The area of a figure can be found by decomposing
it into smaller, non-overlapping figures.
The area of the large figure is equal to the
sum of the areas of the smaller figures.
Start by decomposing the trapezoid into 2 congruent triangles and a rectangle.
Next, find the area of one of the triangles and the rectangle.
Area of Rectangle | = | length × width |
| = | 13 cm × 12 cm |
| = | 156 sq cm |
Area of Triangle | = | × base × height |
| = | × 5 cm × 12 cm |
| = | 30 sq cm |
Then, find the sum of the 3 areas.
156 sq cm + 30 sq cm + 30 sq cm = 216 sq cm
So, the area of the trapezoid is 216 square centimeters.