What is the first step you should take when simplifying an equation that contains parentheses?

The first step is to clear the parentheses by distributing the number or sign outside the parentheses to each term inside.

When solving an equation, why is it important to perform the same operation on both sides of the equals sign?

Performing the same operation on both sides of the equals sign maintains the equality of the equation, ensuring that the solution remains valid.

I can solve multi-step linear equations by using inverse operations to isolate the variable.

1
To simplify each side of a multi-step equation, you must first clear the parentheses and then combine like terms.
2
To isolate the variable term, you should use addition or subtraction to move all variable terms to one side and all constant terms to the other.
3
The final step to isolate the variable is to use multiplication or division to undo the operation between the coefficient and the variable.