9-2x+35 first you want to get rid of the number. so you subtract 9 on both sides. Think of this as a balance scale, what you do on one side must be done on the other. 9-2x+35 -9 -9 -2x= 26 you always want to do the opposite, so since this was positive 9 you subtract so the 9 is gone. -2x=26 /-2 /-2 you divide each side by -2 and you get x=-13 since a negative divided by a positive is a negative
