Week 3 Discussion: Expressions and the Order of Operations

Required Resources
Read/review the following resources for this activity:

• Textbook (Pre-Algebra): Chapter 3, 7
• Video Lectures
• Instructor supplied resources
• Student chosen resources (optional)

Initial Post Instructions
In English, the placement of punctuation can change the meaning of the entire sentence.

Example
John said “Ben drove too fast”

is different than

“John,” said Ben, “drove too fast.”

Order of operations is a collection of rules to follow when simplifying an expression.

When it comes to the order of operations, chances are you have probably used this concept before.

For example, say you want to buy a $5 bottle of lotion for 10 family members and 4 friends from work. How much money do you need to budget? To figure this out, you need to use the order of operations:

5 * (10 + 4)

= 5 * 14

= $70

If you don’t use the order of operations, your answer will be off:

5 * 10 + 4

50 + 4

= $54

For the initial post, do the following:

• Develop your own “real-world” scenario that illustrates the order of operations with at least three different operations.
• Use order of operations to solve the expression you developed.
• Show what happens with the expression you developed if order of operations is not followed.

Follow-Up Post Instructions
Respond to at least one peer or the instructor. Further the dialogue by providing more information and clarification.

Remember to go above the “Good job” and “I agree” type of replies. You want to show analysis in your replies…show what you have learned from the week. Here are some things that you can do:

• Summarize what you learned from their post.
• Show how you would have simplified their presented expression in a different way.
• Ask extension questions to further dialogue.