Multiplication Teaching Resources
Teach multiplication with ease this school year with free printable multiplication worksheets, digital activities, games and more to help students understand how to multiply numbers and apply multiplication strategies to math problems.
This teaching resource collection was created by the teachers on the Teach Starter team for elementary teachers, and each curriculum-aligned resource has been carefully reviewed and curated to ensure it's ready to use with your students!
Explore multiplication charts and tables, methods for explaining the associative and commutative properties and more, plus find differentiated resources to help you meet each student's needs!
Want to learn more about multiplication? Read on for a primer from our teacher team!
What Is Multiplication? A Kid-Friendly Definition
Introducing multiplication to your class? Let's get started with a definition of this math operation that's easy for them to understand.
Multiplication is the process of adding a number to itself many times. It's a simple way to figure out how much you'll have when you add the same number again and again.
Let's look at an example.
Pretend you have 3 apples, and you want to multiply them by 4.
If you did this, you would end up with 12 apples because you added 3 apples to itself four times (3 + 3 + 3 + 3 = 12).
Multiplication Terms
Launching into multiplication in your math class involves plenty of new vocabulary words for your students to learn! Here are some of the terms you will want to start off with.
Product
The product of a multiplication problem is the result of multiplying two or more numbers together. It's basically the answer to your math problem!
Partial Product
If the product is the answer, what's a partial product? This is the name of each product when you break apart the factors and multiply the parts in a multi-digit number. While there are many ways to solve multiplication problems with partial products, the box method is a common strategy to help students break apart each factor before multiplying.
Factor
In multiplication, the factor is the number that is being multiplied by another number to get a product. For example, in the problem 3 x 4 = 12, the numbers 3 and 4 are factors, and the product is 12.
Multiplication Table
Sometimes called a times table, a multiplication table that shows the products of all the possible combinations of two numbers.
What Is the Associative Property of Multiplication?
The associative property of multiplication means we can change the grouping of the factors being multiplied, and it won't change the product. For example:
- (2 x 3) x 4 = 2 x (3 x 4) = 24
No matter how we group the factors being multiplied, the product will always be the same!
A cartoon version of the multiplication symbol
What Is the Commutative Property of Multiplication?
The commutative property of multiplication means we can change the order of the multiplied factors without changing the product. For example:
- 3 x 4 = 4 x 3 = 12
This means we can multiply the factors in any order we like and still get the same result!
What Is the Distributive Property of Multiplication?
Another property of multiplication students learn in elementary school is distributive. This means we can distribute a factor across the sum or difference of two other factors.
This property is handy when we want to break down a more complicated multiplication problem.
Let's look at an example:
- 4 x (3 + 2)
We can use the Distributive Property to rewrite this expression as:
- (4 x 3) + (4 x 2)
Now we can simplify each of these products separately:
- 12 + 8 = 20
Using the distributive property, we can figure out that the original problem 4 x (3 + 2) — is equivalent to 20.
What Is the Identity Property of Multiplication?
The identity property of multiplication lets you simplify multiplication problems involving the number 1. When we multiply any number by 1, the product is the same as the original number!
Let's say we have the problem 5 x 1. When we apply the identity property, we know that the product of 5 and 1 is 5 itself, since 1 is the multiplicative identity!
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Color by Number - Multiplication Facts of 8
Throw out your boring fact practice and replace it with this color by number worksheet!
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Problem Solving - Multiplication and Division Worksheet
Practice solving word problems using one-step division and multiplication.
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Multiplication and Division Worksheets – Facts of 10
A set of worksheets to help students develop fast and accurate recall of the facts of 10.
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Multiplication and Division Worksheets – Facts of 3
A set of worksheets to help students develop fast and accurate recall of the facts of 3.
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Crazy Boxes – Multiplication Facts of 6
Create a color pattern using multiplication facts of 6 with this color by number worksheet.
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Multiplication Grid – Worksheet
Test your students' multiplication fluency with this half-page multiplication grid.
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Math Mazes – Factors
A set of math mazes that allow students to demonstrate their knowledge of factors.
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Multiplication Gears Worksheet - Multiplication Facts of 8
A worksheet to use when learning the multiplication facts of eight.
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Factors, Multiples, and Divisibility Rules Interactive Task Cards
Explore factors, multiples, and divisibility rules with these interactive task cards.
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Multiplication and Division Practice by 2s Worksheet Pack
Incorporate multiplication and division practice into your classroom with this worksheet pack that helps teachers strengthen students’ fluency with the two-times table and related division facts using doubling and halving strategies.
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12 Days of Christmas Math Activity
Try our 12 Days of Christmas Math Activity pack to get your students thinking, calculating, and solving problems related to the holiday song.
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Rounding to Estimate Worksheet Set
Use our rounding to estimate worksheet set to sharpen number sense and mental math skills.
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Estimation Activity: Estimating Space Worksheet Set
Use this estimation activity to give your students practice estimating space, converting measurements, and problem solving.
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Multiplication Puzzles - Tarsia with Answers
Practice multiplication facts with these fun printable multiplication puzzles.
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Factors and Multiples Worksheet and Flowchart
Download this factors and multiples worksheet and flowchart to give your students a systematic way to use divisibility rules to discover the factors 1-10.
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Factors and Multiples Anchor Chart Set
Hang the posters in our factors and multiples anchor chart set up in your classroom to give your students an easy-to-understand reference.
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Greatest Common Factor Worksheets
Download our greatest common factor worksheets for varied practice finding the GCF of two and three digit numbers.
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Divisibility Rules Worksheet Set
Use this divisibility rules worksheet set to give your students varied practice finding the factors of given numbers.
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Multiplication and Division Fact Families Triangle Flashcards
Use our multiplication and division fact families triangles to give your students practice with their basic facts up to 12.
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Fact Family Arrays Match-Up Game
Play this fact family arrays matching game with your students to give them practice identifying multiplication and division fact families.
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Fact Families Multiplication and Division Worksheets
Download these fact families multiplication and division worksheets to help your students visualize fact families with arrays.
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Dividing and Multiplying by Multiples of 10 Interactive Task Cards
Practice dividing and multiplying by multiples of 10 with this engaging interactive task card activity.
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Least Common Multiple Worksheet
Share this lowest common multiple worksheet with your students to give them varied practice with this foundational concept.
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Dividing and Multiplying by Powers of 10 Game
Play this dividing and multiplying by powers of 10 game to give students practice multiplying and dividing whole numbers by 10, 100, and 1,000.
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Multiply and Divide by Powers of 10 Worksheet Set
Share this multiply and divide by powers of 10 worksheet set to give your students practice multiplying and dividing whole numbers by 10, 100, and 1,000.
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Place Value Slider Set
Break out this place value slider set for a hands-on way to demonstrate multiplying and dividing whole numbers and decimals by powers of ten.
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Multiplying and Dividing by Powers of 10 Anchor Chart Set
Display our multiplying and dividing by powers of 10 anchor chart set in your classroom for an easy reference for students learning operations with powers of 10.
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Strip Diagrams (Bar Model) Poster Pack
Help your students solve problems using the four operations with a pack of printable strip diagrams anchor charts.
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Multiplication and Division Bingo
Practice fact families with our multiplication and division bingo resource that offers two different ways to play!
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Multiplication and Division Word Problems Task Cards
Use a range of strategies to solve 2-digit by 1-digit multiplication and division word problems that exceed the facts of the 12 times tables.
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Multiplication Fact Fluency System (Facts 0-12)
Implement this multiplication fact fluency system to help your students master their multiplication facts from 0 to 12!
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Multiplication Fact Rockets
Display these multiplication facts anchor charts in your classroom to help your students recall these valuable number facts.