lara chooses a number less then 20 she divides it by 2 and then adds 6 she then divides whis result by 3 her answer is 4.5 what was the number she started with

Lara started with the number 15.

Step-by-step explanation:

In order to solve this problem, you can write an equation representing the situation. You can do this by applying the described actions to a variable; I'll use n for this:

(n ÷ 2 + 6) ÷ 3 = 4.5

Now, you can just solve this equation for n:

(n ÷ 2 + 6) ÷ 3 = 4.5 (given)

n ÷ 2 + 6 = 13.5 (multiply both sides by 3)

n ÷ 2 = 7.5 (subtract 6 from both sides)

n = 15 (multiply both sides by 2)

So, now you know that Lara's starting number was 15.