Let’s Play an Order of Operations Game!

Understanding how to apply the order of operations can be a fun and exciting step in a student’s math journey. As students are learning about the steps (maybe you’ve taught them PEMDAS or GEMDAS) there are different levels of difficulty that arise when solving problems with multiple operations.

If you are looking for a differentiated resource that will help students of many different abilities conquer their understanding of the order of operations, look no further!

Teach Starter has created a fun Bump game for your students to play as they are learning to evaluate different expressions. This game comes with three different game boards. Each board increases with difficulty.

• Game board 1: Evaluate expressions with two operations and exponents
• Game board 2: Evaluate expressions with two operations, parentheses, and exponents
• Game board 3: Evaluate expressions with three operations, parentheses, and exponents

How to Play Our Bump! Game!

The first player will roll their dice and add the digits together. The player will find the matching value on the BUMP game board and solve the problem. Find the answer and cover it up with a game piece.

The next player will take the same steps as the first player. If the answer already has a game piece on it, the player can bump the piece off of the board and replace it with his or her own game piece. If the same player places two game pieces on a value, this space is locked and cannot be bumped off.

Through this activity, students will show they use the order of operations to evaluate expressions with parentheses and exponents.

Tips for Differentiation + Scaffolding 

A team of dedicated, experienced educators created this resource to support your math lessons.

In addition to partner work time, use this order of operations game to enhance learning through guided math groups or math centers.

Easily Prepare This Resource for Your Students

Use the dropdown icon on the Download button to choose between the PDF or editable Google Slides version of this resource.

Print on cardstock for added durability and longevity. Place the game boards in a folder or large envelope for easy access.

This resource was created by Cassandra Friesen, a teacher in Colorado and a Teach Starter Collaborator.

Don’t stop there! We’ve got more activities and resources that cut down on lesson planning time:

teaching resource

Order of Operations – Google Slides Interactive Activity

Simplify expressions by using the order of operations with this Google Slides interactive activity.

teaching resource

Order of Operations Bingo

Review vocabulary and solve expressions with this Order of Operations Bingo game!

teaching resource

Evaluating Expressions With Exponents – Task Cards

Solve expressions with exponents by using the order of operations with this set of 24 task cards.