7 Times Table Games for Kids

To learn the 7 times table, start from the multiplication facts your child already knows, learn the few new ones with a strategy, then practice until the answers come from memory. Most children reach the 7s already knowing the 2s, 3s, 4s, 5s and 10s, and those facts work both ways: 7 × 3 is 3 × 7. Add 7 × 1 = 7, and six of the ten facts are done. Only four are new: 7 × 6, 7 × 7, 7 × 8 and 7 × 9.

Split 7 into 5 and 2

Seven groups are five groups plus two groups. To find 7 × 6, add 5 × 6 and 2 × 6: 30 + 12 = 42. In the same way, 7 × 7 = 35 + 14 = 49. It works for every fact and uses two tables your child knows well.

Take one 7 away from 70

7 × 9 is one seven less than 7 × 10, so start from 70 and take 7 away: 70 − 7 = 63.

Remember 5, 6, 7, 8

The hardest fact has a built-in hook: 56 = 7 × 8. The digits run 5, 6, 7, 8 in order.

Count in weeks

A week has 7 days, so the 7s are already on the calendar: 2 weeks are 14 days, 4 weeks are 28 days and 7 weeks are 49 days. On a monthly calendar, the dates in each column go up by 7. Counting in sevens like this, 7, 14, 21, 28, 35, 42, 49, 56, 63, 70, shows how the table grows. Treat it as a step: counting up to 7 × 9 every time is slow, and the goal is recall.

The 7 Times Table Trick With Your Hands

This trick works for 7 × 6 up to 7 × 10, the facts that feel hardest. Number the fingers on each hand from 6 (the thumb) to 10 (the little finger). For 7 × 8, touch finger 7 on one hand to finger 8 on the other.

1. Count the touching fingers and every finger below them: 2 on one hand, 3 on the other, 2 + 3 = 5. That is 5 tens, or 50.
2. Multiply the fingers above them: 3 on one hand, 2 on the other, 3 × 2 = 6.
3. Add the two: 50 + 6 = 56.

Common mistakes

• 54 instead of 56 for 7 × 8. 54 is 6 × 9 and is not in the 7s at all. To check, count on from a fact you are sure of: 7 × 7 = 49, and 49 + 7 = 56.
• One step off. A child counting in sevens can stop one step early or late and say 49 or 63 for 7 × 8. To check, start from 7 × 10 = 70 and count back by 7: 63, 56.

For the methods your child's class is probably using, see our guide on how to teach multiplication. Curious where times tables come from? Read who invented times tables.