Solving Absolute Value Expressions and Word Problems

Miacademy & MiaPrep Learning Channel

This educational math video guides students through solving intermediate absolute value problems that involve expressions inside the absolute value brackets. The narrator, Kaylee, demonstrates a step-by-step approach to evaluating expressions like subtraction and multiplication within the brackets before applying the absolute value operation. The video moves from numerical examples to a real-world application involving distance and travel on a map, helping students conceptualize absolute value as physical distance rather than just a rule for changing signs. The content covers several critical nuances of absolute value that often confuse students, such as how to handle a negative sign placed *outside* the absolute value brackets (interpreting it as "the opposite of") and how to solve expressions involving multiple absolute value terms. The video reinforces integer operations, specifically subtracting a larger number from a smaller one and multiplying negative numbers, ensuring students practice prerequisite skills alongside the new concept. For educators, this resource serves as an excellent modeled practice session for 6th and 7th graders transitioning from basic integer recognition to operational fluency. The step-by-step narration allows teachers to pause before the answer is revealed, encouraging active participation. The concluding word problem provides a tangible context for why absolute value is necessary in real life, making abstract math concepts concrete by relating negative integers to direction and positive integers to distance traveled.