Order of Operations
Know which part of a calculation to do first: brackets, powers, then × and ÷, then + and −.
What your child learns
- Brackets first, then powers
- Multiply and divide before adding and subtracting
- Spot and fix order-of-operations mistakes
Example
3 + 4 × 2 = 3 + 8 = 11 (not 14).
Practice questions
A taste of the questions in BloomTracks – the app makes fresh ones every time and adjusts the level as your child answers.
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Question 1 · Level 1
14 + 2 × 2 = ?
Show the answer
Answer: 18
2 × 2 = 4, then + 14 = 18.
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Question 2 · Level 3
19 + 6 × 6 − 20 ÷ 5 = ?
Show the answer
Answer: 51
19 + 36 − 4 = 51.
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Question 3 · Level 5
Where do the brackets go so that 9 + 7 × 6 − 7 = 89?
- (9 + 7) × 6 − 7
- 9 + 7 × (6 − 7)
- (9 + 7 × 6) − 7
- 9 + (7 × 6) − 7
Show the answer
Answer: (9 + 7) × 6 − 7
(9 + 7) × 6 − 7 = 16 × 6 − 7 = 89.
Try it at home
Write a calculation like 5 + 2 × 3 and see who gets it right first.
Key takeaway
Remember BIDMAS (or PEMDAS): Brackets, Indices, Division/Multiplication, Addition/Subtraction.
Practise order of operations with Bloomie
Bloomie reads every question aloud, listens to spoken answers and adapts the difficulty one question at a time.