Guidelines for Factoring.docx - Guidelines for Factoring 1...

Guidelines for Factoring
1. Look for the greatest common factor and factor it out using the distributive property.
2. If the polynomial has two terms, look for
a. a difference of two squares: u
2
 v
2
= (u + v)(u 
b. a difference of two cubes: u
3
 v
3
= (u  v)(u
2
+ uv + v
2
c. a sum of two cubes: u
3
+ v
3
= (u + v)(u
2
 uv + v
2
)
3. If the polynomial has three terms, look for a perfect square trinomial:
a. u
2
+ 2uv + v
2
= (u + v)
2
b. u
2
 2uv + v
2
= (u  v)
Note: Here's how to recognize a perfect square trinomial.
1. The first and last terms are positive perfect squares.
2. The middle term is twice the product of the square roots of the first and last terms.
v)
)
2