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Original poster

Year 2 times table question

67 replies

southernbelle77 · 10/06/2011 17:42

What times tables should an average ability year 2 child know by the end if the year? Just wondering how DC is doing.

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ragged · 10/06/2011 17:45

2x, 5x, 10x, I think. They should be able to work out some of the others reliably some of the time, using first principles, but not off by heart typically.

PoppetUK · 10/06/2011 17:48

Sounds about right from what I recall. DD has just done some recapping with teacher on these.

mrz · 10/06/2011 17:49

Expected to know 2, 5 & 10 but many know all by heart

Original poster
southernbelle77 · 10/06/2011 19:11

She knows pretty much all of them singing Percy bloody Parker but think her teacher would rather not listen to her singing that all the time! She is confident (when she chooses to be) with 2,5,10,3 and 4 although still see her singing the damn song in her head when asked random questions. She seems to be finding it hard to recall quickly the answers and now wondering whether getting her to write them down and repeat etc will help!

OP posts:
mrz · 10/06/2011 19:15

www.year2maths.co.uk/numberfacts/num3/num3.htm

I give my Y2 class 60 table questions to do in 3 minutes to improve speed.

Elibean · 11/06/2011 16:50

dd knows 2,5, 10 and 3, and most of 6 Hmm

Percy Parker: definitely a hit in this house.

posadas · 11/06/2011 22:11

MRZ -- how many of the 60 questions do you expect your Y2 children to be able to complete (correctly) in 3 minutes?

mrz · 12/06/2011 10:11

60 - I have a few children who can do it with time to spare.

mrz · 12/06/2011 10:12

I started off giving the class 50 in 5 minutes but as they got faster I increased the number and shortened the time

Gooseberrybushes · 12/06/2011 10:15

They should know all of them. The NC doesn't require this.

Gooseberrybushes · 12/06/2011 10:16

Off by heart. Working them out is Not The Point.

mrz · 12/06/2011 10:19

they have to know them all off by heart to complete 60 mixed questions in 3 minutes Wink

Original poster
southernbelle77 · 12/06/2011 12:32

I'm guessing you have been doing times tables with your class for a while, if not from the beginning of the year mrz? I don't think even the top set in our class could answer 60 questions in 5 minutes (and it is a bright class, especially the top set (DD isn't in it!!) but then they only starting teaching times tables after Easter so surely you wouldn't expect them to know them all yet?! DD is now writing and reciting one a day and repeating the previous days one too! Hoping this might help to get her there! She is, in her teachers (and my words) a very able but 'lazy' child! Teacher didn't use lazy but that was my interpretation of it which is quite true!!

OP posts:
mrz · 12/06/2011 12:41

I started with 50 "jumbled" questions on the 10 times table in 5 mins and once a child had achieved 50 correct answers in the time 3 times they moved onto 2 times tables (same procedure) then onto 5 times tables - after that they could choose which they wanted to learn. Once they had completed all tables they moved onto mixed tables - 60 in 3 minutes then onto 60 mixed multiplication and division calculations in 3 minutes.
We also have a weekly BM Beat That session which involves 40 mixed addition and multiplication calculations in 90 seconds.
Some of my "lazy" children have really risen to the challenge of beating their own best score.

mrz · 12/06/2011 12:42

and yes some are completing 40 mixed calculations correctly in 90 seconds

Gooseberrybushes · 12/06/2011 14:06

Yes mrz I was responding to someone who said their child knew a few and could work the rest out.

We disagreed on something some other thread, I can't remember what, but I support your approach to early maths absolutely. I don't think it is very usual though. I don't think every teacher is like this.

Gooseberrybushes · 12/06/2011 14:07

Seven years old is too late to start learning tt's I would have thought. Why wait so long.

Jux · 12/06/2011 14:14

Dd didn't start on tts until she was in Y2 either. I used TimezAttack to encourage her, but didn't discover it until she was much older. She's 11 now and is still shaky on them, but she does still play TimezAttack, so there's still hope.

Gooseberrybushes · 12/06/2011 16:03

I think they should just learn em when they can start learning and repeating. When they're old enough to be taught what it means - then it all slots into place.

ragged · 12/06/2011 16:08

DS would know the answer quickly, but couldn't write the answers down that quickly, mrz.
Summerborn-lefty-boy.

ragged · 12/06/2011 16:10

Crikey, 7yr old too late, goosberry, really? I am sure I was in 4th grade (age 9-10) before we learnt TTs, 1970s USA. I am pretty good at math, too. I am always amazed at 6 yr olds learning them in the UK.

mrz · 12/06/2011 16:12

Will you please tell our Y1 teacher... she's seen how successful Y2 has been yet still insists on chanting 2,4,6, 8 ...

Elibean · 12/06/2011 16:28

Its true they can learn them earlier (with Mr Parker - he makes a big difference to motivation IME, thank you mrz) as dd2, who is 4, already knows some from listening to dd1.

Personally, I don't think I ever knew my tables off by heart as a child - and still occasionally pause and think Blush - but somehow came top in my class at Maths all the way to A level. No idea how, maybe maths was just different in my day

mrz · 12/06/2011 16:29

I think it's possible to do the calculations (without knowing tables by heart) but it takes longer ...