factoring
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Factoring Quadratics – Loh Method
Dr. Po-Shen Loh shared a possible new method for factoring a quadratic. This post provides a layman’s attempt to share the steps that teachers may find intriguing and possibly useful, especially for complex roots. Dr. Loh’s Website Here is a link to a page on his site that provides his explanation. Factoring Background In the…
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Intro to Factoring Out GCF – Scaffolded and Jamboard
The post shows a lesson to introduce factoring out a GCF. Factoring (and multiplication proficiency) are challenging for many students. Overview The handout is chunked to incrementally add task demands. A Jamboard is used as a complement to flesh out the concept of a factoring by allowing engaging the student kinesthetically, with scaffolding as guidance.…
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Factoring Numbers
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Hands on Approach to Factoring out the GCF
Factors are “things being multiplied”, e.g. 2 and 3 are factors of 6. Factoring polynomials like 5×2 + 15 above is one of the most challenging algebra topics, especially for students with special needs. To make these problems more accessible a more concrete approach is possible. The photo above shows how finding a greatest common factor…
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Graphic better than FOIL
Typically, multiplying two binomials is presented with FOIL. This approach is problematic for two reasons: it is a mneumonic for a purely symbolic representation and it is also an isolated strategy that does not connect well to prior knowledge. Another approach is to use a graphic organizer and context. In the photo below I presented students…