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Algebra I
Learning Objective:
 Simplifying
 Expanding Brackets
 Writing Expressions
 Substitution
 Index Law
 Factorising

Notation in Algebra
• In algebra, letters (e.g. 𝑥, 𝑦, 𝑎𝑏, 𝑧 , etc) are used to represent numbers and unknown values called variables.

• Mathematical statements like 𝑥 + 3𝑦, , 𝑥 + 2𝑥 − 3, are known as algebraic expressions.

• An algebraic expression involves numbers, variables and operational signs such as +, −, ×, ÷.

The + and − sign in an algebraic expression separate it into terms and are used similarly as in arithmetic.
For example:
(i) 𝑎 + 𝑏 = 𝑐 means that the sum of two numbers, represented by 𝑎 and 𝑏,
is equal to the number represented by 𝑐.
(ii) 2𝑥 − 𝑦 = 𝑧 means that the difference of two numbers represented by 2𝑥 and 𝑦 is equal to the number
represented by 𝑧.

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Simplifying
Example 1:
Simplify as far as possible:
(a) 3𝑥 + 4𝑦 + 7𝑦 (b) 4𝑎 + 7𝑏 − 2𝑎 + 𝑏 (c) 3𝑥 − 2𝑦 + 4𝑦

(d) 7𝑎 − 7𝑎 + 7 (e) − + +

2𝑥 means 2(𝑥 )

2𝑥 means ‘work out 2𝑥 and then square it’

−7𝑥 means −7(𝑥)

−𝑥 means −1(𝑥 )

Example 2:
Simplify as far as possible:
(a) 2𝑥 − 2𝑥 (b) 3𝑦 + 𝑥 − 2𝑦

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Expanding Brackets

When an algebraic expression contains brackets:

(a) Simplify the expression within the brackets first.

(b) If the expression has more than one pair of brackets, simplify
the innermost pair of brackets first.

E.g. 8𝑥 − 2𝑥 − 3 2𝑥 − 1 = 8𝑥 − (2𝑥 − 6𝑥 + 3)

= 8𝑥 − −4𝑥 + 3

= 8𝑥 + 4𝑥 − 3

= 12𝑥 − 3

The distributive laws of multiplication over addition and subtraction are given below.
These laws will help us expand algebraic expressions.

𝑎 𝑥 + 𝑦 = 𝑎𝑥 + 𝑎𝑦

𝑎 𝑥 − 𝑦 = 𝑎𝑥 − 𝑎𝑦

𝑎 𝑥 + 𝑦 + 𝑧 = 𝑎𝑥 + 𝑎𝑦 + 𝑎𝑧

−𝑎 𝑥 + 𝑦 = −𝑎𝑥 − 𝑎𝑦

−𝑎 𝑥 − 𝑦 = −𝑎𝑥 + 𝑎𝑦

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Example 3:
Expand the following:
(a) −3(6𝑥 − 7𝑦 + 3𝑧) (b) 8𝑥 − 4(−2𝑥 + 8)

Example 4:
Simplify:
(a) 5𝑥 + 3 𝑥 + 2 − 2 2𝑥 − 5 − 9 (b) 8𝑝 − 3{4𝑞 − 2 𝑞 − 5 𝑝 − 𝑞 }

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Expansion of the Product of Two algebraic Expressions

To expand the product of two algebraic expressions, we multiply each terms in the first expression
by each term in the second expression.
𝑎 + 𝑏 𝑐 + 𝑑 = 𝑎𝑐 + 𝑎𝑑 + 𝑏𝑐 + 𝑏𝑑

𝑎 + 𝑏 𝑐 + 𝑑 + 𝑒 = 𝑎𝑐 + 𝑎𝑑 + 𝑎𝑒 + 𝑏𝑐 + 𝑏𝑑 + 𝑏𝑒

Example 5:
Expand the following:
(a) (𝑥 + 2)(𝑥 + 3) (b) (3𝑥 − 1)(2𝑥 − 5)

Example 6:
Expand the following:
(a) 𝑥(𝑥 − 1)(𝑥 − 2) (b) 2𝑥(2𝑥 − 1)(2𝑥 + 1)

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Example 7:
Remove the brackets and simplify:
(a) 3𝑥 + 2 (b) 𝑎 − 2𝑏 (c) 𝑥 + 1 + 𝑥+2

Three brackets
To expand three sets of brackets, first expand one pair and then multiply this result by the third brackets.

Example 8:
Expand:
(𝑥 + 1)(𝑥 + 2)(𝑥 + 3)

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Writing Expression

Example 9:
Write an algebraic expression for each of the following statements.

Statements Algebraic Expressions

(a) Subtract 5 from the sum of 2𝑥 and 7𝑦

(b) The product of 3𝑥 and 4𝑦.

(c) Add 8𝑧 to the quotient of 𝑥 divided by 𝑦.

(d) Divide the sum of 9𝑥 and 2𝑦 by 3𝑧.

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Substitution
Example 10:
Evaluate:
(a) 3𝑎 + 2𝑏 − 4𝑐 (b) 𝑎 2𝑏 − 𝑐 − 3𝑏 (c) −
given that 𝑎 = 4, 𝑏 = 2 and 𝑐 = −3

Index Law
When a number 𝑎 is multiplied by itself 𝑛 times, we write in index notation as 𝒂𝒏 .
𝑎 is called the base and 𝑛 is called the index or exponent.
We read as ‘𝑎 to the power of 𝑛’.

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Rules of indices

1. a × 𝑎 = 𝑎 e.g. 7 × 7 = 7

2. 𝑎 ÷𝑎 =𝑎 e.g. 6 ÷ 6 = 6

3. 𝑎 =𝑎 e.g. 3 =3

Also, 𝑎 = e.g. 5 =

𝑎 means ‘the 𝑛th roots of 𝑎’ e.g. 9 = 9

𝑎 means ‘the 𝑛th roots of 𝑎 raised to the power of 𝑚’ e.g. 4 = 4 =8

Example 11:
Simplify:
(a) 𝑝 × 𝑝 (b) 𝑚 ÷𝑚 (c) 𝑘

Example 12:
Simplify each of the following:
(a) 𝑎 𝑏 × 𝑎 𝑏 (b) (2𝑐 𝑑 ) ÷ −4𝑐 𝑑

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Example 13:
Simplify each of the following:
(a) (b) × (c) ÷ −

Example 14:
Simplify.
(a) 5𝑥 (b) 256𝑥

(c) 𝑥 (d) 16𝑝

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Solving equations involving indices

Example 15:
Workout the value of 𝑥 in each of the following.
(a) 3 = 243 (b) 16 = 4

(c) 8 = 32 (d) 27 =

Example 16:

2 ÷ 2 = 32
Find the value of 𝑘.

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Example 17:
𝑦 = 𝑥 and 𝑦 = 𝑥.
Find the value of 𝑛.

Factorising
• Factorisation is the process of writing an algebraic expression as a product of its factors.

• We factorise by extracting common factors.

𝑎𝑥 + 𝑎𝑦 = 𝑎(𝑥 + 𝑦)

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Example 18:
Factorise the following:
(a) 3𝑥 − 12 (b) 5𝑦 + 20𝑧

(c) 4𝑎𝑥 − 16𝑎𝑦 (d) 𝑝𝑞 + 2𝑝𝑟 − 𝑝𝑠

Example 19:
Factorise each of the following:
(a) 3𝑎𝑥 2𝑥 − 5 − 4(2𝑥 − 5) (b) 8𝑝 4𝑦 − 1 − (4𝑦 − 1)

(c) 6𝑞 5𝑥 − 4 − 5𝑥 + 4 (d) 2𝑥 𝑎 + 2𝑏 − 𝑐 − 5𝑦(𝑎 + 2𝑏 − 𝑐)

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Example 20:
Factorise each of the following:
(a) 2𝑘𝑥 + 6𝑘𝑦 + 4𝑘𝑧 (b) 𝑎𝑥 + 𝑎𝑦 + 2𝑎𝑏

(c) 𝑎𝑏𝑐 − 3𝑏 𝑐 (d) 2𝑎 𝑒 − 5𝑎𝑒

Factorisation of 4 terms
Example 21:
Factorise each of the following:
(a) 6𝑚𝑥 − 3𝑛𝑥 + 2𝑚𝑦 − 𝑛𝑦 (b) 𝑥 𝑎 + 𝑥 𝑏 + 𝑦𝑎 + 𝑦𝑏

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Factorisation by using multiplication frame

Example 22:
Factorise each of the following:
(a) 𝑥 − 𝑥 − 12 (b) 2𝑥 − 5𝑥 + 3

(c) 6𝑥 − 𝑥 − 15 (d) −𝑥 − 4𝑥 + 21

Example 23:
Factorise each of the following:
(a) 𝑥 − 8𝑥 + 15 (b) 𝑎 − 𝑎 − 6

(c) 3𝑥 − 17𝑥 − 28 (d) 6𝑥 + 7𝑥 + 2

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The difference of two squares

𝑥 − 𝑦 = (𝑥 + 𝑦)(𝑥 − 𝑦)
Example 24:
Factorise each of the following:
(a) 4𝑎 − 𝑏 (b) 3𝑥 − 27𝑦

Example 25:
Factorise each of the following:
(a) 9𝑎 − 𝑏 (b) 25𝑥 𝑦 − 1 (c) 54𝑥 − 6𝑥

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