Easy Methods to Learn Multiplication Tables

Mastering multiplication tables is a vital skill for children before secondary school. Parents often seek fun ways to teach them. There are numerous options, including online math tutors, explainer videos, and downloadable worksheets. Here's a breakdown of effective and engaging methods:

Proven Techniques for Times Table Mastery

1. The Classic Chart Method

This technique remains effective. Download a times table sheet and fill it in with your child. Hang the completed chart in a visible location, such as their bedroom or the refrigerator. Schedule brief, casual review sessions regularly, perhaps before dinner, to go over specific sets of times tables.

2. Strategic Order of Introduction

It's generally agreed that starting with 2, 5, and 10 times tables is best. The patterns within these are easier for children to grasp, as they are typically introduced to counting in multiples of these numbers first. This rote recall makes it easier to transition into times tables, revealing their structure and patterns. Two times tables involve doubling, and using fingers can demonstrate the symmetry of the concept. In both the 2 and 10 times tables, all numbers are even; any number multiplied by an even number will be even. Reciting the 10 times tables helps children see the patterns, such as "6 tens are 60, 7 tens are 70." All numbers in the 10 times table end in 0, while in the 5 times table, numbers end in 5 or 0.

3. Finger Trick for Nine Times Tables

One trick involves using fingers to figure out the nine times tables. Spread all ten fingers in front of you. To figure out 9 × 1, put your left pinky down, leaving 9 fingers. For 9 × 2, put your left ring finger down, leaving 1 finger and a gap followed by 8 fingers, or 18. This trick works up to 9 × 9 (8 and 1, or 81).

4. Leveraging Music

Catchy music is a great way to memorize information. Explore videos by YouTuber Mr.DeMaio, an American elementary school teacher who uses pop song parodies to teach times tables.

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5. Card Games

Card games make learning times tables fun. In one game, two players draw cards and flip them over. The first person to correctly guess the total of the two cards multiplied together wins the round. For example, if a 3 and a 7 are flipped, the first person to say 21 keeps the cards.

6. Flower Power

This activity encourages creativity. Children draw the center of a flower and write a number between 2 and 12. They then draw 12 petals around the center, each containing the numbers 1 through 12.

7. On-the-Go Testing

Once your child understands their times tables, test them during everyday activities, such as walking to school or waiting for the bus.

8. Rewards for Effort

Encourage children with rewards. However, reward effort and persistence, not just correct answers. Acknowledge hard work even if they haven't fully mastered the tables yet.

Charlotte Mason's Approach to Multiplication Tables

Irene Stephens, head of the mathematics department for Charlotte Mason’s school, stated that "There is no royal road to the multiplication table; it must be learnt by heart." Charlotte Mason had a plan to prepare the learning of multiplication tables "in the best way possible." Her approach allows children to discover patterns, investigate how numbers behave and relate, and understand multiplication as repeated addition or division as the complement of multiplication.

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Multiplication as Repeated Addition

Use a slate or gridded paper for yourself and each child, along with a coin bag of pennies and dimes. Reinforce multiplication as repeated addition through simple problems using coins and concrete objects. Start with questions where knowing the multiplication table isn't necessary.

For example:

"John had 2¢ and a friend gave him 2¢ more. How many cents had he then?" (4¢) Write on the board: 2 + 2 = 4. "How many times do we have 2 cents?" (2 times)
"If 3 children had 2¢ each, how much had they all together?" (6¢) Write on the board: 2 + 2 + 2 = 6. "How many times do we have 2 cents?" (3 times)

Continue with similar problems, increasing complexity.

Introducing the "x" Symbol

Explain that multiplication can be written in a shorter way. Use a problem they've already solved: "You bought five gumballs at 2¢ apiece. How much did they cost all together?" (10¢) Write on the board: 2 + 2 + 2 + 2 + 2 = 10. Ask, "How many times do we have 2 cents?" (5 times) Explain that this can be written as 2 × 5 = 10. The symbol "×" means "multiplied by 5," meaning each quantity is taken 5 times. Explain that "×" can also be read as "times." Have the child write and solve sums using the multiplication sign.

Constructing a Multiplication Table with Concrete Objects

Use concrete objects to explore ideas and build comfort with the concept. Make a simple multiplication table using coins to see its rationale before creating written tables. Charlotte Mason tells us, "The child may learn the multiplication-table and do a subtraction sum without any insight into the rationale of either."

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For example, make a multiplication table for 2 using coins. Create 10 rows of coins with 2 coins in each row. Have the student read down the column and answer as you guide them: "2 and 2 are (4), and 2 are (6), and 2 are (8)," and so on. Ask questions that cover the lines of the table out of order, such as "How many 2s are in 16?" (8) Remark: "So it is right to say 2 x 8 = 16."

Written Table Construction

Help your child construct a written multiplication table to understand the rationale behind it. Use a slate and gridded math notebook in the horizontal position. Take each number up to x 10 (or x 12 if desired). Write down the numeral 2 on the slate or graph paper. Ask, "How many 2s have we?" The child answers, "1." Write a small 1 above the 2. Ask, "One 2 is how many?" The child answers, "2." Write a 2 below. Next, write another 2 beside the first one. Ask, "How many 2s have we?" The child answers, "Two 2s." Write a small 2 above the second 2. Ask, "How much is two 2s?" The child answers, "4." Write 4 underneath the second 2. Continue until the whole table is written.

Saying and Writing the Table

Once the entire multiplication table for 2 is constructed, give your child a few minutes to visualize it. Have them say it through several times: "One 2 is 2, two 2s are 4, three 2s are 6," and so on. Erase a few numbers and ask your child to fill them in. Have your child say the table again. Erase different numbers and allow them to fill the table in again, then repeat the table aloud once more. Have the child write the table in their gridded math notebook in a horizontal position for easy referral and memorization.

Table Work Practice

Give a variety of questions, spread out over a few days. The child may refer to their written table until it is learned by heart.

Examples:

"Three 2s are?"
"How much is 2 taken 5 times?"
"2 taken 7 times is?"
"How many 2s in 12?"
"How many 2s in 16?"
"How much do 7 marbles cost at 2¢ each?"

Each multiplication table will be learned using the same steps, with steady and deliberate work. In Charlotte’s schools, tables through 6 were learned in the second year and tables 7-10 (or 7-12) were taken the following year.

Solidifying Multiplication Facts

Mental Math: Include 5 minutes of mental arithmetic each day, giving questions in a rapid, lively fashion to fix attention and promote promptness and concentration.

Number Sentence Cards: Use cards for additional practice of previously learned tables. The child should complete the number sentences, using manipulatives if needed, and write the answers.

When to Advance

Each child is unique. Tables through 6 are generally taken in the 2nd year and 7-10 (or 12) in the 3rd year, but progress at a pace that ensures each step is taken on solid ground. Consistency in daily table work, mental math, and using Number Sentence cards are keys to progress. When a child no longer needs to use their written tables, they’re ready to advance to the next table.

Making the Cognitive Leap to Abstract Multiplication

It’s no secret that teaching math concepts can be a daunting task, especially when taking a leap from concrete and simple operations to more abstract math problems where finger or object counting is no longer possible. This is the time where children must learn to calculate math problems in their head, using prior knowledge. Since addition and subtraction are usually based on actual objects that children have observed in the environment, multiplication becomes the first arithmetical operation where children will deal with abstract number representations.

Explaining Multiplication Simply

Make math fun and relatable. Explain to children "why" learning multiplication is important, not just how they should memorize the multiplication tables. Motivate students to learn by saying something like: "If we want to be smart when we grow up and solve problems, we need to learn multiplication. With multiplication, we can calculate how much money we need when we travel, or find out how much food we need to buy if 9 friends are coming to our birthday party."

Relate Multiplication to Addition

Associate new concepts with something they already know. Before learning multiplication tables, kids should be comfortable with skip counting solving addition and subtraction operations, so relate multiplication to addition. Learn multiplication as repeated addition with practical examples. After this, slowly start introducing higher numbers and present the multiplication table as a handy tool through which kids can search for the answers. Give children specific memory tasks, instead of simply asking them to memorize the whole multiplication table.

How to Memorize Multiplication Tables

The easiest way to learn multiplication tables is by engaging in a range of activities that train children’s memory without them actively trying to memorize multiplication answers by simple repetition.

Step 1: Familiarize Children With Multiplication Tables

Help children familiarize themselves with multiplication tables and feel comfortable when using them without the pressure of knowing them by heart, right from the start.

Write a Multiplication Table: Instead of printing and dividing multiplication tables to each student, make one large poster, and ask students to write their own multiplication table. Let them copy the table on a drawing block using color pencils of their choosing.
Recite the Multiplication Table Forward and Backward: Once they finish writing the multiplication table, ask students to read it out loud both ways - forward and backward. After this, instruct children to form pairs and try to recite the multiplication table to their partner, without looking at the paper.
Practice Skip-counting: Skip-counting is counting forward and backward by any number that’s not one. Show students how to skip-count to song tunes.

Step 2: Train Children’s Memory

Help that information be consolidated and stored in long-term memory.

Play Flash Cards: Color flashcards for learning multiplication are an amazing way for children to see the patterns as the numbers double. Utilize multiplication flashcards in the classroom or homeschool environment.
Play Speed-quiz in Small Groups: Divide the classroom into four or five groups (four to five students in each group). Give instructions. The student that answers first gets a point.
Learn Through Workshops: Using educational worksheets during class or in a home environment gives you an opportunity to improve kids’ multiplication skills.
Play "Math Card War": Give each player an equal number of cards, until the deck is fully spent. Then, the players draw two cards from the top of their pile and place them on the table. The player with the highest multiplication product wins.

Step 3: Reinforce Learned Material

Implement passive learning techniques.

Read Stories About Multiplication: Greg Tang has written the “The Best of Times”, a book in which he tries to teach children innovative ways to multiply numbers.
Listen to Songs About Multiplication: Listening to songs about multiplication in the background is a highly-effective way of memorizing multiplication tables passively.

Tips for Learning Multiplication Tables Fast

Memorize the “Landmark Numbers” First: Landmark or easy numbers are those which follow the most obvious and easy-to-see pattern.
Learn the 9s Trick: The second digit in the product is always one number lower than its predecessor.

Common Mistakes and How to Avoid Them

How NOT to Teach Times Tables

For many people, memorizing the multiplication facts equals rote practice, making the whole process painful and tedious. Practice and drill do help, but they come at the end of the process, not the beginning. Teaching comes before practice.

Understanding What Children Need to Know

Before memorizing the multiplication facts, your child should first learn the addition facts and subtraction facts. Also, before your child begins memorizing the multiplication facts, you should first make sure that she understands what multiplication means. It also helps if she knows how to add one-digit numbers to two-digit numbers mentally.

Setting Realistic Expectations

Aim for no more than 3 seconds per fact, and faster if possible. But, it depends a lot on your child. No matter how old your child, try to keep practice time relaxed and positive.

Teaching Before Practice

There are 5 steps to mastering the multiplication facts:

Break up the facts into manageable chunks.
Make the facts concrete with a simple visual.
Teach your child to use easier facts as stepping stones to the harder facts.
Practice each times table on its own until it’s mastered.
Practice a mix of multiplication facts.

Effective Teaching Strategies

Step 1: Break it Up

Don’t overwhelm your child with all 100 multiplication facts at once. Instead, focus on just one times table at a time.

Step 2: Make the Facts Concrete with a Multiplication Array

For each times table, first make sure your child understands concretely what the multiplication problems mean. Otherwise, the numbers are just sequences of abstract symbols-and they’re a lot harder to memorize. Use a simple grid of circles called a dot array.

Step 3: Use Easier Facts as Stepping Stones

It’s much easier to use facts you’ve already learned as “stepping stones” to the harder facts rather than to memorize them by rote. With multiplication facts, it’s much easier to use facts you’ve already learned as “stepping stones” to the harder facts rather than to memorize them by rote.

Step 4: Practice Each Times Table

Once your child has learned how to use stepping-stone facts for a times table, focus on just that specific times table for several days. Use a mix of practice techniques to give your child some variety and make learning multiplication fun. I like using a mix of recitation, games, and worksheets, so that kids speak, see, and write the facts.

Step 5: Mix Those Multiplication Facts

Once your child has mastered the new times table, it’s time to mix up those multiplication facts with the facts she’s already mastered. Mixing them together provides cumulative review so that the facts are cemented in her long-term memory. Keep using recitation, games, and worksheets (and even flash cards, if you want) until your child has all 100 facts memorized.

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