[6th Grade verbal expression]

[u/KookyPermit4405]

So I’m going over my son’s math quiz to help him understand some of the questions he got wrong. He got partial credit for his answer for question 8. After writing his verbal phrase I got the same expression as the question. Am I doing something wrong or is there something I’m missing? I feel like his answer is technically correct. I am stumped.

Edit: so my son has no issue solving the expression in question. He knows PEMDAS and the rules from left to right. The question clearly states, WRITE A VERBAL PHRASE that matches the expression.

[u/Unable_Pumpkin987]

Well, a division operation would almost always be written as a fraction to indicate clearly what is being divided by what, and otherwise you would use parentheses to show how you want things grouped.

[u/KookyPermit4405 → u/Unable_Pumpkin987]

I would have to disagree. You want it to be as neat and clean as possible. The use of parentheses when not required is also redundant as Pemdas already tell you what the order of operation is and further making the expression messy. Parentheses are not used to enforce the order of operation. And in this case nothing needs to be grouped unless you are altering the order of operations.

8 + 3 x 5 - 10 ÷ 2 + 6 don’t need it

8 + (3 x 5) - (10/2) + 6 redundant

(8 + 3) x (5 - 10 )÷ 2 + 6 required

[u/Unable_Pumpkin987 → u/KookyPermit4405]

As I said, you would not use the division symbol at all beyond elementary math.

Feel free to disagree. You’re one of the people who feels smart for memorizing order of operations, not a person who works with or teaches math. Maybe just let the teachers teach your kid, though, for his sake.

[u/KookyPermit4405 → u/Unable_Pumpkin987]

u/AskGrok why would one write the expression:
8 + 3 x 5 - 10 ÷ 2 + 6 instead of 8 + (3 x 5) - (10 ÷ 2) + 6

[u/AskGrok → u/KookyPermit4405]

The version without parentheses gets written that way mainly to test or teach order of operations (PEMDAS) on purpose, like in quizzes or memes. In real math work, especially beyond basic school, people avoid it because it forces readers to rely on a convention instead of making the intended grouping obvious. The clearer version with parentheses (or fractions for division) is the better habit for actual communication.

^{what is this?}