Mastering the Order of Operations (BIDMAS)
This lesson introduces and reinforces the order of operations (BIDMAS) for Year 7 students, ensuring they move beyond 'left-to-right' thinking to a mathematically sound hierarchy.
Learning objectives
- Apply the correct order of operations (BIDMAS/BODMAS) to solve multi-step calculations.
- Identify and correct errors in calculations where the order of operations was applied incorrectly.
- Use brackets effectively to change the outcome of a numerical expression.
- Solve complex problems involving indices and nested operations.
Lesson plan (60 minutes)
Introduction · 5 min
Starter: Review of basic arithmetic and mental math warm-up.
Teaching · 10 min
Teacher-led explanation of BIDMAS/BODMAS and the hierarchy of operations.
Guided Practice · 10 min
Guided practice: Working through examples on the board, focusing on the order of addition vs multiplication.
Independent Practice · 25 min
Differentiated worksheet task: Students work through Support, Core, or Stretch tasks.
Review · 10 min
Plenary: Multiple-choice quiz to check for understanding and address remaining misconceptions.
Key vocabulary
- Brackets
- Symbols ( ) used to group parts of a mathematical expression that should be calculated first.
- Indices
- Numbers that tell you how many times to multiply a base number by itself (e.g., the 2 in 5^2).
- Division
- Splitting a number into equal parts.
- Multiplication
- Adding a number to itself a certain number of times.
- Addition
- Finding the total of two or more amounts.
Core worksheet (first questions)
- 5 + 4 x 3 = ?
- 6^2 + 7 = ?
- (3 + 2)^2 = ?
- 12 / 6 x 2 = ?
Quiz (sample)
1. What is 5 + 3 x 4?
- A. 25
- B. 17
- C. 30
- D. 13
2. What is (2 + 2)^2?
- A. 16
- B. 64
- C. 12
- D. 10
3. What is 20 - 6 x 2?
- A. 2
- B. 8
- C. 12
- D. 16
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