Quick 4th Grade Math Help!!!!!
- Thread starter UNSTUCK
- Start date
BlueWolfFab
Running Behind
- Location
- Eagle Mountain
30-32 / (2) x 3 + 12
30 - 16 x 3 + 12
30 - 48 + 12 = -6
-6
Parentheses first, then multiply and divide left to right, then add and subtract, left to right.
30 - 16 x 3 + 12
30 - 48 + 12 = -6
-6
Parentheses first, then multiply and divide left to right, then add and subtract, left to right.
anderson750
I'm working on it Rose
- Location
- Price, Utah
30-32=-2
(6-4)=2
2x3=6
6+12=18
-2/18=-.1111111
(6-4)=2
2x3=6
6+12=18
-2/18=-.1111111
Skylinerider
Wandering the desert
- Location
- Ephraim
-6 Why? because three calculators and my math say so.
Maverick
old-school
- Location
- Anywhere, thanks to my geeky droid
-6, unless you care to clarify with better text.
BlueWolfFab did it correctly.
Excel even comes up with -6, though it eliminates the space before and after the /
BlueWolfFab did it correctly.
Excel even comes up with -6, though it eliminates the space before and after the /
UNSTUCK
But stuck more often.
So did I.
We all need to head over to Lake Ridge Elementary in Magna tomorrow yell at Mr. Heath who thinks he can change the order of operations to fit his needs!
Here's the back story:
I get home late from work yesterday to find my 4th grader almost in tears and my wife at wits end. They have been working on this homework page for a few hours and the eraser marks have almost rubbed through the page. I calm her down and start helping. Of course I didn't remember the "order of operations" so she taught it to me with her nursery rhyme thing she learned.
The page has 10 of these questions on the left side and 10 answers on the right side. She nailed the first 5 questions, matching them up with 5 answers. The last 5 problems did not have answers that matched the ones on the right. Not only that, but my answers were either negative numbers or numbers with decimals. Neither of which they have worked with yet.
So today she brings her homework back incomplete, of course and asks Mr. Heath about it. According to my daughter, he explains that the last five have a different order. That the x and / need to be reversed and the + and - need to be revered in order. When you do this you get answers that match the column on the right. In our case the answer is 18.
Please, someone tell me what he is doing is correct. And that there is a reason you are supposed to switch the order, and not just to get a listed answer. Buy why would he not explain that to the class while teaching the lesson? Why is there no math book? Every night she get papers from the same source: "Tons of Free Math Worksheets at: www.mathworksheetsland.com" Is this what our public schools have come to?
Last year I was close to punching the teacher that taught her that Texas was the nations biggest state. She probably also thinks Hawaii and Alaska are islands located just south west of California.
We all need to head over to Lake Ridge Elementary in Magna tomorrow yell at Mr. Heath who thinks he can change the order of operations to fit his needs!
Here's the back story:
I get home late from work yesterday to find my 4th grader almost in tears and my wife at wits end. They have been working on this homework page for a few hours and the eraser marks have almost rubbed through the page. I calm her down and start helping. Of course I didn't remember the "order of operations" so she taught it to me with her nursery rhyme thing she learned.
The page has 10 of these questions on the left side and 10 answers on the right side. She nailed the first 5 questions, matching them up with 5 answers. The last 5 problems did not have answers that matched the ones on the right. Not only that, but my answers were either negative numbers or numbers with decimals. Neither of which they have worked with yet.
So today she brings her homework back incomplete, of course and asks Mr. Heath about it. According to my daughter, he explains that the last five have a different order. That the x and / need to be reversed and the + and - need to be revered in order. When you do this you get answers that match the column on the right. In our case the answer is 18.
Please, someone tell me what he is doing is correct. And that there is a reason you are supposed to switch the order, and not just to get a listed answer. Buy why would he not explain that to the class while teaching the lesson? Why is there no math book? Every night she get papers from the same source: "Tons of Free Math Worksheets at: www.mathworksheetsland.com" Is this what our public schools have come to?
Last year I was close to punching the teacher that taught her that Texas was the nations biggest state. She probably also thinks Hawaii and Alaska are islands located just south west of California.
Last edited:
BlueWolfFab
Running Behind
- Location
- Eagle Mountain
I do believe he is very wrong.
On a side note, I used to work asphalt paving, and one of our jobs that we did was paving some area at an elementary school. This job required paint striping of a few stalls, a few 4-square stations, a hopscotch, etc. .. and also a US map. Well our striping crew at the time was a few legal-immigrant Mexicans, (great guys, I'd give them the shirt off my back) and when they were laying out the state stencils for the US map, they put Alaska down by Hawaii, because that's what the maps they had seen showed.... They had to fix it ha.
On a side note, I used to work asphalt paving, and one of our jobs that we did was paving some area at an elementary school. This job required paint striping of a few stalls, a few 4-square stations, a hopscotch, etc. .. and also a US map. Well our striping crew at the time was a few legal-immigrant Mexicans, (great guys, I'd give them the shirt off my back) and when they were laying out the state stencils for the US map, they put Alaska down by Hawaii, because that's what the maps they had seen showed.... They had to fix it ha.
UNSTUCK
But stuck more often.
I thought so.
And I'm very glad you got my Hawaii/Alaska reference. I feel a bit better now.
BlueWolfFab
Running Behind
- Location
- Eagle Mountain
Can you post a picture of the next actual sheet with all the questions on it?
Curious now on what the reasoning is of switching the order. It does seem too odd that they would even bring up switching the order unless there was a legitimate reason.
Curious now on what the reasoning is of switching the order. It does seem too odd that they would even bring up switching the order unless there was a legitimate reason.
UNSTUCK
But stuck more often.
On another side note, just today we got notice from the school that they want to put this daughter into their "gifted" program next year. Along with that letter they included scores from ITBS and some other test. I love my daughter to death, but I had to laugh when I saw that some of her scores were in the 70's and even in the 60 percentile. Now she did have a few in the 90's, but I thought to myself, 60% is gifted these day?
Now I understand the teachers a bit better and I guess it makes sense.
Now I understand the teachers a bit better and I guess it makes sense.
UNSTUCK
But stuck more often.
I will in the morning when I can get the picture off my phone.
anderson750
I'm working on it Rose
- Location
- Price, Utah
Why is it that the way they are teaching kids to do math know is like walking around the block to go to the neighbors house? I have had more arguments with my son helping him with his 5th grade math than I can count.
BlueWolfFab
Running Behind
- Location
- Eagle Mountain
Last edited:
Maverick
old-school
- Location
- Anywhere, thanks to my geeky droid
Crazy.
Yes, please post the math sheet.
I may not use math daily as much as some here do (or maybe I do?) but my background has math principles firmly bashed into my skull, including BS Mech Engineering (uses some math) with minor in Math (required a little more math), and a Professional Engineer since 2000, which req'd two different 8 hour tests where I had to do a bit of math.
Yes, please post the math sheet.
I may not use math daily as much as some here do (or maybe I do?) but my background has math principles firmly bashed into my skull, including BS Mech Engineering (uses some math) with minor in Math (required a little more math), and a Professional Engineer since 2000, which req'd two different 8 hour tests where I had to do a bit of math.
UNSTUCK
But stuck more often.
The real problem now is that they could care less if you get the right answer, they just want to brain wash you into doing it the, "around the block" way.