Times tables practice: free sheets and online practice

Times tables practice sheets and online practice

Choose a single table to focus on, or mixed tables once a few are secure. Practicing online, each answer is checked the moment it is entered, so mistakes get fixed before they stick. If you prefer paper, print a practice sheet for one table or for mixed tables. Each sheet comes with an answer key, so your child can mark their own work.

A strategy for every table

Very few facts need to be learned from scratch. Each table can be built from one your child already knows.

• × 2: doubles. 2 × 8 is 8 + 8 = 16.
• × 10: the digits move one place to the left and a zero fills the ones place. 10 × 7 = 70.
• × 5: half of × 10. 5 × 6 is half of 60, which is 30.
• × 4: double, then double again. For 4 × 6, double 6 is 12 and double 12 is 24.
• × 8: double the × 4 fact. 4 × 7 = 28, so 8 × 7 = 56.
• × 3: double, then add one more group. 3 × 6 is 12 + 6 = 18.
• × 6: the × 5 fact plus one more group. 6 × 8 is 40 + 8 = 48.
• × 9: ten groups take away one group. 9 × 6 is 60 − 6 = 54. Up to 9 × 10, the digits of each answer add up to 9.
• × 7: the hardest few. Learned last, almost every 7 fact is already known from another table, leaving 7 × 7 = 49 as the only new one up to 7 × 10.
• × 11: up to 11 × 9 the digit repeats, so 11 × 6 = 66. Then learn 11 × 10 = 110, 11 × 11 = 121 and 11 × 12 = 132.
• × 12: ten groups plus two groups. 12 × 6 is 60 + 12 = 72.

The order to learn them

• 2, 5 and 10 first. Their patterns are easy to see and hear.
• 4, then 8, by doubling.
• 3, then 6.
• 9, with the ten-take-away-one strategy.
• 7 last, because by then it is nearly done.
• 11 and 12, for children in England or wherever they are expected.

Each table leans on one learned before it, so your child is never starting from nothing. The 2, 5 and 10 tables also match what England expects first, in Year 2.

Fewer facts than you think

A 12 × 12 grid holds 144 facts. But 3 × 8 and 8 × 3 have the same answer, which an array turned on its side proves, so there are only 78 different facts. Once the 1, 2, 5, 9, 10, 11 and 12 tables are secure, the only facts left are the ones made from 3, 4, 6, 7 and 8. There are just 15 of them:

• 3 × 3 = 9, 3 × 4 = 12, 3 × 6 = 18, 3 × 7 = 21, 3 × 8 = 24
• 4 × 4 = 16, 4 × 6 = 24, 4 × 7 = 28, 4 × 8 = 32
• 6 × 6 = 36, 6 × 7 = 42, 6 × 8 = 48
• 7 × 7 = 49, 7 × 8 = 56
• 8 × 8 = 64

Writing these 15 on one card makes the job feel finite. Many children find 6 × 7, 6 × 8 and 7 × 8 the most stubborn, so give those extra time and a hook, like "5, 6, 7, 8: 56 is 7 × 8."

Multiplication facts practice: little and often

Five to ten minutes a day does more than an hour once a week. Keep sessions short and mix the new table with ones already learned, so older facts don't fade. Ask the division facts too: if 6 × 7 = 42, then 42 ÷ 7 = 6.

A good weekly rhythm is a practice sheet for the table being learned on most days, then one mixed sheet at the end of the week. Mark it together with the answer key, and turn the missed facts into the next week's focus.

How times tables are taught in school

In the US, the Common Core asks children to multiply and divide fluently within 100 and, by the end of grade 3, to know from memory all products of two one-digit numbers (standard 3.OA.C.7). The 11s and 12s are not required, though they are still useful.

In England, the national curriculum expects the 2, 5 and 10 tables in Year 2, the 3, 4 and 8 tables in Year 3, and every table up to 12 × 12 by the end of Year 4. Year 4 pupils also take the multiplication tables check in June.

How parents can help

• Build accuracy before speed. A timer can wait until answers are right.
• Compare only with your child's own last score, never with a sibling or classmate.
• Ask facts in the car or at breakfast. A few at a time is enough.
• When a fact is forgotten, work it out together from one they know: "What's 5 × 7, and then one more 7?"