on Maria's earnings. It is neither half of her total earnings nor does it represent any logical division of her earnings for tuition, making it incorrect.
D) $139.19
This choice also fails to accurately reflect Maria's tuition payment. Like option C, it does not represent any mathematically valid portion of her total earnings, and therefore, it is incorrect.
Conclusion
The correct answer, $356.94, is derived from accurately calculating half of Maria's total earnings for the two weeks. All other options either misrepresent the total earnings or do not relate to the calculation needed to determine the tuition payment, thereby confirming their incorrectness.