Question

george is 2 years older then sam and sam is 3 years older then alex. the total of their ages is 35. write and solve the equation to find the ages of george. sam and alex

Answer 1

Let Alex (the youngest) be n
Sam is n+3 because he is three years older
George is n+5  because he is 2 years older than Sam (n+3  +2)  = n +5

All their ages summed = 35
So 
n + n +3 + n + 5 = 35
Combine like terms
3n + 8 = 35
      - 8    -8     subtract 8 from both sides of the equation
3n       = 27
3             3   divide both sides by 3 and get n= 9  
So Alex is 9
Sam is 12 since he is 3 years older than Akex
George is 14 since he is 2 years older than Sam

9 + 12 + 14 = 35