Order of Operations Activities, Games, & Resources
Make learning the order of operations fun with this collection of free printable activities, games, and teaching resources.

Activities
Class Opener Question
Rick Barlow shares a class opener question to help get an idea of how much your students understand the order of operations.
Order of Operations Question Stack Activity
I created this self-checking order of operations question stack activity to give my Algebra 1 students extra practice applying the order of operations to some rather involved expressions.
Order of Operations Practice Worksheet
I really appreciate that this set of 10 order of operations problems all use the exact same numbers in the exact same order. Grouping symbols are important!
Interesting Order of Operations Task from China
I really like this Chinese order of operations task that asks students to determine whether each pair of expressions evaluates to the same value.
I think this would make a great introduction or review of order of operations.
Notes and Graphic Organizers
Posters
Order of Operations “Hopscotch” Posters
When I taught lower-level high school courses, I always hand these order of operations posters hanging on the door of my classroom.
Grouping Symbols Poster
I created this grouping symbols poster to show my students that there is more to the order of operations than just P for parentheses like they were taught in elementary school.
Puzzles
These puzzles require knowledge of the order of operations in order to solve them. A great way to sneak in some order of operations practice in a fun way!
Twin Order of Operations Puzzles
Twin Puzzles (also known as Gemini Puzzles) are order of operations puzzles that require filling in the missing operations to make two true equations.
However, the equations must be twins, so whatever symbols are entered in the first equation must also be put in the second equation in the same place.
Order of Operations Stacks Puzzle
This Order of Operations Stack puzzle was created by Math with P. Nik.
Make 6 Puzzle
In the Make 6 Puzzle, students must use their knowledge of the order of operations to complete eight different expressions that all evaluate to 6.
This Make Six Puzzle can look almost impossible at first, but I am always amazed at the solutions students come up with to solve this puzzle. Students are shocked, too!
Missing Parentheses Puzzle
This missing parentheses task will put your students’ order of operations skills to the test! Insert the missing parentheses into each equation to make it true when evaluated according to the order of operations.
This PEMDAS puzzle is harder than it may look at first. Some teachers even have trouble finding some of the solutions.
20 x 9 Challenge
In this 20 x 9 Challenge, students must apply the order of operations to create nine expressions with each evaluate to 20.
5-4-3-2-1 Challenge
This 5-4-3-2-1 Challenge was one of the first order of operations puzzles that I ever used with my students.
This puzzle is slightly different in that the digits 5, 4, 3, 2, and 1 have to stay in that order in each expression. As a result, some solutions may not be possible. How many expressions from 1 to 40 can you find?
Make 30 Puzzles
This collection of Make 30 Puzzles from Erich Friedman will let you give your students lots of practice with PEMDAS throughout the school year.
You can easily put up a new order of operations challenge each day or each week for students to tackle.
One Incorrect Order of Operations Puzzle
In this “One Incorrect” activity, students are given eight numerical expressions. Seven of the expressions simplify to -13 when evaluated according to the order of operations. 1 of them doesn’t.
How many problems will your students have to work to find the one that doesn’t?
Plus Times Puzzles
These expressions are missing a plus sign and a multiplication symbol. Sounds simple, right? It turns out they can be quite tricky.
Your students will have to really think about the order of operations while solving theses!
Simple Sums Puzzle
In this Simple Sums Puzzle, insert addition, subtraction, multiplication, division, and parentheses between the provided numbers on the left of the equations to make each equation correct.
Concatenation is allowed!
Four Fours Challenge
The Four Fours challenge is the first order of operations puzzle that I was ever introduced to. It is a classic for a reason!
How many of the numbers from 1 to 100 can you create using exactly four fours?
Looking for a slightly easier version of the Four Fours Puzzle? Check out the Fours Challenge!
Five Fives Challenge
If your students have already taken on the Four Fours Challenge and are looking for a bit more of a challenge, I suggest assigning the Five Fives Puzzle.
How many of the numbers from 1 to 50 can you create using exactly five fives?
Twos to Nines Challenge
These Twos to Nines Number Challenges make the perfect first week of school activity. I love using these to see if my new students remember what the order of operations is at the beginning of the school year. I just walk around the room and eavesdrop on their conversations about PEMDAS.
If it’s too late in the school year to think about a first week of school activity, I have also turned these into individual printable number challenges for each of the numbers from 2 to 9 that can be used throughout the school year. They are listed below.
Individual Number Challenges
After so many teachers had success using the Twos to Nines Challenge with their students during the first week of school, I decided to turn it into a collection of free printable order of operations puzzles that can be used throughout the entire school year.
Seasonal and Holiday Themed Resources
I love finding ways to fit some math practice into celebrating various holidays throughout the school year. Check out these holiday-themed order of operations puzzles.
Yearly Number Challenge
Ring in the new year with the yearly number challenge! How many numbers from 1 to 100 can you make using the digits in the current calendar year?
Miss using this puzzle at New Years? Guess what – you can use it for the entire rest of the school year as well!
12-25 Christmas Number Challenge
Can you create numerical expressions for the numbers from 1 to 25 using each of the digits 1, 2, 2, and 5 exactly one time each?
This 12-25 Christmas Number Challenge is more accessible to younger students than challenges like the classic Four Fours Puzzle.
I have quite a few more Christmas math puzzles that are available to download for free as well!
3-1-4 Pi Day Number Challenge
This 3-1-4 Pi Day Challenge was a HUGE hit with my students. Using each of the digits 3, 1, and 4 one time each, add your choice of mathematical symbols to make expressions equal to as many different numbers as possible.
Are you interested in more Pi Day math activities? Check out my Ultimate Guide to Celebrating Pi Day in math class!
Twosday Challenge Activity
Twosday (2/2/22) was a big deal for math teachers. I created this Twosday Challenge to help math teachers celebrate with their students, and it was incredibly popular!
I also rebranded this same puzzle as the Twos Challenge.