Order of operations worksheet

Engage your KS2 pupils with a fun and interactive maths activity that focuses on the order of operations, an essential aspect of arithmetic. In Activity 1, students will need five dice with numbers 1-6 and one die with multiples of 10 ranging from 10 to 60. They will also require whiteboards and pens for recording their work. The task begins with rolling the die with multiples of 10 along with one of the 1-6 dice to establish a target number. Following this, the children roll all five 1-6 dice and note down the numbers. The challenge is to reach the target number using each of the rolled single-digit numbers once, applying any of the four mathematical operations: addition, subtraction, multiplication, or division. Students must remember to use brackets correctly to demonstrate their understanding of the order of operations.

Activity 2 shifts the focus slightly while still emphasizing the importance of the order of operations. This time, pupils will use digit cards numbered 1-9. They select four of these cards to create various calculations. The task requires them to form calculations that incorporate one operation, two operations without brackets, and two operations with brackets. This activity not only reinforces the pupils' computational skills but also encourages them to understand how brackets can affect the outcome of a calculation. The overarching objective of these activities is to enhance students' proficiency in using the order of operations to solve calculations that involve all four operations, thereby strengthening their mathematical foundation and problem-solving abilities.