step one: you can add, subtract, multiply and divide by anything, as long as you do the same thing to both sides of the equals sign. In an equation, the equals sign acts like the fulcrum of a balance: if you add 5 of something to one side of the balance, you have to add the same amount to the other side to keep the balance steady. The same thing goes for an equation - doing the same operation to both sides keeps the meaning of the equation from changing.Show me an examplestep two: to move or cancel a quantity or variable on one side of the equation, perform the "opposite" operation with it on both sides.
