Pumpkin Problems: Numerical Expressions

1. Introduce numerical expressions (PEMDAS or GEMS). The teacher will use any acronym that he/she prefers to teach order of operations. (15 minutes)

2. The teacher will explain the Pumpkin activity and have students work in small groups to play the game. The teacher can pull small groups to play with or in front of him/ her in order to assess their knowledge on the topic. Students will have a chance to share their problems and how they found the answers on the smart or whiteboard.(40 minutes) 

The pumpkins for the lesson do not have to be laminated. Alternatively, you can have students write on pumpkins with pencil and replace dry erase boards and markers with paper and pencil. The benefits from laminating pumpkins and using dry erase boards and markers are:
Being able to re-use the lesson in following years. 
Materials other than the traditional pencil and paper are a way to have students engaged during the lesson. 

Differentiation: For groups who are struggling, the teacher will have a chance to pull small groups during pumpkin activity to scaffold and give the teacher a chance to record anecdotal notes for assessment purposes. 

Extension: Have students create scenarios to illustrate each numeric expression. Provide a completed version of the numeric expression and have students identify any errors.

*This activity sheet was created on www.canva.com 
Canva is a free site used to create posters, resumes, business cards, etc. 

Formative Assessment- Take anecdotal notes during small groups and during final presentations