Learning the tables in steps
- 2, 5 and 10. Counting in twos, fives and tens makes these the easiest to start with.
- 3, 4 and 8. The 4s are double the 2s, and the 8s are double the 4s.
- 6, 7 and 9. The trickiest facts; most children learn them last.
- All tables 2 to 12. Mixed practice once each table is secure.
Facts, missing factors and division
Knowing 7 × 8 = 56 also means knowing 8 × 7, 56 ÷ 7 and 56 ÷ 8. Mixing the three kinds of problem helps children see a times table as a family of facts, not a list to recite, and makes division much easier later on.
In the MATATAG curriculum
- Grade 2Multiplication as repeated addition, equal groups, arrays and skip counting, with the 2, 3, 4, 5 and 10 tables, and division with the same tables.
- Grade 3The 6, 7, 8 and 9 tables: multiplication in the third quarter, division in the fourth.
- Grade 3Finding missing numbers in multiplication and division sentences.
MATATAG groups the tables a little differently from this maker: 2, 3, 4, 5 and 10 in Grade 2, then 6, 7, 8 and 9 in Grade 3. For Grade 2 the 2, 5 and 10 set fits well; the 3, 4 and 8 set mixes in the 8s, which are Grade 3 work, as is the 6, 7 and 9 set. The 11 and 12 tables in the mixed set go beyond the guide.
Both grades include word problems with money, such as 4 packs of pandesal at ₱5 each, which keeps the tables tied to real numbers.
Summarised in our own words from DepEd’s MATATAG Mathematics Curriculum Guide, Grades 1–10 (2023).
