Times tables — the complete parents' guide: how to teach them without pressure or tears

Emily in Year 2 cries every time the 'sheets with the numbers' come out. Jack comes home from school and says 'I'm stupid, I'll never know my tables'. If that sounds familiar — this article is for you. Times tables do not have to be a nightmare. With the right approach, even children who resist strongly reach fluency within a few weeks.

Why do children get stuck on times tables?

Times tables are one of the most emotionally loaded topics in primary school. Many children arrive at them with a sense of failure before they have even started. Why? Because they usually meet them in one form only — dry chanting of columns. They are made to memorise 9 × 7 without understanding why, and then tested against a tight clock.

The real problem is not a lack of intelligence — it is a lack of context and suitable tools. When a child learns to read, we start with single letters and reinforce them with enjoyable stories. With times tables? Usually the whole lot is thrown at them at once and an iron memory is expected. No wonder they push back.

Another factor is the parents' own stress. When Mum or Dad sits with the child with a tense face, glancing at the clock, the child picks up the anxiety and shuts down. The body goes into stress mode, and long-term memory simply does not work well under stress. That is biology, not stubbornness.

It is also important to understand that there is a big difference between children who find visual learning comfortable and children who learn mainly through movement or sound. A child who refuses to sit and read flashcards might love throwing dice and jumping on squares in the garden. A child who seems 'unfocused' sometimes just needs to move. Times tables can be taught on the move too — and it works just as well.

When is the right time to start?

In England, schools introduce the 2, 5 and 10 times tables in Year 2, the 3, 4 and 8 times tables in Year 3, and expect every table up to 12 × 12 by the end of Year 4 — when children sit the Multiplication Tables Check. But readiness does not depend only on the year group — it depends on the foundations. Before starting to memorise, the child needs to understand that multiplication is repeated addition. 3 × 4 is the same as 4 + 4 + 4.

If your child is not confident adding and subtracting numbers to 20, it is a little early to move on to times tables. Secure the basics first — it will save weeks of frustration. On the other hand, children who are comfortable with addition can start discovering multiplication in Reception or Year 1 through games — with no memorising at all.

It is also worth not depending entirely on the school's pace. The school works to a fixed scheme of work that has to suit the whole class. At home you can go at your own child's pace — sometimes a little ahead of the teacher, sometimes reinforcing what has been taught. Preparation at home, even five minutes a day, builds a stable base for the teacher to build on.

• The child understands that multiplication is repeated addition (4 × 3 = 4 + 4 + 4)
• The child adds to 20 confidently
• The child can count in steps — 2, 4, 6, 8 (the basis of the 2 times table)
• The child is emotionally ready — not arriving tired or frustrated from somewhere else

The golden tip: the right order — from easy to hard

One of the biggest mistakes is learning the tables in order — 1, 2, 3, 4... up to 12. It looks logical, but it is not the most effective. The smart way is to order them by difficulty, from easy to hard. That way the child builds confidence at every stage before moving on.

Start with 2, 5 and 10 — the three tables most children already feel a spark for. The 2 times table is just counting in evens. The 5 times table always ends in 5 or 0. The 10 times table — just add a zero. Once those are fluent, move on to 4 and 3. The 4 times table is easy because it is simply the 2 times table doubled. A child who knows that five twos are 10 will easily know that five fours are 20.

The 6, 7, 8, 9 and 12 tables come last because they have no single obvious trick. But you can exploit the commutative rule — if you know 7 × 4 = 28, then 4 × 7 = 28 too. What the child learnt in the earlier stages helps here: by the time you reach the 7 times table, most of it (7 × 2, 7 × 3, 7 × 4, 7 × 5, 7 × 10) is already known from the other tables, and only a handful of new facts remain.

Five methods that work (and are not boring)

We all grew up with chanting out loud and 'test sheets'. It worked for some of us, but not for many. Today there are methods to suit children's different ways of learning — visual, kinaesthetic, auditory. It is worth trying a few and seeing what lights your child up.

1. Songs and tunes — a melody helps memory. Times-tables songs on YouTube work brilliantly. Put the headphones on and listen in the car on the way to school.
2. Picture cards — instead of 7 × 8 = 56, draw seven fish with eight scales each and 56 bubbles on a card. The associative brain loves it.
3. Dice games — throw two dice and multiply. Whoever says the answer first wins. The whole family can play on a Sunday.
4. An interactive times-tables grid — focused practice with instant feedback. The child clicks, sees the answer, moves on. Less emotional wear than a parent checking.
5. The ten-minutes-a-day timeline — ten minutes every day beats an hour once a week. Memory consolidates during sleep, so a short session before bed is especially effective.

At the weekend you can slip in light practice in a fun, no-obligation way. A dice game before Sunday lunch, a quick puzzle on a walk — the child does not see these as 'lessons', they are just fun moments with parents that happen to include maths. The idea that maths only happens in formal 'study time' is one of the myths worth breaking.

Ten minutes a day, seven days — that is 70 minutes of effective practice. One hour at 5 pm on a Friday — that is 60 minutes of shared frustration.

Common mistakes parents make (and how to avoid them)

No parent does these out of ill will — it all comes from a genuine worry that the child should learn. But some approaches produce exactly the opposite result. These are the most common:

• Testing in a fixed order only — if Jack always hears 1 × 7, 2 × 7... he will learn the sequence, not the multiplication. Always test in a different, random order.
• Excessive time pressure — 'How many seconds has that been?! You should know this by now!' Time pressure is fine at the advanced stage, but at the start it is just stressful.
• Comparing with siblings or friends — 'Your sister knew this at six!' Comparison destroys motivation and creates performance anxiety.
• Over-the-top bribes — 'Learn your tables and you'll get a phone'. Small, immediate rewards (a sticker, choosing tea) work. Huge rewards create expectation, not a love of learning.
• Sitting for more than an hour — when the child is tired and hungry, nothing can be taught. Long sessions breed hatred of the subject.

How do you check the child really knows them?

There is a big difference between a child who can sing the times tables in order and a child who genuinely knows how to multiply. The real test is speed and randomness — can they answer 8 × 7 within three seconds, without running through from 1 to 7 in their head? That, incidentally, is exactly what the Year 4 Multiplication Tables Check measures: 25 random questions, six seconds each.

Test in different ways: ask out loud, write on slips of paper, ask backwards (56 = 7 times what?), ask in context (if Emily has 8 bags with 6 sweets in each — how many sweets does she have altogether?). If they solve all of them — they really know it.

Watch out, too, for specific confusions that keep recurring. Most children mix up 6 × 7 with 7 × 8, or 6 × 8 with 7 × 9. These are some of the hardest facts in the whole grid. It is worth identifying where your child is stuck and practising only those points — not going over the whole grid again every time. Focused practice on specific weaknesses is far more effective.

The next half-term break is an excellent time to consolidate: no test pressure, plenty of free time. Ten to fifteen minutes a day of enjoyable practice in the holidays does wonders for a child's confidence when they go back to school.

• Random questions — not in table order
• Questions the other way round — 42 = 6 × ?
• Questions in context — word problems from real life
• Speed — an answer within 3 seconds shows genuine recall
• Consistency — they need to know it today, tomorrow, and in a week's time

Positive reinforcement — done right

Positive reinforcement is a wonderful tool when used properly. The most important thing: praise the effort, not just the result. 'Well done for practising for 10 minutes!' beats 'Well done for knowing the answer!' A child who learns that effort = success will keep trying even when it is hard.

Small, immediate rewards work brilliantly. A sticker on the achievement chart, choosing the film that evening, or simply a hug and five minutes of a game together — these are reinforcements that link learning to positive feelings. When the child feels proud, they want to repeat the experience.

On the other hand, avoid huge rewards that depend on finishing 'all the times tables' — the goal looks too far away and creates anxiety. Sitting in front of a small achievement chart with a star for every table learnt is far more effective.

Finally, remember that keeping a positive atmosphere all the way through matters just as much as the method itself. A child who feels capable, who feels that someone believes in them, and that learning is an adventure — will learn. A child who feels failure every time they make a mistake — will shut down. Your job as parents is first to create the right environment, and only then to teach content.

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