When kids get to own the order of operations, math class turns into a strategy lab. Puzzling Order invites students to roll a handful of dice and then tinker—with parentheses, place value choices, and all four operations—to hit a target number. It feels like a puzzle race, but it’s really precision practice with brackets and operation sense. Use it as a warm-up, a math-center staple, or a tutoring go-to. Students will naturally trade strategies (“Put the 5 and 6 together as 56!” “Try (16−5)×6!”), which opens the door to rich math talk about why certain moves work.
Because this is hands-on and low-prep (just dice, paper, and pencils), you can drop it anywhere into your math block. Play whole-class in teams or as a partner challenge; send a mini-set home for family math night. Paper-and-dice games like this beat screen time: kids explain, justify, and collaborate face-to-face. And especially when an adult leans in with a few good questions, students articulate their reasoning, compare approaches, and build true procedural and conceptual fluency.
“Excellent resource” – Robin K.
Objective: To apply the basic rules on the order of operations (PEMDAS). [5.OA.A.1] [6.EE.A.2c]
Materials: Puzzling Order puzzle
Players: Minimum of 2 players (work in groups or teams)
Rules:
The objective of the game is to properly evaluate expressions by applying the correct order of operations.
The players must complete a puzzle by performing the required operation on a given expression.
The players have to complete a grid containing numbers and operators. Each vertical and horizontal line on the puzzle corresponds to an expression. The puzzle initially contains only the operators. The following signs represent the following operations:
“+” for addition
“-“ for subtraction
“x” for multiplication
“÷” for division
“^” for exponent
“(“ and “)” for parentheses
A set of 16 numbers is used to fill out the puzzle. ALL of these numbers must be used once to answer the puzzle.
There are a total of 8 expressions to be filled out: 4 horizontal and 4 vertical expressions. Each expression is composed of three numbers and three operators. The answer (in yellow squares) to each expression is given in the puzzle.
An example of the puzzle is the following:
The first player to correctly answer the puzzle wins the game.
HELP/HINTS: The student may need a few hints, these puzzles are hard, start off by telling them the answers to the four corners.
Mini-Lesson Ideas (plug-and-play)
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Order-of-Ops Focus: Model two solutions that use the same digits but different parentheses; ask which step “mattered most” in getting closer to the target.
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Place-Value Strategy: Think-aloud when to glue digits (56) versus keep them separate (5 and 6).
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Mathematical Talk Moves: Prompt students to justify why their parentheses were placed where they were and whether a different grouping could beat their score (use the Math Talk prompts handout in this project).
Teacher Discussion Questions (with “listen-fors”)
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“Why did you group the digits that way?”
Listen for: “Making 54 gave me a big factor to multiply; 5 and 4 separate couldn’t reach the target.” -
“What role did parentheses play in your result?”
Listen for: “Changing (16−5)×6 to 16−(5×6) moved me from 66 to −14.” -
“Is there another expression with the same digits that gets closer?”
Listen for: Students iterating and comparing efficiency, not just correctness. -
“Which operation was most powerful this round—and why?”
Listen for: Strategic use of multiplication/division versus addition/subtraction relative to the target. -
“If we changed the target to ___, how would your plan change?”
Listen for: Adaptability and talk about making or avoiding large magnitudes.
Hands-on puzzles like Puzzling Order turn quiet drill into lively conversation. You’ll hear students justifying parentheses, negotiating place value, and celebrating clever paths to the target—exactly the kind of math talk that builds durable understanding. Print a set, grab some dice, and let the puzzle-solving begin today.
This Game/Puzzle is included in my 6th Grade File Folder Math Games Printable Book