Splitting an absolute value equation into two separate equations

Algebra I: Splitting an absolute value equation into two separate equations

This is a free lesson from our course in Algebra I


	This lesson is the introduction to the lesson which explains to you the basics of inverse operations.. This will help you understand and learn the inverse operation in Algebra. Simply put, if an operation reverses another operation, then it is an inverse operation. Let's take a general example,every day, you "perform an operation" of going from home to school. Its inverse is going from school to home. The same logic applies to inverse operation. If you start with 5, add 3 to get 8, then the inverse would be to subtract 3 from 8 go back to where you started, that is to 5. (More text below video...)

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(Continued from above) You use the positive / negative property of the absolute value to split the equation into two cases, and you use the fact that the minus sign " – " indicates "the opposite sign", not necessarily a negative number. For example, if you have x = –6, then " –x " indicates "the opposite of x", or, in this case, –(–6) = +6, a positive number. The minus sign in " –x " just indicates that you are changing the sign on x. It does not indicate a negative number. This distinction can be crucial.Overall, an equation of the form |x| = a can be split into two equations, which are x = + a and x = -a.

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