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Tag: times table

  • How to Learn Times Tables Fast: A 4-Week Plan

    Quick answer

    • Practise a little every day: 5 to 10 minutes beats one long weekly session.
    • Quiz from memory (flash cards, a quick oral quiz or a game) instead of only chanting or re-reading.
    • Start with the easy tables (2, 10, 5, 11), then 4 and 8 by doubling, then 3, 6, 9 and 12, and leave 7 for last.
    • Only add the clock once your child can answer correctly without time pressure.
    • Expect around four weeks of steady practice to feel confident; the plan below shows how.

    Most children can learn their times tables, and they learn them faster when practice is short, frequent and based on recall. This guide gives you a practical four-week plan you can start tonight, explains why it works and shows how to keep it fun. In England the times tables up to 12 x 12 are expected to be secure by Year 4, and in the US multiplication facts are usually a Grade 3 goal, so there is plenty of time to build up gently.

    Why times tables are worth learning by heart

    Knowing that 6 x 7 = 42 instantly frees your child’s attention for harder things such as long multiplication, fractions and word problems. If every small step needs counting on fingers, the bigger problem becomes tiring. That is why teachers talk about fluency: fast, accurate recall that does not feel like effort.

    Understanding comes first, though. A child who knows that 4 x 3 means four groups of three (or 3 + 3 + 3 + 3) will find the facts easier to remember than one who has only heard them recited.

    What the research says about practising

    One small classroom study in the Netherlands compared two ways of learning multiplication facts. Second-grade pupils practised one table with flash cards, trying to recall each answer, and another by chanting the facts aloud. Each method got five minutes, three times a week. The flash card group answered more questions correctly, and a week later they still held their lead. The study had only 48 children, so treat it as a useful hint rather than the final word, but it matches a wider finding in learning science: trying to retrieve an answer from memory strengthens it more than simply hearing or reading it again.

    Spacing matters too. Little and often is better than a marathon. A separate experiment, with adults rather than children, found that practice spread over consecutive or alternate days produced faster answers than practice with longer gaps. That is one reason this plan uses a few minutes every day.

    The four-week plan

    Aim for 5 to 10 minutes a day, five or six days a week. Each session has the same three parts: a warm-up of facts your child already knows, the new fact family, and a quick mixed quiz.

    Week 1: the easy tables (2, 10, 5 and 11)

    • 2 times table: doubles. 2 x 6 = 12, because 6 + 6 = 12.
    • 10 times table: add a zero. 10 x 7 = 70.
    • 5 times table: the answers always end in 5 or 0. 5 x 8 = 40, 5 x 9 = 45.
    • 11 times table (up to 9): repeat the digit. 11 x 4 = 44, 11 x 7 = 77.

    Spend the first days on understanding the pattern, then switch to quizzing.

    Week 2: doubling to reach 4 and 8

    • 4 times table: double and double again. 4 x 6: double 6 is 12, double 12 is 24.
    • 8 times table: double three times. 8 x 3: 3, 6, 12, 24. So 8 x 3 = 24.

    Keep revisiting week 1 in the warm-up. Seeing old facts return is the spacing that makes them stick.

    Week 3: 3, 6, 9 and 12

    • 3 times table: skip count in threes (3, 6, 9, 12, 15, 18, 21, 24, 27, 30). A number is in this table when its digits add up to a multiple of 3: 2 + 7 = 9, so 27 is.
    • 6 times table: double the 3s. 6 x 7 is double 3 x 7, which is double 21, which is 42.
    • 9 times table: take 10 x the number and subtract the number. 9 x 6 = 60 – 6 = 54. The digits of every answer up to 9 x 10 add up to 9 (5 + 4 = 9).
    • 12 times table: split into 10 and 2. 12 x 7 = 70 + 14 = 84.

    Week 4: the tricky 7s and everything mixed

    Only a handful of facts are really left once the others are secure: 7 x 7 = 49, 7 x 8 = 56, 7 x 9 = 63, 7 x 6 = 42 and 7 x 12 = 84. Write them on a card and practise just those. Then spend the rest of the week on mixed quizzes across all tables, and for the first time add a gentle timer if your child is comfortable.

    A simple 10-minute session

    1. Warm-up (2 minutes): five facts from a table your child already knows.
    2. New or weak facts (4 minutes): show a flash card, let your child try to answer, then reveal the answer straight away. Put wrong answers back into the pile and try them again a minute later.
    3. Mixed quiz (3 minutes): shuffle in earlier tables. Ask the questions in random order.
    4. Finish with a win (1 minute): end on a fact they know well and say what improved today.

    Count the commutative pairs too. If your child knows 3 x 7 = 21, then 7 x 3 = 21 as well, which roughly halves the number of separate facts to learn.

    Keeping it fun and low-pressure

    • Practise in short bursts: in the car, while the kettle boils, on the walk to school.
    • Use games. Dice, card games and apps all give lots of repetitions without feeling like homework. Times Ninja Adventure, our own times table game, is built for exactly this kind of play.
    • Praise effort and progress, not speed. Anxiety about being timed makes recall harder.
    • Track progress on a simple chart and colour in each table as it becomes secure.

    Frequently asked questions

    How long does it take to learn the times tables?

    It varies by child. With 5 to 10 minutes of daily practice, many children feel confident in about four weeks, but some need longer, and that is normal. Keep going at a pace that stays positive.

    Should my child chant the tables or use flash cards?

    Both can help, but the small study described above suggests that retrieval, such as flash cards, builds lasting recall better than chanting alone. Chanting is still a fine way to hear the pattern at first.

    Which times table is the hardest?

    Many children find the 7s and 8s hardest, because they have few patterns. Learning every other table first leaves only a few facts, such as 7 x 8 = 56, to memorise.

    Next steps

    Pick one table to start with tonight and try the ten-minute session. You can browse more of our times tables guides, see all Netforza games and apps, or let your child practise with Times Ninja Adventure.

    Sources