Expanding brackets can be tricky for Year 11 students. Let’s look at some common mistakes and how to fix them.

1. Misunderstanding the Distributive Property:
A common error is not using the distributive property correctly. Some students forget to multiply every term inside the bracket. For example, if they see $2(3 + x)$, they might mistakenly do it as $2 \cdot 3 + x$, which is wrong. The right way is $2 \cdot 3 + 2 \cdot x$, leading to the answer $6 + 2x$.

2. Confusing Negative Signs:
Another mistake is handling negative signs incorrectly. If students have $-3(2 - x)$, they might not distribute the negative sign properly. They could end up saying it’s $-6 + x$ instead of the correct answer, which is $-6 + 3x$. This can cause more problems later in their calculations.

3. Forgetting to Combine Like Terms:
Some students don’t remember to combine like terms after expanding. For example, when they expand $2(x + 3) + 3(x + 1)$, they should correctly get $2x + 6 + 3x + 3$. But some might stop at $2x + 3x$ and forget to add up the constant numbers.

Solution:
To help avoid these problems, students need to practice carefully using the distributive property, pay attention to negative signs, and always remember to combine like terms. Regular practice, along with checking their mistakes, can really improve their skills in expanding brackets.