Sometimes learning new skills can be very difficult for children. Up until now my girls haven’t really struggled with anything in school. That all changed when my oldest daughter was learning multiplication and division.
She was having a hard time memorizing the multiplication facts.
For whatever reason she just couldn’t get it. We tried everything. We tried multiplication cards, quizzing her, using manipulatives. No matter what we did she just couldn’t remember the multiplication facts she needed to know.
I racked my brain trying to come up with ideas that would help her with the simple number process of multiplication and division.
It finally hit me that a multiplication table that was simple to use, easy to make and was interactive for my daughter might just do the trick.
This DIY learning multiplication activity is a great way for kids to learn through repetition as well as being able to quiz themselves without your help. It also helps them gain the ability to better understand the multiplication process.
Learning Multiplication and Division Activity
Materials you’ll need:
Poster board or butcher paper
Scissors
Pen or a sharpie
Ruler or straight edge
Instructions:
Cut out a rectangle using your paper or poster board
Next use your ruler or straightedge to draw 13 lines horizontally and 13 vertically. That should give you enough boxes to go from 0 to 12 on both sides.
Go through and label zero through 12 on the top of the page and 0 to 12 running down the left side.
Then fill each box with the corresponding answer.
After all the numbers were filled in I had my daughter take the small Post-it notes and cover up each answer.
Then the real fun started. She was able to take a Post-it note off one at a time and quiz herself.
Believe my shock when she started actually enjoying studying multiplication!
Within two weeks she knew all her multiplication facts from 0 to 12!
This easy DIY learning multiplication activity can also be made into a division activity, which we will try next.
This learning multiplication activity was super simple to make and easy to use, in fact I didn’t have to buy anything to make it.
Let me know if you have a chance to make this activity and how it works for your child. You can check out more School Age Learning Activities too.
Has your child ever struggled with learning multiplication or division? What tips or tricks did you use to help them overcome that struggle?
Heather lives in Florida with her husband, two girls and two pups. She is a lover of most things in life, too many to name here without scaring you, but a few include working out, learning new recipes, Pinterest, organizing (yes, it’s true!), home decor and learning to lead a more minimal and purposeful life.
She started Just Becoming Me as a venture to better understand herself and what will lead her towards a more fulfilling life. Her motto is: “We only have one life, and I want to learn to live mine in a way that gets me excited to jump out of bed.”
Enjoy your time at home!
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