Multiplication Facts
I know mastery of multiplication facts can be tricky and I get asked about this all the time so I thought I’d share our experience helping my twins (now 9) get their facts down. Having facts memorized is so helpful and an important part of a solid math foundation. There are some things in math I swear I have never used in my life - but multiplication mastery is one that will always be useful. How every child learns is so unique and I know our experience this time around may be completely different with my next child, but I hope a little insight into what worked for us is helpful.
We introduced multiplication facts when we started Level 3 math from The Good and The Beautiful. In the previous courses the girls had been working on skip counting and grouping so when we first started working on multiplication facts they already had a solid conceptual understanding. We use these math manipulatives for all sorts of math practice - including multiplication - and I would definitely recommend having them on hand since they’re so versatile.
When we started level 3, we began Musical Multiplication (also from TGTB). I felt like this would be a simple and gentle way to introduce the facts and I liked that it had a music component to help with memorization. Musical Multiplication comes with 4 little booklets and then you listen to the songs while you look at the coordinating pictures in the books. For example, the lyrics will say, “9x9 is 81. 81 beats upon my drum.” And then there is a picture of drums being played.
Before you move onto the next booklet, it’s recommended to have one set memorized and mastered. So, we did this. And then we worked through set 2. But, when we got into set 3, the girls started mixing up the tunes and facts. So even though they really enjoyed this, once they started getting confused with the facts I decided to switch gears.
At this point, the girls already had the easiest facts down - 0s, 1s, 2s, 5s, and 10s and then a few random facts here and there mastered. So, if you’re just starting out - I would work on the easy facts first. The nice thing about getting these facts down is that it builds confidence since they’re easy to memorize.
If you are using TGTB math courses, I cut out their multiplication charts from the book and just laminated them and kept them tucked in the girls math book so they could easily reference the chart as they worked through level 3. Now, I just keep it taped up on my wall if anyone needs a quick refresher. If you’re not using that course, I’d definitely recommend printing one off online or buying one like this.
Now, I feel like flashcards get a bad reputation because they can be tedious, but once we switched to daily and consistent flashcard practice, both of the girls made such quick progress that it was easy for us to keep going. I think it helped that they already had a foundation built (from musical multiplication and practice in our math course). But, I really feel like that daily flashcard practice is what did it for them. And it didn’t need to be long - we probably didn't study more than 5 minutes a day. If I were to do it again, I’d just start with flashcards right off the bat and just be really consistent with it. In this case, simplicity is really all we needed.
I love these flashcards because they’re big and simple. There are no other distractions on the cards - just right to the point. There are A LOT of flashcards in the box though so what we did is used 1 inch book rings and broke down the facts the girls were working on into sets that they would master before moving onto another set. TGTB has sets they recommend so we just followed their sets A-D. But, if you’re not using the course, I would just work through numerically after you’ve got the easy ones down.
Once the girls could pass all their facts off, we’ve done a handful of things to help with fluency. Here are a few things we like to do in addition to their daily math book practice…
Their VERY favorite thing to do is to play Kakooma. I randomly bought this game and didn’t think it’d be all that great, but they LOVE it. The girls play against each other but it can also be played as a single player game. This is also one I like to play with them. There are two versions - an easier and more challenging one. When they were working on their facts we started with the easier side and now they love to play the more challenging side.
Math Drills book. Originally I thought this might stress them out, but they have actually enjoyed working to beat their times.
App Games: Osmo is always a hit to practice facts and we also have the free app Times Tables Quiz. I like this one because it gives them multiple choice answers so they can more easily recall the answers and not just randomly guess.
Multiplication by Heart is another fun game we have. This is a really good game for visual learners!
Prodigy is an on-line math game the girls have played since they’ve been in 1st grade so naturally they’ve practiced some of their multiplication through this game. It’s one they really enjoy.
I feel like this has all been really simple - but simple and to the point is what has worked best for us. Let me know in the comments if there has been something else you’ve loved and has worked well with your child.