Donna made a cake to take to a party where the guests ate half the cake. The day after the party, she shared half the leftovers with her brothers. The following day, she ate one piece as a midnight snack. Twice as many pieces as her snack were left. How many pieces was the cake to begin with?
Let’s work this out in a step by step way to be sure we have the right answer.
12
Donna had 2 * 1 = 2 pieces of cake left.

Before her snack, there were 2 + 1 = 3 pieces left.

Those 3 pieces were half the leftovers, so she had 3 * 2 = 6 pieces before sharing with her brothers.

Those 6 pieces were half the party leftovers, so the cake was 2 * 6 = 12 pieces before the party.

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The answer is 12