Math tutoring: factoring

Our math tutors help a lot of students with their factoring. Whether it is factoring numbers to find Greatest Common Factors or Lowest Common Denominators, or it is factoring trinomials, it seems that factoring is stressed at almost every level of math. Factoring allows us to break down numbers and expressions into their component parts so that we can make better use of them.

For instance, factoring a rational expression (a fraction with variable expressions in numerator and denominator) may allow you to cancel some of the common factors, reducing the expression into something more manageable. And basic factoring is always used in reducing, whether it's a simple fraction or a radical expression.

I am often blown away when tutoring the algebra 2 topic of simplifying radical expressions. More times than not, the student understands the overall concept, but forgets how to factor a number and what those factors mean. So, even as early as 4th or 5th grade, students are laying the foundation for later stages of math.