Ross MackellUK-qualified primary teacher · 8 min read

There are 144 facts on a times tables grid. That's what your child thinks they have to learn.

But once they know their 1s, 2s, 5s and 10s, there are only 36 left. In this guide I'll show you which 36, the order to learn them in, the tricks for the hardest ones, and a five-minute routine you can start tonight.

I'm Ross, a UK-qualified primary teacher with over ten years in the classroom. If your child counts on their fingers, chants the whole table to find one answer, or freezes when you ask "7 times 8?", this page is for you.

Why fast recall matters

"Isn't it enough that my child can work it out?" It's a fair question. Here's why speed matters.

• Brain power. When a child has to count up to find 7 × 8, all their effort goes on that one fact. There's nothing left for the actual question.
• Times tables are inside everything. Long multiplication, division, fractions, percentages. A child who knows their tables instantly finds all of it easier.
• An example. To simplify 24/36, a child who knows their tables spots 12 straight away. A child who doesn't is stuck before they start.

If your child is in Year 4 in England, there's also the Multiplication Tables Check (MTC) in June. It's 25 questions, with six seconds for each one. Six seconds isn't enough time to count up. It's only enough time to know it.

So the goal isn't "can they work it out". The goal is: can they answer without thinking?

The best order to learn times tables

Most children learn their tables in order: 1s, 2s, 3s, 4s. That's actually the hardest way to do it. Here's the order I use, because each step builds on the one before.

1. 10s, 2s and 5s first. They have patterns children can see. 10s end in 0, 5s end in 0 or 5, and 2s are all even.
2. Then 4s and 8s. Double the 2s to get the 4s. Double the 4s to get the 8s. 3 × 2 is 6, so 3 × 4 is 12, so 3 × 8 is 24.
3. Then 3s, 6s and 9s. Double the 3s to get the 6s. For the 9s, do the 10s and take one lot away: 9 × 6 is 60 take away 6, which is 54.
4. Then 11s. Up to 9 × 11, it's just the digit twice: 4 × 11 is 44.
5. Last: 7s and 12s. By now, almost every fact in these tables is one your child already knows from another table. The 12s are the 10s plus the 2s: 12 × 6 is 60 add 12, which is 72.

Your child isn't learning twelve separate lists. They're learning a few, then using them to unlock the rest.

Where the 36 comes from

Print a blank 12 × 12 grid and try this with your child. Shade as you go.

1. Shade the 1s row and column. Anything times 1 is itself. Nothing to learn.
2. Shade the 2s. Doubling. Most children know these early.
3. Shade the 10s. The digits move one place to the left: 7 × 10 is 70.
4. Shade the 5s. Half of the 10s. 5 × 8 is half of 80, so 40.

Count what's left: 64 squares.

Now the big one. Picture 6 rows of 8 dots. Turn it on its side and it's 8 rows of 6. Same dots, same answer: 48. So 6 × 8 and 8 × 6 are the same fact.

Cross out every fact below the diagonal, because each one is a repeat of a fact above it. That leaves 36. That's the real job.

Here are all 36, so you can tick them off:

• 3s (8 facts): 3 × 3 = 9, 3 × 4 = 12, 3 × 6 = 18, 3 × 7 = 21, 3 × 8 = 24, 3 × 9 = 27, 3 × 11 = 33, 3 × 12 = 36
• 4s (7 facts): 4 × 4 = 16, 4 × 6 = 24, 4 × 7 = 28, 4 × 8 = 32, 4 × 9 = 36, 4 × 11 = 44, 4 × 12 = 48
• 6s (6 facts): 6 × 6 = 36, 6 × 7 = 42, 6 × 8 = 48, 6 × 9 = 54, 6 × 11 = 66, 6 × 12 = 72
• 7s (5 facts): 7 × 7 = 49, 7 × 8 = 56, 7 × 9 = 63, 7 × 11 = 77, 7 × 12 = 84
• 8s (4 facts): 8 × 8 = 64, 8 × 9 = 72, 8 × 11 = 88, 8 × 12 = 96
• 9s (3 facts): 9 × 9 = 81, 9 × 11 = 99, 9 × 12 = 108
• 11s (2 facts): 11 × 11 = 121, 11 × 12 = 132
• 12s (1 fact): 12 × 12 = 144

Shading the grid like this changes how children feel about times tables. It stops being a mountain and becomes a list of 36 they can tick off.

Tricks for the hardest times tables facts

These are the facts children get wrong most often. Each trick works the answer out from something your child already knows.

• 7 × 8 = 56. Say "5, 6, 7, 8: 56 is 7 times 8". The digits run in order. Or: 7 × 4 is 28, double it to get 56.
• 6 × 7 = 42. 5 sevens are 35, add one more 7: 42.
• 6 × 8 = 48. 3 × 8 is 24. Double it: 48. (6 is double 3.)
• 9 × 7 = 63. 10 sevens are 70, take away 7: 63. (9 is one less than 10.)
• 12 × 7 = 84. 10 sevens are 70, 2 sevens are 14: 84. (12 is 10 add 2.)
• 8 × 8 = 64. 4 × 8 is 32. Double it: 64. (8 is double 4.)

These aren't shortcuts to avoid learning the facts. They're how you get there. After a few weeks of working them out, your child will just know the answer.

3 times tables mistakes parents make

None of these mean you've done anything wrong. Most of us were taught this way. It just isn't the fastest way.

Mistake 1: Chanting the whole table

What it looks like: to find 7 × 6, your child goes "7, 14, 21, 28..." all the way up.

Why it matters: they've learned a song, not the facts.

What to do: chanting is fine at the very start. But practise facts out of order as soon as you can: "What's 7 × 6? What's 3 × 7?"

Mistake 2: Jumping straight to speed tests

What it looks like: timed tests on facts your child can't work out yet.

Why it matters: all you're practising is panic. Speed pressure is one of the main reasons children start saying they hate maths (I explain the others in my child hates maths: what to do).

What to do: first make sure they can work each fact out. Then make it faster. Speed comes last.

Mistake 3: Doing too much at once

What it looks like: twenty minutes of times tables once a week.

Why it matters: that does far less than five minutes every day. Short and often is how memory works.

What to do: little and often beats long and rare, every time.

A 5-minute daily routine to try tonight

Five minutes, three steps: watch, copy, practise.

1. Watch (1 minute). Pick 3 facts from the 36. Show your child how to work each one out using a trick from above.
2. Copy (2 minutes). Your child works out the same 3 facts, saying the trick out loud.
3. Practise (2 minutes). Ask those 3 facts mixed in with ones they already know, in a random order. Car journeys and the walk to school count.

When your child answers a fact instantly three days in a row, tick it off. Then pick a new one. That's 36 facts, three at a time. Most children get through them in a few weeks.

Once the tables are secure, short division suddenly gets much easier, because every step of it is a times table fact. When your child is ready, my step-by-step guide to the bus stop method shows exactly how it works, including the mistakes to watch for.

Frequently asked questions

What is the fastest way to learn times tables?

Learn them in an order where each table builds on the last (10s, 2s and 5s, then 4s and 8s, then 3s, 6s and 9s, then 11s, then 7s and 12s), focus only on the 36 facts that are left, and practise for five minutes a day with facts mixed up rather than chanted in order.

What times tables should my child know in each year?

In England, children learn the 2, 5 and 10 times tables in Year 2, the 3, 4 and 8 times tables in Year 3, and all times tables up to 12 × 12 by the end of Year 4.

What is the Multiplication Tables Check?

It's an online check taken by Year 4 children in England in June. There are 25 questions on times tables up to 12 × 12, and children have six seconds to answer each one.

Which times tables are the hardest?

Usually the 7s, 8s and 12s, and facts like 7 × 8, 6 × 7, 6 × 8 and 8 × 8. Use the tricks above to work them out from facts your child already knows.

Next, see how column subtraction is taught in schools now: Column Subtraction and Addition: How to Help Your Child at Home.