Isolating the Variable

Put on your thinking caps because middle school math has never been more interesting in this huge resource full of thought provoking questions. Written as a newsletter, the resource has 10 two-page newsletters with a variety of...

Now there are parentheses in these equations? As the lessons continue in this series, equations get progressively more complex. Eighth graders solve equations by applying the distributive property before using inverse operations. 

Where did all these variables come from, anyway? The previous lessons in the series ask learners to solve multi-step equations using the distributive property, combining like terms, and using inverse operations. Now scholars solve...

Sal offers an example of manipulating numbers on either side of the equal sign to isolate the variable and solve the equation.

Here is an equation in which the first step is to use the distributive property to remove the parenthesis. Then, it is solved for the variables. Since there are variables on both sides of the equation, it is important to verify the...

Here is an equation in which the first step is to use the distributive property to remove the parenthesis. Then, it is solved for the variables. Since variables are on both sides of the equation, it is important to verify the answer by...

Sal offers an example showing how to manipulate numbers on either side of the equal sign to isolate the variable and solve the equation.

Shouldn't the variable be on only one side? Using one equation, the resource shows how to solve an equation in which there are variable terms on both sides of the equation. The short video walks through each step needed to isolate the...

Isolation is the name of the game. Working with an equation that has parentheses on one side of the equation, the resource shows the steps to find the solution. The solution process starts with distributing across the parentheses and...

What does solving an inequality have in common with solving an equation? Almost everything! A math resource focuses on the one exception. The examples lead learners through the steps of solving an equality when multiplying or...