Question

How can you tell if these are greatest common factor or difference of squares questions?

Answer 1

To factor a difference of squares, the following steps are undertaken: Check if the terms have the greatest common factor (GCF) and factor it out. Remember to include the GCF in your final answer. Determine the numbers that will produce the same results and apply the formula: a2– b2 = (a + b) (a – b) or (a – b) (a + b)

Answer 2

When an expression can be viewed as the difference of two perfect squares, i.e. a²-b², then we can factor it as (a+b)(a-b). For example, x²-25 can be factored as (x+5)(x-5). This method is based on the pattern (a+b)(a-b)=a²-b², which can be verified by expanding the parentheses in (a+b)(a-b).