Shodor Interactivate: Order of Operations

Details

Activity Description

This activity allows two users to play a game of order of operations where each player tries to connect four game pieces in a row before his or her opponent does. The players can choose to answer problems that use addition/subtraction, multiplication/division, exponents, and parentheses. They can also choose the difficulty level. This activity would work well in groups of 2 for about 15-20 minutes.

 

Preparation

1. Prepare to explain the Order of Operations.
2. If you would like to provide some practice for your students prior to assigning the game, use the "Order of Operations Worksheet Maker" at the Teachers Corner to create and print some problems for them to work.
3. Preview the site activity so you can demo it for your students before pairing them up. Be sure you have a Java-enabled browser, or the activities will not work.

How-To

1. Explain how to apply the order of operations.
2. Encourage students to try more difficult problems and decrease the allowed time.
3. Explain why an exponent takes higher precedence than a negation.
4. Explain why negation is considered to be an operator.
5. Explain to the students that this activity is designed for two players. When students provide the correct answer, they get to place a piece in a game board similar to "Connect Four." The goal is to have four pieces of the same color connected either horizontally, vertically, or diagonally. One player uses red pieces, while the other player uses black pieces.
6. Before students start the game, they can set several options. They can choose how much time each player will have to answer the questions, the problem difficulty (Level 1, Level 2, Level 3), and select the types of arithmetic problems they want to see. Once all of the choices have been made, select the Start Game button.

Teacher Tips

Prevent any disputes and taunting between winners and losers.

More Ways

Check the related resources under the instructor's tab. Here is the list:

• Activity: Order of Operations Quiz
• Discussion about: Distributive Property
• Discussion about: Order of Operations
• Worksheet: Order of Operations Four
• Worksheet: Order of Operations Four (doc)
• Worksheet: Order of Operations Quiz (doc)

Program Areas

• ASE: High School Equivalency Preparation

Documents

• Shodor Interactivate Order of Operations Four Game.png - Screenshot of Shodor Interactivate's Order of Operations Four Game

Subjects

• Math
  • Algebra

Standards

• Operations and Algebraic Thinking
  • 1.OA.2 - Represent and solve problems involving addition and subtraction.
  • 1.OA.3-4 - Understand and apply properties of operations and the relationship between addition and subtraction.
  • 2.OA.1 - Represent and solve problems involving addition and subtraction.
  • 3.OA.1-3 - Represent and solve problems involving multiplication and division.
  • 3.OA.9 - Solve problems involving the four operations, and identify and explain patterns in arithmetic.
  • 4.OA.1-3 - Use the four operations with whole numbers to solve problems.
• Expressions and Equations
  • 7.EE.1 - Use properties of operations to generate equivalent expressions.

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