Learning the tables in steps
- 2, 5 and 10. Counting in twos, fives and tens makes these the easiest to start with.
- 3, 4 and 8. The 4s are double the 2s, and the 8s are double the 4s.
- 6, 7 and 9. The trickiest facts; most children learn them last.
- All tables 2 to 12. Mixed practice once each table is secure.
Facts, missing factors and division
Knowing 7 × 8 = 56 also means knowing 8 × 7, 56 ÷ 7 and 56 ÷ 8. Mixing the three kinds of problem helps children see a times table as a family of facts, not a list to recite, and makes division much easier later on.
In the New Zealand Curriculum
- Year 2Multiplying and dividing by skip counting and grouping in 2s, 5s and 10s.
- Year 3Recalling the 2, 3, 4, 5, 8 and 10 times tables and their division facts.
- Year 4All tables from 2 to 10, using fact families to divide.
- Year 5The 11 and 12 times tables.
The groups on this maker line up well with the curriculum: 2, 5 and 10 grow out of Year 2 skip counting, 3, 4 and 8 finish the Year 3 set, 6, 7 and 9 complete Year 4, and the mixed 2 to 12 set fits once Year 5 adds 11 and 12.
In New Zealand these are the multiplication basic facts. Division facts are learned alongside them from Year 3, so include the division problems from the start.
Summarised in our own words from the New Zealand Curriculum: Mathematics and Statistics, Years 0–8 (in effect from 2025), and the Ministry of Education’s year-by-year guide for parents and whānau.
