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'The 24 Game' printed from https://nrich.maths.org/
Why do this
problem?
Many people are familiar with the 'four fours' problem, in
which four 4s are combined using different operations to produce
all the numbers up to 100 (and beyond).
This problem which is inspired by the 24 game is a variation on
this, reinforcing mental arithmetic, estimation and the importance
of the order of operations.
Possible approach
You could begin this with a brief whole class introduction and
then give the children time to work in pairs. Write $4+6+6+8$ and
ask what the end answer is ($24$).
Write $8\times 6 - 4 \times 6$.
What do the children notice? If necessary, write another
calculation such as $(6 + 6) \times8 \div 4$ and again ask what
they notice. You may need to remind them about the order of
operations. By now there should be a consensus that the answers are
the same, and so are the numbers used to make them.
As the children find other solutions, collect them somewhere
centrally (and preferably where they won't be erased). Looking at
ideas that others have had often provokes children into trying new
ideas themselves.
Key questions
Does the order in which we write and do the calculation
matter?
How many different solutions do you think there will be?
Possible extension
You could read
Opening Out by Bernard Bagnall for ideas for
extension activities.
Possible support
You could provide cut out cards with the four numbers and
several copies of each symbol for manipulation, and perhaps a
calculator for checking the answer. In that way all the class are
taking part in the same activity, rather than some doing a
simplified version.