Jounel Entry Post

March, 3. 2010

Today in math class we reviewed some homework from yesterday. Next we started on a new unit on multiplying and dividing polynomials.

The first thing that we talked about is how to use algebra tiles to find out the answer to an equation. eg. (2x)(3x). To do this question using algebra tiles, you will first need to know that.....

Now that you know this, lay out your tiles as so.

Your first number in a multiplication equation will always be on the the left part of the diagram. Now just fill in the middle part of your diagram with as many x squared tiles as needed. In this case you have to add 6 x squared tiles.

The tiles in the middle of your diagram is your answer which is 6x squared.

After that we learned how to solve the same equation but algebraically this time. To solve this algebraically you just have to simply multiply both coefficients as well as the variables together to get your answer.

Next we learned how to solve division questions with algebra tiles. For this example we will use this simple question. 6x^2/3x. To solve this question lay out our tiles like this...

Notice that 3x is placed on the top of the diagram instead of the left.

The next step is very simple. Just draw as many tiles as you need so that you can multiply 3x by a certain number to get the the middle amount of tiles which is 6x^2. For this question the missing number is 2x.

To solve this question algebraically you have to divide the coefficients, and variables together. Remember that any variable without a degree will always have a degree of one. Also remember that when dividing the variables together you can subtract the exponents from both of the variables to get your answer.