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Times tables help

6 replies

WideGassySea · 17/09/2012 22:54

Hi all
DS (7) has just changed up to Juniors and joined Y3
School have asked that we spend 10 mins a night on times tables in addition to the 10 mins reading
No issue with that- we have been doing a sheet or so of Maths Mad Minutes since halfway through the holidays when I was stunned to hear him not know what 7 +5 was!! And that has been going well-0 he is whizzing through now and getting 55-58/60.
However I have no idea how one goes about teaching the Times tables these days.
Is it rote reciting, or are they other ways? We do have a parents in tough evening but not till mid October and dont really want to leave it too long :)

Many thanks

OP posts:
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wineandnibbles · 17/09/2012 23:00

Hi,

Rote reciting is valuable, anytime you are in the car etc, however looking for patterns is really helpful. Such as are the answers all even or odd? In the 6 x table 2x 4 x 6 x 8x all have 2,4 6, and 8 in the answer. The digits of the 9x table add to 9. learn the east tables first 2, 5, 10, 11 and then you know 4 of each of the other tables as thay are reversible.

MrsShrek3 · 17/09/2012 23:01

We do it with Percy Wink - will get you a link in a mo!
Any (naff) sing along seems to work and it's likely that they do them in a "strange" order : 2s, 5s and 10s, then 3,4,6,7,8,9 - some do 9 after 4s or six times tables. It's not only knowing how to count in twos fives or whatever - sorry if I'm stating the obvBlush

MrsShrek3 · 17/09/2012 23:05

Percy Parker
Grin

WideGassySea · 17/09/2012 23:25

Thanks both- I had a feeling the order was odd!

2, 5 and 10s it is to start with then, and go from there!
Thank you

OP posts:
PastSellByDate · 19/09/2012 23:31

Times tables starts by teaching counting at intervals usually by 2s, 5s and tens and these are the first tables taught.

Usually you then launch into families - so x2, x4 and x8 (which effectively is doubling, doubling again and doubling a 3rd time).

Next is 3, 6 and 9.

x1 seemed to have been skipped over at school - but anything x1 is itself - and this can be nicely recapped when teaching x11.

x7 - it's the tricky one. Just practice - but remember that with all the other work you've done you've learned x7 (with x1, x2, x3, x4, x5, x6, x8, x9, x10 and x11).

That just leaves x12 - if you're a completest.

x13 is of course just showing off.

Times tables games:

Mumsnet has a link to Math Champs which has good practice with addition/ subtraction/ multiplication as video games here: www.mathschamps.co.uk/ It's still in development [or BETA] so sometimes it crashes - but it's good fun and not too stressful.

Mumsnet has a timestable grid game for practice here: www.mumsnet.com/learning/maths/interactive-times-tables-activity.

Woodland Junior School's Mathszone has all sorts of support for learning timestables here: www.woodlands-junior.kent.sch.uk/maths/timestable/index.html.

Crickweb has timestables practice here as well: www.crickweb.co.uk/ks2numeracy-multiplication.html

Ambelside primary have this lovely calm practice called Table Trees: www.amblesideprimary.com/ambleweb/mentalmaths/tabletrees.html

If you need a bit more thrill and adventure - you can download Timez Attack from here www.bigbrainz.com/ - there's a free version with a prison/ castle platform or you can pay for more worlds to explore. Basically you're a little boy or girl ogre and you run about solving multiplication problems. The nice thing about this game is that it does stop to show that multiplication is multiple additions of the same number so 5 x 3 = 3+3+3+3+3 - in the game you throw balls against the wall and they appear as dots (like a die) and a voice counts up each time. Then you get the verticle multiplication problem and type in the answer. Then a big ogre comes out and asks you 3 multiplication problems over and over in different order and if you answer quickly you kill him off and can move on to the next problem.

HTH

kittykato · 20/09/2012 14:32

My DS is competitive so we go through tables rote style and try to beat his time on a stopwatch

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