How do you help students practice multiplication? There are lots of ways to use technology to support multiplication practice. You might teach times tables to students or have a few students who need additional support building their multiplication muscles.
If you’re looking for a tech-friendly way to help students practice their math facts, this blog post has you covered. We’ll take a look at eight favorite ways to use digital tools to help students practice multiplication throughout the school year. You might use these in your classroom for whole-class activities, introduce them in a station rotation, or share these ideas with families who want to support their children at home.
8 Ways to Practice Multiplication
Here are a few favorite digital strategies students can use to practice multiplication. You can tailor these to different groups of students, use them for intervention, or have them in your back pocket for the next time a family asks for a recommendation on how to help their children build math skills.
Multiplication Chart
Give students access to a variety of Multiplication Charts that they can access on their personal devices. You might use one of the Multiplication Charts in Kami and share these with students. They have lots to choose from, and you can find answer keys to go along with these, too.
Digital Flashcards
Students can create digital flashcards using apps like Quizlet or Google Slides to help them remember multiplication facts. There are a variety of platforms that give teachers and students the ability to create flashcard decks. You might have a favorite in your toolbelt already or a teacher friend who has a collection of digital flashcards they are ready to share with you.
Interactive Notebooks
Do your students use a digital journal tool? Students can keep a digital notebook with multiplication problems and their solutions with a digital tool like OneNote or a slide-based tool like Google Slides. Students can quiz themselves and also use this space to track their progress and areas where they’d like to improve.
Screencasting
I love screencasting tools that let students record their screens as they draw in a digital space. You might encourage students to create short video screencasts where they show off their multiplication timetable knowledge or the steps they take to solve a math problem. This strategy helps reinforce their understanding, slow them down as they work through solving a problem, and offers an opportunity for self-assessment, too.
Digital Manipulatives
There are numerous online tools and apps that provide students access to digital manipulatives. As a classroom teacher, I used the free math manipulatives from the Math Learning Center. This online resource is friendly for Chromebook and iPad users and gives students access to virtual base ten blocks and number lines. These digital tools can help students visualize multiplication concepts.
Coding
Block-based coding platforms like Scratch let students program games or animations that incorporate math skills. This can help to reinforce their understanding of multiplication and also introduces them to the basics of coding. A coding application can also help bring a gamification spin to multiplication practice.
AI Connection
Regular readers of the blog know that I am excited about artificial intelligence in education (you might have even grabbed this free resource). You can ask a generative AI tool like Adobe Firefly to generate an image that sparks a multiplication discussion. For example, you might use the prompt, “A puppy holding up a quilt with square boxes that each is filled with a different bright color.” It will create an image that can get kids talking about math in the world around them.
Digital Art
Students can use digital art platforms that let them sketch out ideas to illustrate multiplication concepts. For instance, they can create a digital image with four groups of three apples to visualize and solve 4 x 3. They might use a tool like Google Drawing for this activity.
There are so many ways for students to use digital tools to practice multiplication. You know your students and what is the best fit for your group this school year. Tailor the activities in this blog post to meet their needs and adapt them as needed.
Do you have a favorite tech-friendly way to help students practice multiplication? Share them with me on Instagram or Twitter, or reply to my weekly newsletter when it hits your inbox. I can’t wait to hear what grabs your attention!
