GCF

Greatest
Common Factor
Definition :
▪ Greatest Common Factor – the largest
factor that two or more numbers have in
common.
When thinking about finding the Greatest
Common Factor, or the GCF…
THINK BACKWARDS
F…Find the Factors
C…Circle Common Factors
G…Group Largest Factor
 But if that’s too hard…

Simply THINK

G…Greatest (largest)
C…Common (shared)
F…Factor
 Important to Remember…

There are THREE methods for finding

the GCF of two or more numbers…

Method 1…Use Book Ends

Method 2…Use Prime Factorization
Method 3…Use Sled
Finding the GCF: Method 1 – Book Ends
Example 1: Find the GCF of 24 and 36.
Step 1: Find the factors of each number.
Step 2: Circle the common factors of the numbers

Step 3: Group or circle the largest factor they have in common

Finding the GCF: Method 1 – Book Ends
Example 1: Find the GCF of 24 and 36.
Step 1: Find the factors of each number.
Step 2: Circle the common factors of the numbers
Step 3: Group or circle the largest factor they have in common

24: 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 8, 12, 24
36: 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 9, 12, 18, 36

The GCF of 24 and 36 is 12

Finding the GCF: Method 2 – Prime Factorization
Example 1: Find the GCF of 24 and 36.
Step 1: Find the prime factorization of each number.
Step 2: Choose the lesser number from the set
 24 24 and 36 36
=2 x 2 x 3 x 3
2 12 =2 x 2 x 2 x 3 6 6
2 6 2 32 3
2 3
GREATEST COMMON LEAST COMMON
FACTOR (GCF) MULTIPLE (LCM)
24=2 x 2 x 2 x 3 GCF = 2 x 2 x 3 24=2 x 2 x 2 x 3 LCM = 2 x 2 x 2 x 3 x 3
36=2 x 2 x 3 x 3 GCF = 12 36=2 x 2 x 3 x 3 LCM = 72
Finding the GCF: Method 1 – Book Ends
Activtity 1: Find the GCF of 12 and 24.
Step 1: Find the factors of each number.
Step 2: Circle the common factors of the numbers
Step 3: Group or circle the largest factor they have in common
Solution:
Step 1: Find the factors of each number.
Step 2: Circle the common factors of the numbers
Step 3: Group or circle the largest factor they have in common

12: 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 12
24: 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 8, 12, 24

The GCF of 12 and 24 is 12

1. There are 42 apples and 77 oranges to be sold as part of the family
fair in school. The organizer wants the same number of fruits in each
bag. Apples and oranges should not be mixed. What is the greatest
number of each fruit that can be placed in a bag?

42 : 1 2 3 6 7 14 21 42

42 same number of fruits in each bag

77 : 1 7 11 77

The greatest number of each fruit that can be placed in a bag is 7.

77
2. Mary has a rectangular piece of paper, 30 cm by 18 cm. She wants
to cut it into square sheets of the same size. What is the largest size
of square sheets that she can get?

30 cm 30 : 1 2 3 5 6 10 15 30
18 cm
18 : 1 2 3 6 9 18

The largest size of square sheets that she can get is 6

3. Three ribbons with lengths of 96 cm, 160 cm, and 192 cm are each
cut into pieces of equal lengths. What is the greatest possible length
to cut so as to leave no remainder?
2 96 160 192
2 48 80 96
2 24 40 48
2 12 20 24
2 6 10 12
3 5 6
2 x 2 x 2 x 2 x 2 = 32
The greatest possible length cut so as to leave no remainder is 32.
4. When 75, 111, and 183 are divided by a certain number, they all leave
the same remainder of 3. Find the greatest possible value of this
number.
2 72 108 180
Step 1: Subtract the 2 36 54 90
remainder to each number. 3 18 27 45
Step 2: Get the greatest 3 6 9 15
common factor of the 2 3 5
three numbers.
75 - 3 = 72 2 x 2 x 3 x 3 = 36
111 - 3 = 108
183 - 3 = 180 The greatest possible value of this number is 36.
 12 12 and 24 24
=2 x 2 x 2 x 3
2 6 =2 x 2 x 3 6 4
2 3 2 32 2
GREATEST COMMON LEAST COMMON
FACTOR (GCF) MULTIPLE (LCM)
12=2 x 2 x 3 GCF = 2 x 2 x 3 12=2 x 2 x 3 LCM = 2 x 2 x 2 x 3
24=2 x 2 x 2 x 3 GCF = 12 24=2 x 2 x 2 x 3 LCM = 24
 LCM
Least Common
Multiple
 Least Common Multiple(LCM) of two or more
numbers is the least number that is divisible by
each of the given numbers.

Important to Remember…

There are THREE methods for finding the LCM of

two or more numbers…

Method 1…Use Book Ends/Listing Method

Method 2…Use Prime Factorization
Finding the LCM: Method 1 –
Book Ends/List Method
Example 1: Find the LCM of 18, 24. and 36.
Step 1: Find the multiples of each number.
Step 2: Circle the common multiples of the numbers

Step 3: Group or circle the least multiple they have in common

Finding the GCF: Method 1 –
Book Ends/List Method
Example 1: Find the LCM of 18, 24. and 36.
Step 1: Find the multiples of each number.
Step 2: Circle the common multiples of the numbers
Step 3: Group or circle the least multiple they have in common

18: 18, 36, 54, 72, 90, 108,...

24: 24, 48, 72, 96, 120, 144,...
36: 36, 72, 108, 144, 180,...

LCM is 72.
Finding the LCM: Method 2 – Prime Factorization
Example 1: Find the LCM of 18, 24, and 36.
Step 1: Find the prime factorization of each number.
Step 2: Choose the larger number from each set
Finding the LCM: Method 3 – Prime Factorization
Example 1: Find the LCM of 18, 24, and 36.
Step 1: Find the prime factorization of each number.
Step 2: Choose the larger number from each set

18 : 2 x 3 x 3 = 2 x 32
24 : 2 x 2 x 2 x 3 = 23 x 3 Choose the
larger number

=
from each set.
36 : 2 x 2 x 3 x 3 22 x 32

LCM is 72. 23 x 32 = 72
GREATEST COMMON FACTOR
LEAST COMMON MULTIPLE

USING PRIME FACTORIZATION

 8 8 and 12 12
2 4 =2 x 2 x 2 2 6 =2 x 2 x 3
2 2 2 3
GREATEST COMMON FACTOR (GCF)
8=2 x 2 x 2 GCF = 2 x 2
12=2 x 2 x 3 GCF = 4
LEAST COMMON MULTIPLE (LCM)
8=2 x 2 x 2 LCM = 2 x 2 x 2 x 3
12=2 x 2 x 3 LCM = 24
 15 and 20 20
15 =3 x 5 2 10 =2 x 2 x 5
3 5 2 5
GREATEST COMMON FACTOR (GCF)
15=3 x 5 GCF = 5
20=2 x 2 x 5 GCF = 5
LEAST COMMON MULTIPLE (LCM)
15=3 x 5 LCM = 2 x 2 x 3 x 5
20=2 x 2 x 5 LCM = 60
 30 30 and 20 20
2 15 =2 x 3 x 5 2 10 =2 x 2 x 5
3 5 2 5
GREATEST COMMON FACTOR (GCF)
30=2 x 3 x 5 GCF = 2 x 5
20=2 x 2 x 5 GCF = 10
LEAST COMMON MULTIPLE (LCM)
30=2 x 3 x 5 LCM = 2 x 5 x 2 x 3
20=2 x 2 x 5 LCM = 60
Thank you and
Goodbye!