Order of Operations Task Cards – 6.EE.A.1

Description

Do you have restless students in your 6th, 7th, or 8th grade math class?

They will LOVE reviewing order of operations using these task cards!

Task cards make practice much more fun and engaging!

Get their bodies moving and their brains will start moving too – let’s face it, most students can’t stand being stuck in a desk all day. And order of operations isn’t the most exciting topic in the world. Get them out of their seat to practice and they will be HAPPY!

Topics:

• Evaluate expressions using order of operations
• Expressions include exponents, parenthesis, and fractions

Contents:

• 20 Stations (2 to a page or 4 to a page)
• Color or Black & White “ink saver”
• Recording Sheet
• Answer Key

How can you use this resource?

• Task Cards
• Math Centers
• Math Stations
• Warm-Up or Bell Ringer
• Independent Practice
• Quizzes
• Homework
• Ticket Out the Door

Cut out and laminate stations so you can use them every class period and every year!

I typically have students work in partners, but BOTH of them have to fill out the student information sheet, showing work. Students could also work individually. Working with more than one person gets too crowded, and some students skate by without participating at all.

Each group will start at a station. They will be given a certain amount of time to complete each task. At the end of the time, they will switch to the next station.

Example: If a student starts at station 1, they will go to station 2. If they are at station 20, they will go to station 1.

There should never be more than two people at a station (unless you have more than 40 students…).

Encourage (or require) students to write down EVERY problem so that if they run out of time on one station, they can finish earlier problems at another station.

Give students a specific time to complete each task. (1-2 min) Use a timer that goes off to help students know when to switch stations. This way, when the timer goes off, students will just get up and move without direction.

Determine the amount of time based on the skill set of each group. I give some classes more time than others if needed. If I start with 2 minutes and all of the students are finishing quickly, I will decrease the time as we go. Usually 2 minutes is too much!

I use this resource every year in the middle school math classroom. It can take up to a whole class period depending how much time is given to the students per station.

Assessment/Grading:

I observe the students during the activity and offer help if needed. After the activity, I collect their worksheet. This activity can be graded on accuracy or for effort or completion. If grading for effort/completion, make sure that the students show work and attempt all questions!