Parentheses and order of operations
Practise expressions where parentheses must be calculated first, then multiplication or division, then addition or subtraction.
How to solve this
- Parentheses are a signal to pause the usual order and calculate that part first.
- (4 + 6) × 3 is not the same as 4 + 6 × 3: the first gives 30, the second gives 22.
- After solving the parentheses, rewrite the shorter expression before continuing; this reduces mistakes in longer tasks.
Examples
(4 + 6) × 3
30
18 + (24 ÷ 6)
22
40 - (7 × 5)
5