<p>Intermediate Strategy: Try a Simple Operation</p>
<p>Description: When being asked to find an expression consisting of more than one variable, a single simple operation often gives the answer, or at least makes the problem much easier to solve. The four most common simple operations are addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division</p>
<p>Comments: If the expression you are trying to find is a sum or difference, then addition or subtraction usually works. If the expression you are trying to find consists of products or a quotient, try multiplication or division first.</p>