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Simplifying Expressions

Learn how to simplify expressions by expanding brackets and combining like terms. Let's get started! 🚀

Simplifying Expressions - introduction visual

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Steps to simplify an expression by expanding brackets and collecting like terms, showing -5x + 2(3 + x) simplified to -3x + 6.Simplifying expressions by expanding brackets using distributive law, and combining like terms to simplify 3(2x - 1) + 4(-x + 5) into 2x + 17.Simplifying expressions by expanding brackets using distributive law, and combining like terms to simplify 3(2x - 1) + 4(-x + 5) into 2x + 17.

🛎️ How to Simplify an Expression?

  • Expand brackets first using the distributive law.
  • Then collect like terms by adding or subtracting their coefficients.

🛎️ Collecting Like Terms

  • Like terms have the same variable and the same power (e.g. 2x² and 3x²).
  • To collect like terms, add or subtract the numbers, then keep the variable the same.

🛎️ Important Signs and Common Mistakes

  • A minus sign before brackets changes the sign of every term inside.
  • Terms with different powers (e.g. x and x²) are not like terms and cannot be combined.

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Simplifying Expressions: Expand brackets and collect terms

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