You solve it like this.

First you know “In one year Jamie will be three times as old as she was 19 years ago”. First you add 1 (in one year) to 19. You get 20.

“Three times as old as she was 20 years ago” is now your operative statement. This tells you that 20 is 2/3 of the number you are looking for.

You know that 20 is 2/3 of what you are looking for. You divide 20 in half and you get 1/3 of what you are looking for.

20 divided in half is 10.

Three times 10 is thirty.

So you have “When Jamie is 30 she will three times as old as she was 20 years ago.” This checks, because if she was 30 then 20 years ago she would have been 10…see?

BUT that won’t be happening for another year “In one year”…

So you do 30-1 =29

Hope you were able to follow that.

Good luck

x + 1 = 3(x – 19)

x = 29

in one year she will be 30, and 19 years ago she was 10 which is 30 when multiplied by 3.

after 20 years x+20=3x

so 2x=20

x=10

so she was 10 years old , so now she is 29 years old

x+1=3(x-19)

x+1=3x-57

2x=58

x=29