1. The problem is to factor the quadratic expression $w^2 + 3w - 28$. 2. The general form of a quadratic expression is $ax^2 + bx + c$. 3. To factor, we look for two numbers that multiply to $c = -28$ and add to $b = 3$. 4. The pairs of factors of $-28$ are $(1, -28), (-1, 28), (2, -14), (-2, 14), (4, -7), (-4, 7)$. 5. Among these, $7$ and $-4$ add up to $3$. 6. Therefore, we can factor the quadratic as: $$w^2 + 3w - 28 = (w + 7)(w - 4)$$ 7. This means the expression factors into the product of two binomials. Final answer: $(w + 7)(w - 4)$