Draw the composite figure. A simple example of a composite figure is a to draw a right triangle. Label the side measurements 3, 4 and 5. Draw a square outside the right triangle, so that the shortest leg (of the triangle) is one side of the square. The square should have side lengths of 3.
Draw a line to separate the individual shapes. You should have one square and one triangle.
Calculate the individual areas. First calculate the area of the triangle, using the formula: A = 1/2bh, where "b" and "h" refer to base and height, respectively. The area of the triangle is 6 units squared. Next calculate the area of the square, using the formula: x^2, where "x" is a side length. The area of the square is 9 units squared.
Add the individual areas together. 9 + 6 = 15 units squared. This is the total area of the composite figure.