A class contributed $8.40 in dimes and quarters to the red cross. in all, there was 45 coins. how many coins of each kind were there?

A dime is a ten cent coin while a quarter is a 25 cent coin. The total of the money should be $8.40. Let x be the number of dime and y be the number of quarter. The equation that would best represent the given problem is,

0.1x + 0.25y = 8.40

x + y = 45

The values of x and y are 19 and 26, respectively. Thus, there are 19 dimes and 26 quarters.