Times Tables, what age are they expected to know/learn them?

[Linnet]

Dd1 is 7,nearly 8, and in Primary 3 (we're in Scotland)we got her report card on Friday and the teacher has written that she needs to practise her 2,3,4,5 and 10 times tables.

Does anyone elses child/children of this age know their times tables off by heart?

Should I be worrying? We have parents evening tomorrow night with her teacher and I have lots of questions to ask but just wondered if I should be worrying or not about the maths situation.

...

Teaching Tables

So I have parents evening in the morning (don't ask) and until now (DD is in yr 2, KS1) I have met these with a sense of defeat. I have definitely failed her by not realising that the spellings sent home for weekly testing were not being taught in school and since I realised and Thursday evenings are dedicated to them she is flying each week and forgetting by end of term. With times tables, communication was poor on which were being tested so I attempted to teach them all and scared all the confidence out of her. This week was the first week I was clear on the ones being tested and she got 5 out of 8 (so proud). My aunt sees my parental guilt consuming me and as a teaching assistant tells me yr 2 is slightly early. My mum reminds me that I never ever had homework at this age (and I am luckily literate and quite good with maths etc). The teacher however inadvertently makes me feel like DD's position in bottom groups is down to my failure to juggle two kids, a business, a full time career and DD's moods after a long day at school. I suggested tutoring, she said yes. Sorry for the back story but my question is this... (These) if times tables in year two are killing confidence, is this the right time? If I have always read and talked maths in everyday life to my kids, how much should the school be teaching versus me? Do many schools offer out of hours sessions for kids that are struggling? ( My local one does, the one I chose for being supposedly better, doesn't.) how do you think I should play this?

the dc's started in Y1. They work up to their 13 times table, usually in Y4, which is either pointless or something to do with it being a prime number and after that they're all multiples of previous times tables.

Don't know if it's already been said but Percy Parker is your friend .

The songs are fun and so they take it in a lot quicker I think ! Helped my DP too as he had always struggled a bit but now knows them all!

Oops - only read the first page and didn't realise it was from 2005!

my ds is in y5 and has officially been learning them since y2. however he was completely unmotivated in doing so and up until starting y5 only really knew the easy ones. then for some reason in y5 he got the competitive bug/liked the maths teacher and now knows them all, consistently and reliably, up to 20. All pretty much learnt in first term of y5 and the 12-19s over the Xmas holidays to win a bet! So don't despair if its not happening in the younger classes. His maths has massively improved in parallel with this feat (I was impressed that).

Mainly achieved with an app and a times table book.

always relevant to someone at some stage though I suspect.

Ds' school has them learning times tables in year 2, and the boys get weekly tests on them. a quarter of the class had 1-12 tables done and dusted by the end of winter term, another quarter or so finished this term, and the other half are expected to know them by the end of the academic year.

We just had a parent evening about the new curriculum and the maths teacher said all timetables up to 12 have to be learned by end of Y4. B the new Y6 SATS there will be a large mental maths paper and Y5 already does weekly tests for instant recall.

DD started in Y2 (old curriculum) and did 2,5, 11 and 10. they played around with 4 a bit I think.

In Y3 she has done 3,4,6 so far and they just started on 8. 6 is still wobbly though.

We practice a couple of times a week with ipad apps, Squeebles.

I think while you need to know how multiplication works you need to learn them by heart in any order.

DD is the same age as yours. She's been learning her tables since the past 1 year & is now expected to know all the 12 tables (and up to 12 times) with quick recall & in inverse as well (i.e. division). They also have to attempt 50 questions in 3 minutes. Many children in her class including her get 40-45 done & correct. She's in a prep school that's working towards the 11+.

We tried to make sure he understood some of the concepts: that 4 x 2 can be seen as 2 +2 + 2 + 2 and also 4 + 4
Or that he already knows what 1 x 4 is, so he can double the answer.

He really enjoyed colouring in on times tables squares - colouring all the x2, x5, x10 numbers etc and looking at the patterns on each sheet.

My eldest son is in year 4 and we were told that he's not expected to know and remember all of his times tables and division facts yet, but should be practising them as much as he can.

Whenever I remember we drill them. He also tests me on my tables - I do forget some of the harder ones and it can be embarrassing.

ds 8 did his "big test" and passed recently so had to know up to 12 times table before they can do it.

My DD is 7 (in Year 3) and knows them all and the division facts. The school were testing different tables each week so I thought it was easier just to learn them all. I have a DS who is 9 (Year 5) so she has picked up a lot from him. Repetition is the key.

Repeat, repeat, repeat! We have Percy Parker in the car for the school runs, that's 20 mins a day, x 5 days, 1hr 40 a week. It drives me mental but my Ds 1 knew them by Yr2 and Ds2, who is in Yr1, is now on his 7,8,9 tables.

My DD is 5 years old and in Year 1. She knows all her tables from 1-12. We just practised them at the weekends until she understood them. We go through mix times table in the car on the way to school to ensure she does not forget. We have progressed to divisions which she is doing well. I don't think the school do the times table until they are in Year 2.

This is my standard Numeracy information, which may possibly help some people:

Practical things are best for grasping number concepts - bricks, Lego, beads, counters, money, shapes, weights, measuring, cooking.

Do adding, taking away, multiplication (repeated addition), division (sharing), using REAL OBJECTS as just 'numbers' can be too abstract for some children.

Number Bonds of Ten forms the basis of much maths, so try to learn them. Using Lego or something similar, use a LOT of bricks (of just TWO colours, if you have enough) lay them out so the pattern can be seen of one colour INCREASING while the other colour DECREASES. Lay them down, or build up like steps.

So:

ten of one colour none of other
nine of one colour one of other
eight of one colour two of other
seven of one colour three of other

etc,

then of course, the sides are equal at 5 and 5; after which the colours 'swap over' as to increasing/decreasing.

To learn TABLES, do them in groups that have a relationship, thus:

x2, x4, x8

x3, x6, x12

5 and 10 are easy

7 and 9 are rather harder.

Starting with TWO times TABLE, I always say: "Imagine the class is lining up in pairs; each child will have a partner, if there is an EVEN number in the class. If one child is left without a partner, then the number is ODD, because an odd one is left out."

Use Lego bricks again, lay them out in a column of 2 wide to learn 2x table. Go half way down the column, and move half the bricks up, so that now the column is 4 bricks wide. That gives the start of 4x table.

Then do similar things with 3x and 6x.

With 5x, try and count in 'fives', and notice the relationship with 'ten' - they will alternate, ending in 5 then 10.

It is important to try and UNDERSTAND the relationships between numbers, and not just learn them 'by rote'.

An inexpensive solar powered calculator (no battery to run out!) can help learn tables by 'repeated addition'. So: enter 2+2 and press = to give 4. KEEP PRESSING = and it should add on 2 each time, giving 2 times table.

There are good web sites, which can be fun to use :

www.ictgames.com/

www.woodlands-junior.kent.sch.uk/page/default.asp?title=Woodlands%20Junior%20School&pid=1

Ds1 is in Year 2 and is expected to know his 2,3,4,5 and 10 times tables.

they start in years 1, 2 &3 depending on the child. By year 5, the emphasis is on quick recall.

Then by year 6, the school finally stops talking about and testing the times tables.

YOUTUBE my 4 year old knpwnher 2x and 5x table off by heart. But I've never sat down with her and Done them because thought she was to young. I had been working on other maths stuff. However my little one came across a you tube channel on times tables by mistake. And loves watching it and now knows her 2x and 3x table.

OP, so that you know, I have to tell you there are 5-year-olds out there who know their times tables to 12 outside in and inside out. At 7/8 years old, your DD has a lot to catch up with these kids whom she would be competing against as they proceed further up the educational laddar in years to come. But it's not too late to sit her down now to really do some serious work.

As the OP's daughter is now 19, I'm hoping she has already mastered her times tables!

Yes, hopefully, spanieleyes. Didn't realise the date when I responded to the main question on this thread. Thank you for reminding. In any case, my advice still stands even today especially as a wake-up call to parents whose DC might be idling by. . .

We've moved on from timetable quick recall by end of year 2. By age 7 both mine would be able to complete 50 questions in 3mins. We are moving onto more challenging mental maths which requires secure timetable recall. It depends what you are aiming for. We are doing 11+ prep so I know the standards and expectations are already very high with our peer group in private prep (we are state educated).

I taught dd times tables by having a sum of the day. Say it and get the child to recall it a few times through the day. Recap on past sums every few days and make any they have forgotten sum of the day again.

Also, they do not need to learn their 5, 9 and 10 times table, they just need to learn the trick of how to do them.