Basic Operations Introduction

Basic operations are the building blocks and rules of math. They're like learning the rules of the road in Driver's Ed. We know the four basic rules: add, subtract, multiply, divide. Now we're going to combine them in new ways to do new things.

We already know that if we add the same number a bunch of times, we can take a shortcut and just multiply. If we subtract the same number a bunch of times, we can divide. Now we'll learn a way to multiply the same number a bunch of times with exponents, or divide a number so many times that there's nothing left to divide, as in prime factorization. These combined operations are like replacing a two-lane country road with a highway. We still have all the same old rules, but now we'll zoom along and have a quicker, easier way to get to more interesting places.