4-Step Expressions

This order of operations worksheet challenges students to evaluate four-step expressions and verify whether a claimed result is correct. Learners apply PEMDAS carefully, identify errors when results are incorrect, explain what went wrong, and compute the correct value, strengthening analytical thinking and multi-step accuracy.

Instructional Objectives

• Skill Focus (Grades 6-8): Evaluate four-step numerical expressions using correct order-of-operations rules.
• Conceptual Understanding (Grades 6-8): Identify and explain common PEMDAS errors involving parentheses, multiplication/division, and addition/subtraction.
• Algebraic Reasoning (Grades 7-8): Analyze incorrect solutions and justify corrections with clear, step-by-step reasoning.
• Curriculum Alignment (Grades 6-8): Supports error analysis, multi-step evaluation, algebraic reasoning, and mathematical explanation standards.

By requiring students to judge correctness rather than simply compute, this worksheet promotes deeper understanding of operational structure. Explaining mistakes helps learners internalize correct procedures and avoid similar errors in future problem solving.

Learning Benefits

• Strengthens analytical and error-correction skills
• Encourages precise, disciplined use of PEMDAS
• Builds confidence with complex, multi-step expressions
• Effective for discussion-based lessons, review, or assessment

This printable worksheet provides meaningful practice that helps students master four-step expressions through careful evaluation, explanation, and correction of order-of-operations errors.

This worksheet is part of our 4-Step Order of Operations Worksheets collection.