Exercise 71 Page 25

The first step in simplifying this expression is to identify which, if any, terms can be combined. Remember, only like terms — constant terms or terms with the same variable and the same exponent — can be combined. 3x + 8y + 5z - 2y - 6x + z In this case, we have two x-terms, two y-terms, and a pair of z-terms. Each pair can be combined, so to simplify the expression we will rearrange it according to the Commutative Property of Addition and then evaluate the operations between the like terms.