it took stephen 3 1/2 hours to do the yarrdwork he spent 2/3 of that time mowing the grass how long did it take stephen to mow the grass

(2/3) * (7/2) = 14/6 = 2 2/6 = 2 1/3 hours

To find out how long it took Stephen to mow the grass, we need to calculate 2/3 of the total time he spent on yard work.

Step 1: Convert the mixed number "3 1/2" to an improper fraction.
To do this, we multiply the whole number (3) by the denominator (2) and add the numerator (1). This gives us (3 * 2) + 1 = 7.
So "3 1/2" can be written as 7/2.

Step 2: Multiply the total time (7/2) by 2/3 (the fraction representing the time spent mowing the grass).
To multiply fractions, we multiply the numerators (top numbers) together and the denominators (bottom numbers) together.
So, (7/2) * (2/3) = (7 * 2) / (2 * 3) = 14/6.

Step 3: Simplify the fraction, if possible.
The fraction 14/6 can be simplified to 7/3 by dividing the numerator (14) and the denominator (6) by their greatest common divisor, which is 2.

Step 4: Interpret the fraction as a mixed number, if necessary.
The simplified fraction 7/3 can be written as the mixed number "2 1/3". This means it took Stephen 2 hours and 1/3 hour (or 20 minutes) to mow the grass.

Therefore, it took Stephen 2 hours and 20 minutes to mow the grass.