The Best Strategies for Learning Times Tables

Times tables are one of those things that, once learned, make almost every other part of maths significantly easier. Division, fractions, percentages, area, long multiplication — all of it becomes more manageable when multiplication facts are automatic.

But getting there takes patience and the right approach. Here are the most effective strategies for helping your child learn their times tables — from the easy wins to the trickiest facts.

Start With the Easy Wins

Not all times tables are equally hard. Starting with the easier ones builds confidence and reduces the total number of facts that feel overwhelming:

• ×10: Add a zero. Almost every child gets this instantly
• ×5: Answers always end in 0 or 5. Half of the 10 times table
• ×2: Doubling. If a child can double numbers, they know the 2 times table
• ×1: The number stays the same — trivial once pointed out
• ×11 (up to 9×11): Just repeat the digit: 3×11=33, 7×11=77

Once these are secure, the number of “hard” facts shrinks considerably.

Use Doubling and Halving

Many times tables are related to each other through doubling:

• The 4 times table is double the 2 times table (4×7 = double 2×7 = double 14 = 28)
• The 8 times table is double the 4 times table (8×6 = double 4×6 = double 24 = 48)
• The 6 times table is double the 3 times table (6×9 = double 3×9 = double 27 = 54)

Teaching children to derive unknown facts from known ones is a more powerful strategy than pure memorisation — it builds mathematical thinking, not just recall.

The 9 Times Table Trick

The 9 times table has two reliable patterns that children find satisfying to discover:

• Digit sum: The digits of any 9 times table answer (up to 9×10) always add up to 9 (e.g. 9×7=63, 6+3=9; 9×8=72, 7+2=9)
• Tens digit: The tens digit is always one less than the number being multiplied (9×6: tens digit is 5; 9×7: tens digit is 6)
• Combining both: 9×7 → tens digit = 6, digits add to 9 → ones digit = 3 → answer = 63

The Hardest Facts

Research and teacher experience consistently point to a small cluster of facts that children find hardest:

• 7×8=56 — the single most missed fact in the MTC. Memory hook: 56 = 7×8, or the sequence 5-6-7-8 → 56=7×8
• 6×7=42 and 6×8=48
• 7×9=63 and 8×9=72

Isolating these specific facts and drilling them until they become automatic is a high-return strategy. Don't practise everything equally — spend extra time on the facts that are still shaky.

Practise Out of Order

Many children learn tables perfectly in sequence (1×6, 2×6, 3×6…) but freeze when asked a question out of order (“What is 9×6?”). Knowing the sequence is not the same as knowing the facts.

Always mix up the order when practising — random question order is much closer to the format of the Multiplication Tables Check and real-world maths use.

Short and Daily Beats Long and Occasional

Five minutes of times table practice every day is far more effective than one 30-minute session per week. The daily repetition reinforces the neural pathways that make recall automatic. It also keeps the investment small enough that it rarely feels like a burden.

Good moments for a quick practice session: in the car on the way to school, during breakfast, or as a five-minute wind-down before bed.