From the course: Learning Algebra: Solving Equations

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Isolating the variable in an equation

Isolating the variable in an equation

From the course: Learning Algebra: Solving Equations

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Isolating the variable in an equation

- In this video, I will be talking about a term that I will use quite often when solving equations. And that term is isolating the variable. Isolating means to get something by itself. So our goal when solving equations is going to be to get the variable by itself on one side of the equation. So let's take a look at a typical equation. This equation is 2a + 4 = 8. The variable is "a" in this equation. The a is on the left hand side of the equation, and I need to get that a by itself. So that means that I first need to move the 4 and then I'll need to move the 2. The process for moving the 4 and the 2 we'll get into as we begin Chapter Two. But what I need you to know in this video is that your ultimate goal is to get a by itself on one side of the equation so that your final answer reads a = and then the final answer. So again, when you isolate your variable, your goal is to get it by itself and remove all other terms from that side.

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