The answer to this question may be helpful to you. This question doesn't deal directly with equations, but if you learn these things, equations will be less of a problem for you.
The purpose of algebra class is to expose you to the variety of equations we know how to solve, and the ways we use to solve them. Different kinds of equations have different solution methods, so you need to pay attention in class to learn what they all are. There are some basic ideas that work for all:
- whatever you do on one side of the equal sign, you must also do on the other side (the equal sign is sacred and must not be violated)
- if you multiply (or divide) an inequality by a negative number, the direction of the inequality symbol changes
- for linear equations, you usually want to "undo" what was "done" to the variable
- for quadratic and higher order equations, you usually want to put the equation into a standard form and apply a formula.
There are a few formulas that it is helpful to memorize (as they come up). These include perimeter and area of a rectangle, circumference and area of a circle, area of a triangle and of a trapezoid, volume of a pyramid or cone or prism or cylinder, area and volume of a sphere. Also you will want to memorize the quadratic formula and how to factor the difference of two squares. Of course, you need to know basic arithmetic operations with fractions and powers and roots.
The purpose of algebra class is to expose you to the variety of equations we know how to solve, and the ways we use to solve them. Different kinds of equations have different solution methods, so you need to pay attention in class to learn what they all are. There are some basic ideas that work for all:
- whatever you do on one side of the equal sign, you must also do on the other side (the equal sign is sacred and must not be violated)
- if you multiply (or divide) an inequality by a negative number, the direction of the inequality symbol changes
- for linear equations, you usually want to "undo" what was "done" to the variable
- for quadratic and higher order equations, you usually want to put the equation into a standard form and apply a formula.
There are a few formulas that it is helpful to memorize (as they come up). These include perimeter and area of a rectangle, circumference and area of a circle, area of a triangle and of a trapezoid, volume of a pyramid or cone or prism or cylinder, area and volume of a sphere. Also you will want to memorize the quadratic formula and how to factor the difference of two squares. Of course, you need to know basic arithmetic operations with fractions and powers and roots.