Basic Algebra

In actual Junior high school she was never good at math it was not until she reached her Associate’s degree that she started enjoying math. Your associate’s degree is nothing more than rehashing the things that you learned in Junior high school and high school.

To many this is just common sense however, to other’s who have math anxiety, and issues understanding the concepts of basic algebra this might come in handy for them to understand the concepts of learning such algebraic expressions.

Basic algebra is using the same methods like addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division. However, algebra also uses letters to represent numbers in the algebraic equations.

Addition in algebra

x + y would mean the sum of x and y equals a certain number

For example: The sum of a and 5 would be written as a + 5

The sum of y and 8 would be written as y + 8

If L plus W it would be written as L + W

So in writing with symbols you could use the following examples to practice writing algebraic equations in addition.

The sum of x and 5    x + 5

9 more than Y     9 + y

a plus b     a + b

Z increased by 7   z + 7

 

Some problems for you to practice with on your own:

1. The sum of x and y

2. t plus z

3. b plus 9

4. The sum of b and n

5. 15 more than y

6. x increased by 5

7. 9 more than k

8. 100 increased by z

When you learn the words that are used within the algebraic equations it becomes easier to learn how to solve the problem to obtain the right answer.

 

Subtraction in Algebra

Subtraction is almost the same as addition but the words that you will see for subtraction our a little different.

Some writing expressions that would indicate subtraction would include:

w minus t would be written   w – t

w decreased by 9 would be written  w – 9

9 less than b would be written 9 – b

The difference of t and 15 would be written  t – 15

Some of the problems that you will see throughout your experience in algebra may not make sense to you in the beginning and learning the terms is something that you need to practice so that you do not have issues with the problems on tests or quizzes.

Therefore, here are some problems for you to work on your own:

1. 8 less than p

2. 10 less than t

3. y decreased by w

4. d minus l

5. y minus 9

6. z decreased by 7

7. c decreased by 4

8. t less than 15

 

I hope that you are still with me here in learning algebraic equations with addition and subtraction. Therefore, we will discuss multiplication, and division.

Multiplication in algebra

There are a variety of ways to write algebraic equations when you are using the multiplication symbol.

a ∙ b

(a)(b)

ab

These examples indicate that the product of a and b or a times b

Now, the words that you might see in multiplication expressions would include:

7 times b could be written like  7 ∙ b   (7)(b)   7b

twice c is written as 2c

6 more than the product of 8 and x would be written like 8x + 6

The product of 8, t, z would be written like 8tz

The product of 6 and the sum of x and w would be written as 6(x + w)

Therefore, here are some problems that you can work on your own.

1. t times z

2. The product of r and w

3. The product of 9, c, and d

4. The sum of twice t and z

5. The product of 8 and the sum of c and t

6.  9 times a

7. The product of 10 and the sum of z and r

8. twice the sum of t and z

Once, you learn the words that are involved with multiplication expressions it becomes easier to spot what you need to do to solve the algebraic equations.

 

Division in Algebra

w/t means that w divided by t or the quotient of w and y

Therefore, if you see these terms within an algebraic expression you need to divide the numbers.

y divided by 8 is written as y/8

the quotient of z plus t divided by 9 would be written like     z + t/9

The sum of r plus z divided by the difference of w minus a would be written like                   r + z/w-a

Furthermore, when you are just learning algebra and the meanings behind the expressions it becomes easier as you are learning. The problems become easier as you go along because you are understanding the meanings behind the words in the problems.

Therefore, here are some problems for you to work on your own.

1. w divided by 15

2. The quotient when x is divided by 9

3. The sum of s and 6 divided by 3

4. The difference of t and q divided by 8

5. The sum of t and x divided by the difference of a and 6

6. The difference of  y minus t divided by 4

7. The quotient of c plus r divided by 9

8. The sum of y and 5 divided by the difference of y and 5

Within these examples, and problems I hope that you have understood some of the information that I have provided. Homeschooling children can be a fun experience or it can be a total flop. Understanding the information that is before you is the main key to succeeding in learning algebraic expressions.

More to come! The problems will get more complex but I believe that this type of information is good for our children to understand what they are learning in Basic algebra….

Any questions feel free to email me at tammyhopkinson@aol.com