The Best Strategies for Learning Times Tables

• There are only 66 unique multiplication facts from 1×1 to 12×12 (thanks to commutativity)
• Start with the easy wins: ×1, ×10, ×2, ×5, ×11 — that's 45 facts already covered
• Use doubling: 4× = double 2×, 8× = double 4×, 6× = double 3×
• The 9× table has reliable patterns: digits always sum to 9, tens digit is one less than the multiplier
• The single hardest fact: 7 × 8 = 56 — the most missed question in the Year 4 MTC
• Always practise in random order — reciting in sequence is not the same as knowing the facts
• 5 minutes daily beats 30 minutes once a week, every time

Why Times Tables Matter So Much

Times tables are arguably the single most important foundation skill in primary school maths. Once multiplication facts are automatic — truly instant, without counting or hesitation — almost every other maths topic becomes significantly easier:

• Division becomes straightforward: if you know 7 × 8 = 56, you know 56 ÷ 8 = 7
• Fractions require multiplication and division at every step — finding common denominators, simplifying, multiplying numerators
• Long multiplication and long division depend on rapid recall of single-digit products
• Area and perimeter calculations become routine
• Percentages rely on multiplying and dividing by key numbers (10, 5, 4, 2)
• Ratio and proportion (Year 6) are essentially multiplication relationships

Children who have secure times tables recall can focus their mental energy on the new concept being taught, rather than getting stuck on the calculation within it. The national curriculum expects children to know all multiplication and division facts up to 12 × 12 by the end of Year 4 — and the Multiplication Tables Check (MTC) was introduced in 2022 to assess this.

How Many Facts Are There Really?

At first glance, the 12×12 grid looks overwhelming — 144 cells. But multiplication is commutative: 7 × 8 is the same as 8 × 7. This means the grid is a mirror image of itself along the diagonal.

Once you account for commutativity, there are only 78 unique products in the 1–12 grid. Remove the ×1 facts (trivial) and the ×10 facts (add a zero), and the number of “real” facts a child needs to learn drops to around 66.

And once the easy tables are secure (×2, ×5, ×11), the number of genuinely difficult facts shrinks further — to perhaps 15–20. The task is far more manageable than it first appears. The key is tackling it in the right order.

The Best Order to Learn Them

Not all tables are equally hard. Starting with the easiest builds confidence, reduces overwhelm, and means that by the time a child reaches the harder facts, they already know most of the grid.

Here is a recommended learning sequence, based on difficulty and the relationships between tables:

By the time a child reaches Phase 5, they already know most of the products involving 7 and 12 from the other direction (e.g., they know 5 × 7 from the ×5 table). The genuinely new facts at this stage are very few.

Strategies That Work

1. Start with the easy wins

Begin with the tables that have obvious, memorable patterns:

• ×1: The number stays the same. Trivial once pointed out
• ×10: Add a zero. Nearly every child gets this instantly
• ×2: Doubling. If a child can double a number, they know the 2 times table
• ×5: Answers always end in 0 or 5. It's half of the ×10 table
• ×11 (up to 9×11): Repeat the digit: 3×11 = 33, 7×11 = 77. Children love the neatness of this

These five tables alone account for a large portion of the grid. More importantly, they give children the experience of knowing something instantly — which builds the confidence to tackle harder tables.

2. Use doubling to connect tables

Many tables are related through doubling. Teaching children to derive unknown facts from known ones is more powerful than pure memorisation — it builds mathematical thinking, not just recall.

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

This means a child who knows their ×2 and ×3 tables can derive the ×4, ×6, and ×8 tables. At first, the derivation takes a few seconds. With repetition, it becomes instant — and then it's a fact, not a calculation.

3. The 9 times table tricks

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

• Digit sum rule: The digits of any 9× answer (up to 9×10) always add up to 9. Examples: 9 × 7 = 63 (6 + 3 = 9). 9 × 4 = 36 (3 + 6 = 9). 9 × 8 = 72 (7 + 2 = 9)
• Tens digit rule: The tens digit is always one less than the number being multiplied. So 9 × 7: tens digit = 6. 9 × 4: tens digit = 3

Combining both rules gives instant answers: 9 × 7 → tens digit is 6 → digits sum to 9 → ones digit is 3 → answer is 63.

There is also the finger trick: hold up all 10 fingers. To multiply 9 × N, fold down the Nth finger from the left. The fingers to the left of the fold are the tens digit; the fingers to the right are the ones digit. 9 × 3: fold down the third finger → 2 fingers left, 7 fingers right → 27.

4. The ×12 shortcut

The ×12 table can be derived by adding the ×10 and ×2 results: 12 × 7 = (10 × 7) + (2 × 7) = 70 + 14 = 84. This uses the distributive property and is a useful strategy until the facts become automatic.

The Hardest Facts (and How to Crack Them)

Research and MTC data consistently point to a small cluster of facts that children find hardest to recall. These are worth isolating and giving extra attention:

The strategy here is not to practise everything equally — that wastes time on facts that are already secure. Instead, identify the specific facts that are still shaky and drill them in isolation until they become automatic. Flashcards (physical or digital) work well for this: put the tricky facts in a separate pile and review them daily.

How to Practise Effectively

Always practise out of order

Many children can recite a table 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.

The Multiplication Tables Check asks questions in random order with a 6-second time limit per question. Real-world maths use is also random — a child doing long division needs to recall 7 × 8 without mentally reciting the entire 7 times table first.

Always mix up the order when practising. Random flashcards, online quizzes, or simply calling out questions in a random sequence are all far more effective than chanting tables in order.

Short and daily beats long and occasional

Five minutes of times table practice every day is significantly more effective than one 30-minute session per week. This is backed by decades of research into spaced repetition — the principle that reviewing material at regular intervals strengthens long-term memory far more effectively than massed practice (cramming).

Good moments for a quick practice session:

• In the car on the way to school — call out random questions
• During breakfast — a quick 5-minute digital quiz
• Before bed — run through 10 flashcards
• Walking to school — “give me three facts that make 24”

The daily habit matters more than the duration. Over a school year, 5 minutes a day adds up to more than 15 hours of focused practice — more than enough to build fluency.

Include division facts alongside multiplication

Every multiplication fact has a corresponding division fact (or two). When practising 7 × 8 = 56, also practise: 56 ÷ 7 = ? and 56 ÷ 8 = ?. This reinforces the relationship and prepares children for division-heavy topics like fractions.

Use the testing effect

Research in cognitive science has consistently shown that retrieving information from memory (being tested) strengthens memory more effectively than re-reading or re-studying the same material. In practice, this means: asking your child “What is 6 × 9?” and waiting for them to retrieve the answer is more effective than showing them “6 × 9 = 54” and asking them to remember it.

This is why quiz-style practice — flashcards, timed challenges, oral questioning — is more effective than looking at a times table grid or copying out tables.

What Not to Do

• Don't rely on chanting in order: Reciting “1×7 is 7, 2×7 is 14, 3×7 is 21...” builds sequence memory, not fact recall. It's a useful early step, but it must be followed by random-order practice
• Don't practise everything equally: If your child knows the ×2 and ×10 tables perfectly, stop drilling them. Focus time on the facts that are actually weak
• Don't use speed pressure too early: Speed matters eventually (the MTC gives 6 seconds per question), but introducing timed pressure before a child knows the facts creates anxiety, not fluency. Build accuracy first, then speed
• Don't make it a punishment: “You got your spellings wrong, so you're doing extra times tables” creates a negative association. Keep practice neutral or positive
• Don't skip the inverse: Children need to know division facts too. 56 ÷ 7 = 8 is just as important as 7 × 8 = 56

Frequently Asked Questions