Let's analyze the given situation step-by-step.
1. Understanding the problem:
- Cole's age is 3 years less than Tina's age, which we denote by [tex]$t$[/tex].
- We know that Cole is 18 years old.
2. Formulating the equation:
- If Cole is 3 years younger than Tina, we can express this relationship as:
Cole's age = Tina's age - 3.
3. Substituting the known value:
- We know that Cole is 18 years old, so we substitute Cole's age into the equation:
18 = Tina's age - 3.
4. Solving for Tina's age:
- To find Tina's age [tex]$t$[/tex], we need to isolate [tex]$t$[/tex] on one side of the equation. We do this by adding 3 to both sides of the equation:
[tex]\[
18 + 3 = t
\][/tex]
- Simplifying the left side gives us:
[tex]\[
t = 21
\][/tex]
So, the correct equation that represents this situation is [tex]$t - 3 = 18$[/tex], and Tina is 21 years old.
Thus, the correct answer is:
A. The equation that represents this situation is [tex]$t-3=18$[/tex]. Tina is 21 .
