Student Tutorial: Order of Operations

Instructions:

Learn about the order of operations with this slide show.

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Order of Operations

When simplifying numerical expressions follow the order of operations.

Perform operations from left to right in this order: Parentheses, Exponents, Multiplication, Division, Addition, Subtraction.

Perform multiplication and division first, then addition.

Perform multiplication and division first, then addition and subtraction.

Simplify terms in parentheses first, then add.

Simplify terms with exponents first. Then multiply. Then add and subtract.

Simplify terms in parentheses first. Within parentheses multiply and divide first. Then add.

The acronym PEMDAS summarizes the order of operations.

When using PEMDAS, avoid this misconception.

Misconception 1: Do all multiplication before division.

Misconception 2: Do all addition before subtraction.

In going from left to right, addition and subtraction have equal importance.