How to Learn Math Tables

Mastering multiplication facts may be one of the first and most difficult challenges a young student encounters in a school career. Although many teachers teach times tables using rote memorization techniques and fact drilling, use other teaching methods as well, especially for students who learn visually. Make learning multiplication facts fast and enjoyable to help students learn math tables successfully and positively without stress.

Instructions

1

Present the multiplication facts to the students by fact family -- meaning all the "2" facts, all the "4" facts, all the "5" facts and so on. Consider presenting the facts in the following order: 2, 4, 10, 5, review, 3, 6, 11, 9, review, 7, 8 and 12. This technique spreads out the difficult fact families and lets students gain multiplication success before ending with the most difficult facts.

2

Show students the 12 by 12 number grid and teach them how to use it to solve multiplication problems. This number grid helps students conceptualize multiplication and see how the facts relate to each other.

3

Draw a number line on the chalkboard when you present a fact family. For example, to present the "6" fact family, draw a number line from 0 to 72. Circle all of the multiples of six on the number line and encourage students to count by sixes from 0 to 72. Help students learn to count by sixes so they can do it easily and then encourage them to count backwards from 72 by sixes. The more comfortable students become with counting fact families, the easier the multiplication facts will be to learn.

4

Instruct students to use multiplication flash cards for each fact family to memorize the facts. Pair students up so they can take turns quizzing each other. As students go through the flash cards, they should make piles of the facts they know and the facts they do not know. Students should continue to drill the facts they do not know until they know all of the facts in the fact family easily without figuring or struggling.

5

Give quizzes to reinforce the times tables as students learn the fact families. As you add each family to the students' knowledge base, add these facts to the quizzes until the quizzes include all the facts up to the 12s.

6

Play multiplication bingo. Make up bingo cards with 25 grids and place product numbers in each of the grid squares to make different bingo cards. Call out the common multiplication facts and students can place a marker over a grid if the number is the product of the facts you call out. Students call "Bingo" when they get five numbers in row going across or down.