Multiplication can be difficult for students to memorize, but it is one of the things they have to work on when they are in elementary school to build a good foundation for future learning. The Trigger Memory Co. sent us a digital download of Times Tales to use for the purpose of this review. It is an engaging product to help make the upper times table easier and quicker to recall.
The digital download includes all of the same items as a physical DVD copy of the program. The digital download included two .mp4 downloads (one for part one and another for part two of the program), two PDF files of flashcards, puzzles, games, pre-tests, and tests (one for each part of the program), and a PDF file containing the answer key.
The program covers the following:
- 3×6
- 3×7
- 3×8
- 3×9
- 4×6
- 4×7
- 4×8
- 4×9
- 6×6
- 6×7
- 6×8
- 6×9
- 7×7
- 7×8
- 7×9
- 8×8
- 8×9
- 9×9
This program would be good for any student working on these facts, whether they are a homeschool students, or attend public or private school. It could even be used for adults struggling with memorizing these basic multiplication facts.
The crosswords and dice games included in the printable file help to reinforce their memory of these stories by including questions about the story and pictures of the characters. There are flashcards and a worksheet using the characters as well.
For very visual students, these pictures could help them to recall their multiplication facts simply through remembering the pictures of the characters. For auditory learners, they might be able to recall their facts by hearing the story of the numbers in their mind and being able to answer based off of that memory.
Within the videos, there are also little quiz type sections. My kids liked the Beat the Clock section. Instead of answering questions on paper or orally, they just did it in their minds to see if they could remember what they had just been taught. This was fun for them!
My kids liked doing this program together. My 11 year old said it was easy, and she preferred doing everything orally. For example, she wanted to just read the flashcard and test questions off of the screen and answer me out loud instead of having me print anything out. She is pretty good at her times tables, but I did see how quickly she could recall the answers improve after watching and using the resources with Times Tales.
My 9 year old is still working on memorizing math facts. He had more difficulty with doing the program, but his fluency has definitely improved. With him, we watched the video on Mondays, and I quizzed him with the flash cards twice a week (usually Wednesday and Friday). The first time we watched it, I also had him do the Part One crossword, which talks about the stories introduced in the video.
Once he got pretty good with Part One, I gave him the test that went with it. He did pretty well on that, so I started him on part two with the same process. It only took us 4 weeks to finish the program with reasonable progress. I do plan on doing it again later in the school year, maybe both parts in one week. That would be just to solidify that he had them memorized and could answer quickly and accurately!
The answer key was helpful for the crossword puzzles since I didn’t know all of the answers about the stories. I liked the set up of the program and that it did not require a lot of time for us to complete it. It made a great supplement to their current math programs without becoming a long and drawn out extra!
I think this was a refreshingly different way to introduce this information, and it was much more exciting that just drilling them with the facts. This method would help many types of learners to get this information down pat!
See how other families used the program by clicking on the banner below:
