Question 488434
Let mother's age be x years , then Craig's age is x-24 years. Since together their ages total is 56 years, we write the equation:

x+x-24=56, solving this equation we get mother's age.
2x-24=56
2x-24+24=56+24
2x=80 divide both sides by 2, and get x=40.

Answer:Mother's age is 40, and Craig's age is 40-24= 16.