Week 10 – Factoring Trinomials

During the tenth week of Foundations of Mathematics and Pre-Calculus, I learned how to factor trinomials in the form  . Some important points to understand before are: if the product is positive, then the two integers must be either both positive or both negative, and if the product is negative, then one integer is positive and the other is negative. To factor  , some things to do first is check if the products are negative or positive. To factor this form, you must know how the FOIL (factored) version, example: , of the trinomial. To factor this, there are easy ways to determine the factored version, find two integers which have a product equal to c, and a sum equal to b. Note: if there is a great common factor in the trinomial, factor it out first, then continue factoring. Finally, always watch if factoring the trinomial is possible.

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