Which statement is an example of the associative property of addition?

The associative property of addition states that how the numbers are grouped in an addition problem does not affect the sum. This means that when adding three or more numbers, you can rearrange the grouping of the numbers without changing the total.

The correct statement demonstrates this property by showing that the way the numbers are combined does not alter the outcome. In the case of three numbers, it illustrates that 3 added to the sum of 5 and 2 is the same as adding 3 to 5 first and then adding 2 to that result. Both expressions yield the same total, satisfying the definition of the associative property.

The other choices, while true mathematical statements, do not demonstrate the associative property. The second choice is an instance of the identity property of addition, where adding zero to a number leaves the number unchanged. The third choice consists of two individual addition equations, but it does not address the grouping of numbers in a single expression, which is essential for demonstrating the associative property. The fourth choice reflects the identity property again, not the associative property, as it simply reiterates the fact that adding zero does not change the value.