How do you simplify (12xy) ^2

I believe your answer is 144x^2 y^2

First you need to square the equation so

(12xy) * (12xy)

Then you use the distributive property and simplify

144 + 12x + 12y + 12x + x^2 + xy + 12y + xy + y^2

Then you combine like terms

144 + 24x + 24y + x^2 + 2xy + y^2

Then you sort your equation

x^2 + y^2 + 2xy + 24x + 24y + 144