Simplifying+by+Collecting+Like+Terms

"Like terms are terms that have the exact same variables raised to the exact same exponents." Or, to put it more simply, like terms must contain exactly the same letters (x, y, etc) all raised to the same power. The coefficient (number in front of the variable) does not influence which terms are like and which are not.
 * What do we mean by "Like Term"?**

There are 2 questions to ask yourself to check if you have like terms: 1. Does the term contain the same variables (letters)? 2. Are all of the variables raised to the same power (have the same index)?

Examples:

3a and 5a are Like Terms - they both have the same variables (a) and the variables are both raised to the same power (1). The different coefficients do not matter.

4ab and 7b are NOT Like Terms - they do not have the same variables, as one has both a and b, but the other only has b.  2a² and 6a are NOT Like Terms - they have the same variables, but they are not raised to the same power.

(card game)
 * Activity: T**he Like Term Pairs game helps introduce the idea of looking at the variables and the powers to distinguish Like Terms.

Once we have identified which terms are Like Terms, we can collect them by simply adding them together. This is where the coefficient of the term comes into play.
 * How do we Collect Like Terms?**

In the same way that 5 + 7 is 12, we can add 5x and 7x to get 12x. Try visiting here to get a more step by step approach.