The attachment shows a couple of ways the figure can be considered.
a) Left and Right rectangles that are 5 cm high and 3 cm wide, together with a central rectangle that is 3 cm high and 4 cm wide. Then the total area is ...
5×3 + 3×4 + 5×3 = 15 + 12 + 15 = 42 . . . . cm²
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b) An enclosing rectangle that is 5 cm high and 10 cm wide with a cut-out that is 2 cm high and 4 cm wide. Then the total area is ...