Hints & Tips

Hints for learning any of the tables using Perfect Times.
When you are first learning the table it is a good idea to play in learn mode. This gives you a tick when you have placed the card correctly. When you have this answer correct say out the whole fact for instance twenty four times three is seventy-two. For most people trying to remember a phone number they repeat it in their head as they read it or someone says it to them. When you don't think you need to say it out loud then don't.

Come out of learn mode as soon as you can, make your head work to remember the facts. Use facts that you have remembered to find the ones you don't. If you can remember 6 x 24 = 144,then you can quickly work out 7 x 24 by adding 24 so the answer will be 168.

For some the thought of attempting so many facts all at once can be daunting. This is when its is a good idea to have a set of the cards available through Southgate Publishers and begin by using only a few of the facts in the beginning for instance the first four and then add in the next two and so on. Discussing ways in which the facts could be worked out. Counting on can be difficult for some as they can lose count after the first few addings.

Hints for the Nine times table
There is the finger method for the nine times table, but that means that you have to put your pencil down or take your finger off the buttons to work out the answer. (But always good in an emergency!)
See the method below-:

Look at the multiples (answers) for the nine times table and add the digits (numbers) together on each card. You should find that each one adds to '9' clever eh?

The nine times table is best learnt using the ten times table take away the ones!
So for 6 x 9, I know that 6 x 10 = 60, and 6x 9 = 60 - 6 = 54

This gives us a quick way to find the answer if I want 8 x 9, I can quickly work out 8-1=7 and know that the answer is seventy something. 7 +? =9 as we know the digits have to add to nine gives 7 +2 = 9 so the answer is 72.

When playing the nine times table, I can use this 'subtract one of the multiplier' to quickly locate the answer!
Remember to say the fact out loud when you have the answer correct to help you memorise that fact.

Hints for the nine divides table
Lets say we want to know what 27 ÷ 9, round to the nearest ten and divide by ten to find the answer, 3 + 27 = 30 so the answer is 3.
This works for the multipliers under 10.
For instance 81 ÷ 9 rounding to 90, 9 +81 = 90 so the answer is 9

Hints for the Twenty four times table
The end number of the answer can be found if you know your four times table. For instance 6 x 24 ends in 6x4 =24 so you are looking for an answer that ends in '4' of about the right size. Say the fact out loud when you have it right.

A useful mental method for the 24 times table is using the fact that 24 = 10 x 2 + 4.
So to work out 7 x 24 we could work out (7 x 10) X 2 + (4 x 7) giving 70 x 2 + 28 = 140 + 28 = 168.

We could use the fact that 24 is 2 x 12 so if we know 7 x12 = 84 then 7 x 24 is 2 x 84 = 168

For 8 x 24, you could use the rule double it, double it and double it. As 8 = 2 x2 x2 so 2 x 24 = 48
2 x 48 = 96 and 2 x 96 = 192

Some may like to work from their tens fives and one times tables. 24 = 10 x 2 + (5 -1)
Let us try 6 x 24 again, we would work out 10 x 6= 60 double this 2 x 60 = 120 then add this to (5 x 6) - 6 = 30 -6 = 24 giving 120 + 24 = 144.

If you have any mental methods for the twenty four times table please include them on the forum so that we can add any that provide good shortcuts to this list.

Hints for the twenty-four divides table
216 ÷ 24. This could be though of as 216 ÷ 2 ÷ 2 ÷2 ÷ 3; this is half, half, half and then divide by three.
Hence 216 ÷ 2 = 108, 108 ÷ 2 = 54, 54 ÷ 2 = 27, 27 ÷ 3 = 9. So 216 ÷ 24 = 9