What concept could Mrs. Doloff introduce next after discussing age ordering with her students?

After discussing age ordering, introducing the concept of adding numbers to solve for exact age allows students to build on their understanding of ordering and quantitative comparison. This transition into arithmetic not only reinforces their grasp of numerical values associated with ages but also encourages them to engage in problem-solving by using addition to determine specific ages from a given context.

For instance, if students know that one person is 3 years older than another, they can represent these relationships with numbers and then use addition to find the exact ages. This application reinforces their previous knowledge of age ordering while advancing their skills in arithmetic operations and developing their ability to formulate and solve equations, which are foundational skills in mathematics.

This progression into solving for exact ages provides a practical application of number relationships in daily life and promotes critical thinking as students learn to represent real-world scenarios mathematically.