27/09/22, 17:16 Elephango Educational Resources K12 Learning, Lesson Plans, Activities, Experiments, Homeschool Help
Distributive Property
Contributor: Meghan Vestal. Resource ID: 11703
Here is a two-for-one property that includes addition and multiplication! A short, simple video,
some practice, and birthday invitations "factor" in to make the distributive property clear!
CATEGORIES SUBJECT
Operations and Algebraic Thinking, Math
Rules and Properties
LEARNING STYLE PERSONALITY STYLE
Visual Lion, Beaver
GRADE LEVEL RESOURCE TYPE
Intermediate (3-5) Dig Deeper
Get It!
What do you do when you distribute invitations to your birthday party?
What does "distribute" mean?
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27/09/22, 17:16 Elephango Educational Resources K12 Learning, Lesson Plans, Activities, Experiments, Homeschool Help
In the previous Related Lessons, found in the right-hand sidebar, you learned about the
associative and commutative properties of addition.
Summarize each of these properties to your teacher or parent.
In this lesson, you will learn the final property of addition: the distributive property. The
"distributive property of addition" is a little deceiving because it actually has to do with both
addition and multiplication.
According to the distributive property, multiplying a number by two or more numbers added
together will give you the same answer as multiplying a number by each of the individual
numbers and adding the products together. This principle is illustrated in the following equation:
A x (B + C) = A x B + A x C
On the left side of the equal sign, B and C are added together first because they are in
parentheses. Problems within parentheses are always solved first. Then, the sum is multiplied
by A. On the right side of the equal sign, A is multiplied by B and C separately, then, the
products are added together. Look at the example below to see how this works when we use
numbers.
2 x (3 + 5) = 2 x 3 + 2 x 5
3+5=8 2x3=6
8 x 2 = 16 2 x 5 = 10
16 10 + 6 = 16
16
While each side of the equal sign appears to have a different value, they are actually the same.
Look at the next example. Explain to your teacher or parent how the two sides of the equal sign
are equal.
5 x (4 + 10) = 5 x 4 + 5 x 10
You should have told your teacher or parent the following:
5 x (4 + 10) = 5 x 4 + 5 x 10
4 + 10 = 14 5 x 4 = 20
14 x 5 = 70 5 x 10 = 50
70 20 + 50 = 70
70
Look back at the question at the beginning of the lesson. When you are distributing invitations
to your birthday party, you are giving each of your friends an invitation.
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27/09/22, 17:16 Elephango Educational Resources K12 Learning, Lesson Plans, Activities, Experiments, Homeschool Help
How does this concept apply to the distributive property?
Tell your teacher or parent.
With the distributive property, you are a simplifying a mathematical process by distributing the
number outside the parentheses to each of the numbers inside the parentheses. Think of it like
this: The number outside the parentheses is giving each of the numbers inside the parentheses
an invitation to his birthday party.
For example, pretend you have four stacks of five invitations that need to be distributed to
friends on the east side of town, and ten stacks of five invitations that need to be delivered to a
group of friends who live on the west side.
Is it easier to bring all of the invitations to the east side, then go back to the west side, so
you are carrying around 70 invitations at once?
Or, is it easier to take the four stacks to the east side, so you are only carrying 20, then
stop and get the other 50 and make the delivery to the west side?
You still deliver the 70 invitations, but you distribute your invitations in a more systematic way.
To review what you have learned about the distributive property, watch Distributive Law by
Mathematics is Fun:
When you are finished watching the video, summarize the distributive property for your teacher
or parent.
Then, move on to the Got It? section to practice solving problems with the distributive property.
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27/09/22, 17:16 Elephango Educational Resources K12 Learning, Lesson Plans, Activities, Experiments, Homeschool Help
Got It?
When you look at the following example, which side do you think is more challenging to
solve?
Tell your teacher or parent.
6 x (7 + 8) = 6 x 7 + 6 x 8
More than likely, you said the left side is easier to solve because using the distributive property
decreases the number of steps in solving this type of problem.
Now, it is time for you to practice solving problems with the distributive property.
Then, move on to the Go! section to review what you have learned about all the properties of
addition.
Go!
Can you use distributive property backward?
Sometimes you can use the distributive property to help you solve a complicated multiplication
problem. If one of the factors is larger, you can use the distributive property to break it apart.
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27/09/22, 17:16 Elephango Educational Resources K12 Learning, Lesson Plans, Activities, Experiments, Homeschool Help
For example, look at 4 x 16. That is a math fact you probably don't know off the top of your
head. Use the distributive property to break 16 into smaller numbers. 16 can be rewritten as (7 +
9).
Now, it is easier to solve 4 x (7+9).
Try the problems below for a challenge!
You now know all three properties of addition: associative property, commutative property, and
distributive property!
Today you learned about the distributive property!
Let's quickly review the properties of addition to make sure you understand the difference:
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27/09/22, 17:16 Elephango Educational Resources K12 Learning, Lesson Plans, Activities, Experiments, Homeschool Help
Now you are ready to get creative! You will create a poster to help you teach others the
properties of addition. You will need the following materials to create your poster:
poster board
markers, crayons, or colored pencils
Your poster should include:
the title Properties of Addition at the top of the poster
the names of each property of addition
Next to each property, add a few sentences explaining the property in your own
words.
Create a saying or word to help you remember the property. For example, many
people use the word "Commute" to help them remember the commutative property.
a picture or example for each property
When you are finished, hang your poster in your learning space to help you remember the
properties of addition.
How do you think these properties will help you become a better mathematician?
Teach your friends or family about the properties.
This lesson concludes the series, Properties of Addition. Learning the rules of addition will help
you simplify the process and make addition easier.
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27/09/22, 17:16 Elephango Educational Resources K12 Learning, Lesson Plans, Activities, Experiments, Homeschool Help
Next time you see an addition problem, consider whether any of the properties are being used
(or should be used) when you solve it!
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