How to Help Your Child Learn Times Tables: A 10-Minute-a-Day Plan
When children should know their times tables (UK Year 4, US Grade 3), the easiest order to learn them, a 10-minute daily routine and tricks for 6, 7, 8, 9 and 12.
By the TurantTools Learn team · Updated October 19, 2026 · 4 min read
Times tables open the door to almost everything in later maths: division, fractions, area, even percentages. The good news is that 10 minutes a day is enough. Here's a simple plan that works at home, with no flashcard battles.
When should children know them?
- In England, children should know all tables up to 12 × 12 by the end of Year 4 (age 8–9), when they take the multiplication tables check: 25 questions, 6 seconds each.
- In the US, Common Core expects children to multiply fluently within 100 and know all products of two one-digit numbers from memory by the end of Grade 3.
The order that makes it easier
There are 144 facts in a 12 × 12 grid, but far fewer to really learn: 3 × 7 is the same as 7 × 3, and the 1, 2, 5 and 10 tables are quick. Learn the easy tables first, and each new table has only a few new facts.
| When | Tables | Why it's easier |
|---|---|---|
| Week 1 | 10, 2 and 5 | Easiest patterns: zeros, doubles, fives |
| Week 2 | 3 and 4 | 4 is double 2, then double again |
| Week 3 | 8 and 6 | 8 is double 4; 6 is double 3 |
| Week 4 | 9 and 11 | Finger trick for 9, repeat digits for 11 |
| Week 5 | 7 and 12 | Only a few new facts left by now |
| Week 6 | All mixed | Speed and confidence |
A 10-minute daily routine
- 2 minutes: say this week's table out loud, in order. Clap or march along.
- 4 minutes: a short mixed sheet or the online challenge. Missed facts come back until they stick.
- 2 minutes: one trick for a tricky fact (see below).
- 2 minutes: a quick game: you say a number, they say the fact (“56?” → “7 × 8!”).
Tricks for the tricky ones
- 9×: Finger trick: hold up 10 fingers, fold down finger N; fingers left of it are tens, right are ones.
- 7×: 7 × 8 = 56: just count 5, 6, 7, 8.
- 8×: Double, double, double: 8 × 3 → 6 → 12 → 24.
- 6×: 6 × an even number ends in that number: 6 × 4 = 24, 6 × 8 = 48.
- 12×: 12 × N = 10 × N + 2 × N: 12 × 7 = 70 + 14 = 84.