Primary Maths Times Tables: Teach Equal Groups Before Flashcards

Start by making equal groups

A parent on KiasuParents asked whether songs or flashcards were useful for teaching times tables and what a child should know before Primary 1. If your child is new to multiplication, start with an activity that shows what the numbers mean. There is no need to treat a forum discussion as a school readiness checklist. Use the school’s guidance for what your child is currently learning.

Put three buttons on each of four pieces of paper. Ask how many pieces of paper there are, how many buttons are on each and how many there are altogether. Count once to check, then write 3 + 3 + 3 + 3 = 12. Read the situation as four groups of three. Ask what changes if you add a fifth piece of paper with three more buttons.

Make the pattern visible with an array

Move the same twelve buttons into four rows of three. Turn the arrangement sideways to see three rows of four. The rows and the items in each row have changed places, but no buttons have been added or taken away. This is why the two multiplication facts give the same total. In a word problem, still name which number counts groups and which tells you the number in each group.

Now remove one button. Ask whether the arrangement still has four equal groups of three. A child who notices that one group is smaller has grasped something a perfectly recited table alone cannot reveal. Keep the picture or counters available while the idea is new.

Build a fact your child can recover

If 6 × 4 is hard to remember, use 5 × 4 = 20 and add another group of four. Or use 3 × 4 = 12 and double it. Ask your child to explain why the shortcut works using the groups. Pick one reliable route at first, then compare routes once the fact feels familiar.

Try a short routine on three separate days. First build and draw a fact. Next ask for the same fact out of order, with a picture as a backup. On the third day, use it in a new setting such as four trays with six cups each. If recall fails, go back to a known fact and retry later without a timer.

See whether the idea transfers

Tell a tiny story with an unknown quantity: twenty-four cups are split equally across four trays. How many go on each tray? Invite the child to use the earlier array to check. You can also give a non-example: one tray holds six cups and the next holds four. Ask why equal groups are missing.

Use the collection below to select a few problems that match your child’s current level. One useful signal of progress is being able to explain the groups in a new question, even if the answer still takes time.

Use flashcards to find a strategy

Put one fact on the front of a card and a drawing on the back. If your child says 18 for four groups of five, ask them to point to four groups and check where the count stopped. On the next turn show a related fact such as five groups of five and ask what one fewer group would be. The point of the card is to make the thinking visible. Stop while your child can still explain the idea calmly.

Choose a suitable practice question from our Primary Maths papers.

Sources and further reading

• How can parents help children remember multiplication tables? (Exact post date unavailable on the accessible page).
• Official syllabus reference. Checked on 5 November 2026.