Chapter 1
Numbers and Operations
Course: Elementary Education Multiple Subjects 7001
Subject: Elementary Education Mathematics Subtest 7003
Chapter: Numbers And Operations
1. Identifies and uses prime and composite numbers
In number theory, distinguishing between prime and composite numbers builds a foundation for understanding operations with whole numbers, divisibility, and factors. This knowledge is essential for later topics such as simplifying fractions, finding greatest common factors, least common multiples, and performing prime factorization.
A prime number is a natural number greater than 1 that has exactly two different positive factors: 1 and itself. These numbers cannot be divided evenly by any other numbers except for 1 and the number itself. Prime numbers are considered the basic "building blocks" of natural numbers because every whole number greater than 1 can be expressed as a product of prime numbers.
Examples of prime numbers include:
- 2 (divisible only by 1 and 2)
- 3 (divisible only by 1 and 3)
- 5, 7, 11, 13, 17, 19, 23, and so on