Ensure Child Understands Addition

Multiplication is a concept that is very easy to understand if taught properly to young children. Unfortunately, many parents and sometimes teachers introduce multiplication to kids when they are not ready for the concept or introduce it in a dry manner of “times” concept resulting in a forever “fear” or “multiplication is hard” feeling.

The best way to teach multiplication is to teach it as a repeated addition, without using the word multiplication in the beginning. Children learn very fast through practical problems, so introduce multiplication through practical repeated addition problems.

For instance, ask children to take 3 boxes and add 5 candies to each box. Ask them to count these. They may initially count them by hand and give the answer as 15. Praise them for the right answer.

Next day, give them 3 boxes and add 5 pencils to each box. Ask children to give the total number of pencils. Most likely, they will count again and give the answer as 15. This will teach them that 5 ANYTHING repeated 3 times gives the answer as 15.

Next day, you can give them the problem. 5+5+5. Chances are many of them won’t even add and give the answer as 15 right away since they have memorized based on the previous exercise.

Now, you are ready to introduce the concept of repeated addition. Teach them through different examples how to add a number to itself N number of times. Keep increasing the number N. After a point, it becomes too tedious for them to add these numbers. They are ripe for learning a trick to do this faster!

Introduce the concept of 5 * 3 = 15. This is also the right time to introduce another interesting fact about multiplication that children may already know in addition – the Associative property of addition (of course, you don’t have to teach the name as yet!).
Now, given them 5 boxes and place 3 pencils or candies in each and ask them to give the total. Chances are many children will say 15 without even counting them! Now, you can discuss 3 * 5 = 15.