1) What does 'fluent in my tables' mean?

Fluency in anything, from a foreign language to times tables, means the ability to have instant recall of a fact or facts along with an understanding of what those facts means. Although times tables are often thought of as multiplication tables they also include divide tables. Multiplication tables are sets of relationships between three number facts: the table, the multiplier (or factor) and the multiple: a quick way of doing multiple addition. When you can instantly recall the third fact given the other two, without having to stop and think, then you are fluent. This 'instant recall' takes about less than half a second for each fact, so if it takes much longer to find the fact in your head you may not be fluent.

2) How do you tell if you know your tables?

In this game if your time scores are consistently under twenty seconds over about ten tries then you probably know that table. But this does depend on your reaction time.

3) What is the reaction table game for? Is this just the one times table?

The reaction table game is very important. Using a mouse or finding a particular card on the screen can be harder for some people than others. For example, younger children can take longer to find a card, people who have only rarely used a computer may find that using the mouse takes time. This will give them higher time scores when playing Perfect Times. The reaction table game can be used to measure how well they use the mouse or find a card, and may be tested from time to time. The reaction table game is more than just the one times table, although it is most often played by matching '1' to '1', '2' to '2', '3' to '3', etc. But it can also be used with the multiples of higher tables, as people may have more difficulty finding large numbers or where there are lots of similar numbers such as the five times table. The difference between the reaction time and a game of Perfect Times gives the measure of a person's fluency.

4) How do I know how well I am doing? Do I need to do a test?

The best way to tell how you are doing is to look at your time scores, you don't need to complete a test. When you look at your time score the first thing to look at is whether there is a penalty time score. If there are none that is good. If there is a penalty time, is it because learn mode is switched on? If it is on then turn the learn mode off and play another ten rounds or so, and then look again at your time scores. If you have penalties from misplacing cards then look at the errors chart and see if you are getting the same facts misplaced. If you are still misplacing the same fact look at FAQ 10 below.

It does not matter what your first scores where, look at the last ten scores. If you are scoring under 20 seconds to play the game then in all probability you know that table. If you are scoring even a few seconds more than this it is possible that you are not recalling all the facts immediately. Try another ten rounds and see if you are then under 20 seconds.

If you played several blocks (10 rounds) and you are finding it hard to get under 20 seconds then you may be fluent in the times table but have some difficulty in using the mouse or finding the correct card on the screen. In this case you should test your reaction times. Compare the average scores you get with your reaction times and from the last ten rounds (we use the median average). It should take, if fluent, about six seconds to recall twelve facts. If your time score is within six seconds of your reaction time score, then you should be fluent?

5) Do you know any tricks for the six times table? etc, etc, etc

There are a number of tricks for the different times tables. Go to the hits and tips section to look up the tips for the different methods.

6) What order do you recommend the tables should be learnt?

I would recommend learning the tables in the following order: ×11, ×10, ×9, ×5, ×2, ×4, ×8, ×3, ×6, ×12 and ×7. The reason for the order is because the first four tables all have very distinct patterns. The two times table is not so easy to learn first, although it is often used in explaining what multiplication is: sequential addition. The four times table shares half its facts with the two times table and rules of doubling can be used. Similarly the eight times table follows the four times table. For the same reason the three, six and twelve times tables follow each other. Finally, the seven times table still needs to be learnt.

7) Which table should I learn first?

I would recommend that you learnt the eleven times table first.

8) Who invented Perfect Times?

Perfect Times was invented by Wendy Fortescue-Hubbard in the 1994. Perfect Times was patented in 1995. In 2001, Wendy was awarded a fellowship by NESTA (the National Endowment for Science, Technology and the Arts.

9) Can you tell me how to remember 7×8?

Yes. One way to remember 7 × 8 is to remember 56 = 7 × 8 as 5, 6, 7, 8. You could use a method to really concentrate on this particular fact. For instance you could draw a poster and stick it on your wall, or write a poem.

10) I always seem to get the same ones wrong; for example I can't remember what 8×3 is. Can you help?

If you are unsure about any fact try to use the facts you are sure about to help you get to the answer. For example, 8 × 3 could be written as 2 × 4 × 3 or 2 × 12.

11) What is the quickest time you have ever seen anyone play Perfect Times?

I have seen a few people play very quickly with the card version of Perfect Times. These people played a round in about six seconds, about half the time it takes me on my reaction times. What is interesting about one person I saw do this amazing feat was that he took about three minutes to play his first round..

12) It took me 4 minutes to play the first time. All my friends take much less time than me, does this mean that they know their tables better than me?

The first time it takes you to play a round is not important, although it is fun to see how much faster you get. Just because your friends are faster than you does not mean that they know their tables any better than you. If you have very high reaction times then your times may be high because of this; do you have difficulty using the mouse or find the cards hard to find? If you do test your reaction times using the multiples of the table you are trying to learn. If your reaction times are about the same as your friends but you are having difficulty in remembering the facts try looking through the Hints and Tips section for various methods to help you find the answers. If you still have difficulty why not check out the Forum to see if there is any useful advice there, or post a message, we would love to hear how you got on.

13) Do I need to place the dragged card directly over all of the stationary card?

You do not need to carefully align the cards so that they are completely covering each other. All you have to do is make sure the tip of the cursor is over the card that you want to place the dragged card on. If the cursor is over the space around the cards then the dragged card will go back to the top of the pile.

14) I am just starting learning my tables. Where do I find the times tables facts?

When you are starting a new table it is a good idea to use the Learn mode. There is a 30-second time penalty for doing this, but you can soon turn it off and have a go without it. The learn mode is really useful because it tells you if you have the card placed correctly as you play. Otherwise you have to wait until the end of the round. You can use anything to help you, but they all tend to take longer than just trying. If you follow the recommended order for learning your tables then it won't take long to pick up the facts for the new table.