Skip Counting Songs to Learn Multiplication and Division
I was slow to get her oldest to master multiplication facts. By the middle of third grade, my daughter was tested weekly on multiplication; times twos, times five and times ten were not so hard but then all of a sudden, we had a week to learn x3, then another week for x4, and on and on. Yikes. A fast way to learn multiplication was in order. Luckily, my mom friend was a third grade teacher. She found that some children learn very effortlessly though song. These are the skip-counting songs that she taught in her classroom. Although, my daughter wasn’t that excited to sing these songs, hearing them sung incessantly helped her to master multiplication, and these songs work even better for division.
p.s. Other math posts.
Math Karaoke App for Learning Math Facts
More Multiplication Strategies from Kids That Work
Skip Counting Songs to Learn Multiplication (and Division)
Times 8 — This is best song. Sing to the tune of “She’ll Be Coming Around the Mountain”
8, 16, 24, 32….40!
48, 56, 64….72!
8 times 10 equals 80, 8 times 11 equals 88, and 8 times 12 is 96… Hurrah! Hurrah!
Times 7 – Sing to the tune of “Twinkle Twinkle Little Star” (which incidentally is the same tune as the ABC song)
7, 14, 21
28, 35, 42
49, 56, 63, 70
7, 14, 21
28, 35, 42
Times 4 – Sing to tune of “Row, Row, Row Your Boat”
4, 8, 12, 16
20, 24
28, 32, 36, and 40
44, 48
Times 6- Sing to tune of “The Star Spangled Banner”
6, 12, 18 24
30, 36
42, 48, 54….60
Times 3 – Sing to tune of “Oh My Darlin’ Clementine”
3, 6, 9
12, 15
18 and 21
24, 27, 30 and 33.
Multiplying by 9’s Digit Trick
This link is great because it has great visuals.
1
Spread your hands in front of you and put your far left finger down for factor that you are calculating that is not 9.
9 x 1 = 9
See how there are 9 fingers to the right of the folded pinkie? 0 + 9 = 9
2
Count out and fold the finger
9 x 2 = 18, see how there is 1 next to the folded finger and then 8 to the right of that? 10 + 8 = 18
Count the fingers to the left of the folded finger. In this example, there are two. This is the first digit of your answer. Write it down. Then add the fingers to the right of the folded finger. There are 8 fingers. 1 and 8. 18.
3
9 x 3 = 27
See how there are 2 fingers to the left of folded finger and 7 to the right?
20 + 7 = 27
4
9 x 4 = 36
See how there are 3 fingers folded to left of the finger and 6 to the right?
30 + 6 = 36
Count the fingers to the right of the folded finger. In this example, there are six. This is the second digit of the answer. Write it down to the right of the number you wrote down in the previous step. In this case, the number will now read 36 or thirty-six.
5
9 x 5 = 45
4 fingers to left of folded finger. 5 fingers to the right of folded finger.
40 + 5 = 45
6
9 x 6 = 54
5 fingers to left of folded finger. 4 fingers to the right of folded finger. 50 + 4= 54
Write down the number of fingers to the left of folded finger. 5. This is the first number. Then the number of fingers to left of folded finger.
50 + 4 = 54
7
9 x 7 = 63
6 fingers to left of folded finger. 3 Fingers to the Right.
60 + 3 = 63
8
9 x 8 = 72
7 fingers to the left of folded finger. 2 fingers to the left of it.
70 + 2 = 72
9
9 x 9 = 81
8 fingers to left of folded finger. 1 finger to the right of it.
80 + 1 + 81
10
9 x 10 = 90
You just have to add a zero next to the 9 for x 10.
8 x 8 Math Fact Rhyme
Her teacher taught the class this rhyme that has enabled her 4 year-old brother to master this one math fact (8 x 8):
I ate and I ate until I threw up on the floor,
so 8 times 8 is 64!
I also like flash cards. The easy way is just to sort cards by what your child knows, and focus on the cards that s/he is learning. Another slightly more fun way is to pick all the cards out of a box and if you know the card you take it out, if not, put it back. Keep doing it until the box is empty.
Free and Fun Multiplication Math Games
My 4th grade daughter’s teacher sent home these math games. She plays them daily and she loves them! Games 2 and 3 are her favorite!
p.s. Related posts:
Mastering Multiplication Math Facts
Place Value Math for Kids with Books, Game, and Music Video
Summer Math Ideas for Elementary and Middle School
Video Games for STEM Summer Learning
Math Games For Kids Inspired by Olympics
DIY Math Games Invented by Kids (2nd-5th grade)
Subtraction and Adding to Ten Math Facts Games
My books:
BEST #OWNVOICES CHILDREN’S BOOKS: My Favorite Diversity Books for Kids Ages 1-12 is a book that I created to highlight books written by authors who share the same marginalized identity as the characters in their books.
I love you! I’ve been looking for good ways to drill multiplication into my daughter’s head. The flash cards are so boooooooooring.
Skip counting is more than a memory aid–it helps kids later on when they need to use and understand multiples. Some math programs make this a regular part of learning multiplication. This song is particularly helpful to auditory kids. I can still recall my 3rd grade teacher’s multiplication chants. “9 time 6 is 54, shut the door and say no more!”
Hi Evelyn,
I just recited that 9 times 6 one to my kids! Thanks! It’s hard to find great rhymes for math facts. The one that is stuck with me is:
I ate and ate and I threw up on the floor, so 8 times 8 is 64. It does work! I can’t seem to get it out of my mind. I noticed that when my oldest was learning her multiplication tables, she’d recite those skip counting songs and she ticked off which number … it definitely worked for her!
Hi Evelyn,
Do you believe the research that says that kids DO not learn a particular way (ie visual or auditory?). I don’t buy it. My oldest is definitely someone who learns visually. Did you see that study?
Hi Evelyn,
Today at lunch with my middle daughter and her friend, I learned that they are having trouble with their 8x tables. So we sang the skip counting song and they actually liked it! It’s the best song out of the skip counting ones because it has a fun tune (She’ll Be Coming Around the Mountain). Though I had to write it out because it’s not that easy for me to remember all the facts:
8, 16, 24, 32, 40! (You really belt out the 40!)
48, 56, 64, 73!! (Same with 73!)
8 times 10 equals 80,
8 times 11 equals 88
And 8 times 12 equals 96, Hurrah, Hurrah!!
Brilliant post. I’ll be coming back to this one for the songs in a couple of years.
Hi Rebecca,
Thanks so much! We used the skip counting songs for the 8x this past week and it’s a fun way to learn. It seems to be helping my daughter. I’m not sure if she’s an auditory learner but it’s more than she doesn’t mind drilling this way. She is less inclined to use flash cards but we will also play some web games and I’ll set it up to isolate the 8x facts.
http://www.arcademicskillbuilders.com/games/grand_prix/grand_prix.html and use custom to set the math facts.
Can’t believe this but we are on 8’s this week – timing is perfect! And my daughter so loves to put things to music so this is perfect -thank you!
Hi Jacquie,
The 8’s song is the best one!
I teach my class a similar 8 x 8 rhyme:
He ate and ate and got sick on the floor.
8×8 is 64
LOL! That’s memorable! Thanks for sharing Cyndi!