To find the surface area of a rectangular prism, you can use the formula:
\[ \text{Surface Area} = 2lw + 2lh + 2wh \]
where \( l \) is the length, \( w \) is the width, and \( h \) is the height.
In this case, the dimensions of the rectangular prism are:
- Length (\( l \)) = 12 inches
- Width (\( w \)) = 5 inches
- Height (\( h \)) = 3 inches
Now, we can plug in the values into the formula:
\[ \text{Surface Area} = 2(12 \times 5) + 2(12 \times 3) + 2(5 \times 3) \]
Calculating each part:
- \( 2(12 \times 5) = 2(60) = 120 \)
- \( 2(12 \times 3) = 2(36) = 72 \)
- \( 2(5 \times 3) = 2(15) = 30 \)
Now add these results together:
\[ \text{Surface Area} = 120 + 72 + 30 = 222 , \text{square inches} \]
So, the surface area of the rectangular prism is 222 square inches.