Math Wheels for Note-taking?

Practical Tips for Teaching Properties of Operations

Facebook
Twitter
Pinterest
Practical Tips for Teaching Properties of Operations

If you’re about to introduce the properties of operations to your students, you might be wondering how to make these concepts clear and memorable. While many of your students have seen the ideas before, like knowing that 5 + 0 equals 5, they may not yet recognize the official property names like commutative, associative, distributive, and identity. That’s where a clear explanation and some real-world connections can make all the difference. Let’s walk through an easy way to break these properties down for your class.

See Properties of Operations in Action

Before diving into your lesson, take a few minutes to watch this video where I explain the properties of operations with simple examples and helpful strategies.

In this video, I review properties such as commutative, associative, distributive, and identity, and provide clear examples for addition and multiplication. Whether you’re teaching this for the first time or refreshing your own memory, it’s the perfect step-by-step guide to start with.

Key Concepts to Highlight While Teaching Properties of Operations

One way to help your students learn and remember the properties of operations is to connect each property name to its root word meaning. Start by explaining that “commute” means to move, just like numbers moving places in an addition or multiplication problem. Then, show that “associate” means to group together, similar to how friends might gather in different groups. Finally, “distribute” means to hand out, which connects perfectly to how multiplication gets shared across parts of a sum when applying the distributive property.

Try introducing each property by first offering a relatable, real-world example before jumping into the math. For instance, you might explain commuting as simply changing places. Then, show how 6 + 3 can be rewritten as 3 + 6 without changing the result. These connections help the properties feel more memorable for your students. This works better than just giving them a list of abstract definitions.

Connect the Properties of operations to their word meanings to help students understand them

Another strategy that works well is letting your students come up with their own examples once they understand the basic idea behind each property. Allowing them to create their own problems strengthens their understanding and builds their confidence at the same time.

Adding Movement Can Help the Learning Stick

Adding movement to a math lesson is a great way to break up instruction. You can also add in some kinesthetic learning to help students remember the lecture-practice routine. When it comes to helping students understand the properties of operations, movement can help them solidify their understanding of the meaning of each property.

For example, when teaching the associative property, have students gather into a group of 7-10 people. Explain that each time you say “associate,” you want that group to break down into 2 smaller, but different groups (students associating with different students). As the kids move around and break down into smaller groups, they can see that their original group size never changed. This little movement exercise helps them solidify their understanding of the word and the concept of the property.

You can do similar movement-based activities for the other properties too. Think about the words you use to describe the property and how you can translate that into a movement. It might be truly moving from one place to another for the commutative property, or physically distributing cotton balls or pom poms as they act out the distributive property. By connecting visual, auditory, and movement activities, you are using a multi-sensory approach to learning, which has a proven track record.

Additional Resources for Teaching Properties of Operations

If you want ready-to-go materials to help reinforce the properties of operations, I have some great options for you!

Start with the Properties of Operations Notes and Practice for 6th Grade Math. It includes:

  • Foldable notes that explain each property in student-friendly language
  • Step-by-step examples for both addition and multiplication
  • Practice pages for recognizing and applying the properties
  • Printable and digital formats are perfect for any classroom setup

You can also find additional activities and practice sheets for properties of operations in my TPT store. They are all designed to give your students lots of hands-on experience identifying and using each property correctly.

Save for Later

Remember to save this post to your favorite math Pinterest board for quick access to these tips and resources for the properties of operations!

Ellie

Welcome to Cognitive Cardio Math! I’m Ellie, a wife, mom, grandma, and dog ‘mom,’ and I’ve spent just about my whole life in school! With nearly 30 years in education, I’ve taught:

  • All subject areas in 4th and 5th grades
  • Math, ELA, and science in 6th grade (middle school)

I’ve been creating resources for teachers since 2012 and have worked in the elearning industry for about five years as well!

If you’re looking for ideas and resources to help you teach math (and a little ELA), I can help you out!

FIND IT FAST

LET'S CONNECT

Archives
Select to see on TPT
Select to see on TPT
Select to see on TPT
Select to see on TPT
Select to see on TPT
Select to see on TPT
Select to see on TPT
Select to see on TPT
truth or dare math games
Select to see on TPT
Select to see on TPT
Select to see on TPT
Click the image to access the free wheel and wheel templates

Engage students in taking math notes with this FREE Fraction Operations wheel and 3 wheel templates!