How could you use the distributive property to check your factoring? - Answers

You use the FOIL method, which stands for First Outside Inside Last. Say, for example, you have the factored polynomial (2x - 3)(x + 1). To FOIL it you would take the two first components, 2x and x, and multiply them together, getting 2x^2. Next, you take the two outside components, 2x and 1, and multiply them together, getting 2x. After that, you take the two inside components, -3 and x, and multiply them together, getting -3x. Finally, you take the two last components, -3 and 1, and multiply them together, getting -3. You add all of these things together to get 2x^2 - x - 3. With only variables, you could look at it this way: (ax + b)(x + c), the answer being ax^2 + acx + bx + bc.