Question

Question 3: Kimmy and Nicole played a math game at the carnival where they needed to evaluate the following expression: 12 + 36 ÷ (6² ÷ 3²) Kimmy's answer was 21 and Nicole's answer was 12. Who evaluated expression correctly? Then justify your reasoning?

Answer 1

Kimmy was correct! The order of operations, or PEMDAS, says parentheses are first! So in the parentheses you have to either use exponents or division, but exponents are right after parentheses. So then you have 36/9 which is 4! Then you have addition or division, and division comes first! so 36/4 is 9, then that 9 plus the 12 equals 21!