Answer: 96 in²
Step-by-step explanation: The parallelogram is comprised of two triangles and one square. You could solve this one of two ways.
1) Find the area of the total parallelogram. The area is b*h, where b is the base and h is the height. The base will ALWAYS be the sum of whatever is on the bottom. In this model, we have 4" and 8", meaning b=12". Now, the height is 8" as seen by the vertical line connecting the top and bottom of the figure. 12 times 8 is 96 inches squared.
2) Find the area of the square and two triangles. The area of a triangle is 1/2*b*h, where b is the base (4") and h is the height (8"). Seeing as we have two triangles, we can do this twice, getting 0.5*4*8 + 0.5*4*8 (1/2 is the same as 0.5 btw). 32 inches squared is for the two triangles. Finally, you need to find the square. To review, the area of a square is s^2, so 8*8 is 64. 64+32 is 96 inches squared.