What To Do When Your Child Just Isn't Getting Multiplication

You’ve explained multiplication. More than once.

You’ve tried flash cards. You’ve practiced skip counting. You’ve done worksheets. Maybe you’ve found a catchy multiplication song on YouTube that you now wish you could get out of your own head.

And then you ask, “What’s 7 × 8?”

Blank stare.

If you’ve been there, it’s tempting to think your child just needs more practice. More flash cards. More repetition. More time at the table until those facts finally stick.

But sometimes more practice isn’t what they need.

Sometimes you need to back up.

Does multiplication actually make sense to them?

Before worrying about whether your child can remember 4 × 6, find out whether they really understand what 4 × 6 means.

Ask them.

“What does 4 × 6 mean?”

And don’t worry about the answer being 24 yet.

Hand them some LEGO bricks, pennies, cereal pieces, buttons—whatever you have nearby—and ask them to show you.

Can they make four groups with six things in each group?

Can they see that:

6 + 6 + 6 + 6 = 24

so 4 × 6 = 24?

This seems really basic, especially if your child has already been working on multiplication for a while. But it’s worth checking.

Kids can memorize quite a few multiplication facts without ever really understanding what multiplication is. That can work for a while. Then there are suddenly too many facts, they start mixing them up, and everything falls apart.

If that’s happening, I wouldn’t keep pushing memorization. I’d put the flash cards away for a few days.

Get multiplication off the paper

One of the easiest things you can do is make multiplication something your child can actually touch.

You don’t need special math manipulatives, either.

Use LEGO bricks. Goldfish crackers. Pennies. Buttons. Dry beans. Pom-poms. Toy cars. M&Ms. Whatever happens to be in your house.

If you’re working on 5 × 4, have your child make five groups of four.

Then talk about it.

“How many groups did you make?”

“Four.”

“And how many are in each group?”

“Five.”

“Okay, so how many do we have altogether?”

Let them count if they need to.

Let them add 5 + 5 + 5 + 5.

Let them count by fives.

Yes, you already know the answer is 20. But right now, getting to the answer is more important than getting there quickly.

Then take those same 20 objects and rearrange them.

Make four groups of five.

You still have 20.

Now your child can actually see that 5 × 4 and 4 × 5 give you the same answer.

You could explain the commutative property of multiplication. Or you could let them discover it with a pile of M&Ms.

I know which one I’d choose.

Arrays are especially helpful

Arrays are just rows and columns, but they are one of the best ways I know to help multiplication make sense.

Make 3 × 6:

● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ●

Three rows. Six in each row.

Now turn it.

Suddenly it’s six rows of three.

You can draw arrays on paper, make them with little objects, or look for them in real life.

An egg carton is an array. So is a muffin pan. Floor tiles can be arrays. Windows on a building. A package of water bottles. The little squares on a chocolate bar.

Once you start looking for them, you see multiplication all over the place.

And that can be a fun challenge for kids: How many arrays can you find today?

Don't tackle the whole multiplication table at once

A full multiplication chart can be intimidating when multiplication already feels hard.

So don’t start there.

Start with the facts that barely feel like multiplication.

The ×1 facts are easy to understand. One group of eight is eight.

Then work on ×2. If your child knows their doubles, they already know a whole set of multiplication facts. click here

6 + 6 = 12, so 2 × 6 = 12.

Then try ×10.

Three groups of ten? 30.

Seven groups of ten? 70.

Then ×5, especially if your child is already comfortable counting by fives.

5, 10, 15, 20, 25, 30...

All of a sudden, that giant multiplication chart has quite a few facts your child already knows.

That feels a lot better than, “Here are 100 facts. Memorize them.”

Teach them how to figure out the facts they forget

This is the part I think we sometimes skip.

We spend so much time trying to get children to memorize multiplication facts that we forget to teach them what to do when they don't remember one.

Let’s say your child gets stuck on 6 × 7.

Ask, “Do you know 5 × 7?”

If they know that’s 35, great.

Now add one more seven.

35 + 7 = 42.

So 6 × 7 = 42.

Or maybe 8 × 6 is the one they can never remember.

Do they know 4 × 6?

If they know that’s 24, double it.

There are all kinds of little ways to get to an answer.

And I’d much rather hear a child say, “I don’t remember, but I can figure it out,” than simply, “I don’t know.”

Eventually we want those facts to become automatic. Of course we do. But while we’re getting there, children need somewhere to go when their memory fails them.

Play with it for a while

Multiplication practice doesn’t have to mean sitting at the table with a stack of flash cards.

Grab two dice.

Roll them.

If you get a 4 and a 6, make 4 × 6.

At first, actually build it with objects. Later, once your child understands what they’re doing, just multiply the numbers.

Or play Multiplication War with a deck of cards.

Take out the face cards. Each person flips over two cards and multiplies them. Whoever has the larger answer gets the cards.

And if your child doesn’t know the answer?

Let them figure it out.

Let them draw it. Build it. Use a multiplication chart. Count by sixes. Use a fact they already know.

The point of the game is to get them working with multiplication over and over again—not to prove that they don't know something.

And yes, let them use the multiplication chart

I know it can feel like cheating.

It isn’t.

A multiplication chart can actually be a great teaching tool.

Sit down with your child and look at one together.

Ask, “What do you notice?”

Don’t immediately start pointing out all the patterns yourself. Give them a chance.

Maybe they’ll notice that all the ×5 answers end in 0 or 5.

Maybe they’ll see the ×10 pattern.

Maybe they’ll notice that 3 × 7 and 7 × 3 meet at the same number.

Let them circle things. Highlight things. Look for patterns.

The multiplication chart isn't the enemy.

Think of it as a map. When you're going somewhere new, you need the map a lot. After you've made the trip dozens of times, you barely think about it.

Understanding and memorizing aren't the same thing

This is an important distinction.

A child who understands that 7 × 4 means seven groups of four, and can work out that the answer is 28, has a different problem from a child who has no idea what 7 × 4 means.

The first child probably needs more work on fluency.

The second child needs more work on the concept itself.

So pay attention to how your child is struggling.

Can they solve multiplication problems with objects?

Can they draw them?

Can they skip count to find the answer?

Can they use a fact they already know to work out one they don't?

If they can do those things but they aren't fast yet, that's okay.

Speed can come with practice.

Here's what I would do tomorrow

If multiplication has become a source of frustration in your house, I would take a break from the regular lesson for a day.

Put the workbook away.

Grab two dice and something you have a lot of—LEGO bricks, pennies, cereal, buttons, whatever.

Roll the dice.

Say you get a 3 and a 5.

Make three groups of five.

Count them.

Now rearrange the same objects into five groups of three.

Write down:

3 × 5 = 15 5 × 3 = 15

Roll again.

Keep going for 10 or 15 minutes.

Then stop.

That's enough.

Do it again tomorrow.

You don't have to fix multiplication in one afternoon.

The goal is bigger than memorizing 7 × 8 = 56

Yes, eventually we want our kids to know that 7 × 8 = 56 without having to think about it.

Those facts matter. They make division, fractions, long multiplication, and later math so much easier.

But I think there’s another skill hiding in all of this that matters just as much.

What does your child do when they don't know the answer?

Do they freeze?

Guess?

Decide they're bad at math?

Or do they start thinking?

“I know 7 × 4 is 28. If I double that, I get 56.”

That’s what I want.

Because eventually, after they’ve figured out 7 × 8 enough times, they probably won’t need the strategy anymore. They'll just know it's 56.

But along the way, they’ve learned something much more useful than one multiplication fact.

They’ve learned that not knowing the answer doesn't mean you're stuck.

Sometimes you just need another way to get there.