Introduction To Variables

Hello everyone! Today we will be learning about something called variables. Variables will be very important to you throughout your life. Variables are basically letters that represent numbers. A variable can represent a whole number, a fraction, a decimal, or even a percent! Any number can be represented by variables, and a variable can be any letter. People usually like to use x, y, and z, but any other letter is ok. But you have to make sure you don't mix the letters up with the numbers and other math symbols. For example, z might look like 2,  i might look like 1, or x might look like the multiplication symbol "✕". Variables are used to express an unknown number.  For example, in the equation 3+x=5, that means that 3 plus a number we don't know equals 5. Also, when doing multiplication with variables, we don't use the symbol "✕", as it can be easily confused with the letter x, instead, we just put nothing in between the number and the variable. For example, the expression 5u is 5 times a number represented by the letter u.

Here are some problems to try on your own:

What does the following expressions and equations mean?

1) 4-x          2)8t=64          3) 3+5=5+v

That's all for today!