• Read the following carefully, and talk to your teacher if you have any questions.

Trinomial is the name given to an algebraic expression with three terms.

x 2 + bx + c is the only type of trinomial you need to factor for this lesson.

Look at an example to see the pattern when factoring this type of trinomial.

  • Factor x 2 + x – 6.

 

Use these values to write the answer in factored form: ( x - 2 )( x + 3 ).

x 2 + x - 6 = ( x - 2)( x + 3).

 

Click here to go to the Math TV link to see more factoring examples.

Under Select Topic , choose Algebra — Factoring — Trinomials with a = 1 .

View the video related to each example below, and record the factoring steps.

 

Factor x2 + 8x + 12

 

Factor x2 – 2x – 15

 

Now that you have reviewed factoring trinomials, you can finish the last part of this lesson. The factoring you reviewed will be used at the end of the next example.