Question
Aida applied the distributive property to write the equivalent expressions below.
15 + 21 = 3 (4 + 8)
What is Aida’s error?
Aida used 3 as the factor, which is not common to 15 and 21.
Aida did not correctly divide by the common factor to get (4 + 8).
Aida did not apply the correct operations to the expressions.
Aida wrote two expressions that are not equivalent.
15 + 21 = 3 (4 + 8)
What is Aida’s error?
Aida used 3 as the factor, which is not common to 15 and 21.
Aida did not correctly divide by the common factor to get (4 + 8).
Aida did not apply the correct operations to the expressions.
Aida wrote two expressions that are not equivalent.
Answers
GPT-4o mini
Aida's error is: **Aida used 3 as the factor, which is not common to 15 and 21.**
To break it down:
- The numbers 15 and 21 can be factored by their greatest common factor, which is 3. So, both numbers can indeed be divided by 3.
- However, if you take 15 and 21 and factor them as 3(5) and 3(7) respectively, it does not lead to the addition of (4 + 8) since 5 + 7 equals 12, not 12.
Essentially, her original equation does not hold true as 15 + 21 = 36, while the right side 3(4 + 8) equals 3(12) = 36, but the way she's broken it down does not justify her expression. Thus, the first option correctly identifies the issue with the factor used.
To break it down:
- The numbers 15 and 21 can be factored by their greatest common factor, which is 3. So, both numbers can indeed be divided by 3.
- However, if you take 15 and 21 and factor them as 3(5) and 3(7) respectively, it does not lead to the addition of (4 + 8) since 5 + 7 equals 12, not 12.
Essentially, her original equation does not hold true as 15 + 21 = 36, while the right side 3(4 + 8) equals 3(12) = 36, but the way she's broken it down does not justify her expression. Thus, the first option correctly identifies the issue with the factor used.