Final answer:
Factoring a GCF out of a trinomial simplifies the expression and makes the factoring process easier.
Step-by-step explanation:
Factoring a GCF (Greatest Common Factor) out of a trinomial can make factoring the trinomial easier because it simplifies the expression. By factoring out the GCF, we are essentially dividing each term in the trinomial by the GCF, which allows us to work with smaller numbers and simplifies the factoring process. Let's take an example to illustrate this:
Example: Factor the trinomial 6x^2 + 12x + 18
Step 1: Identify the GCF of the coefficients, which is 6. We can rewrite the trinomial as 6(x^2 + 2x + 3).
Step 2: Now, we can focus on factoring the quadratic expression inside the parentheses, which is easier than factoring the original trinomial.
So, by factoring out the GCF of the trinomial, we simplify the expression and make the factoring process easier.