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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Roll It! Operations Game
Use this fun game to practice all four operations and/or order of operations.
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Halloween Escape Room - The Missing Treat Mystery - Multiplication and Division Facts
Solve the mystery of who stole all the treats from the Halloween Party with an interactive Halloween Escape Room featuring multiplication and division.
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Multiplication Chart
Print a handy multiplication chart for your students — it's free for teachers!
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The Escape From Millbrook Manor – Halloween Escape Room
Practice computation skills by solving puzzles with this differentiated Halloween escape room game.
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Fill the Grid Active Game
An active game that allows students to practice their multiplication facts.
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Soccer Stories - Problem Solving Worksheets
Practice multiplication, division, and problem solving skills with a high-interest soccer-themed scenario activity.
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Thanksgiving Menu Math - 4th Grade Multiplication Word Problems
Practice solving single and double-digit multiplication word problems with a fun Thanksgiving Menu Math activity for 4th grade.
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Desk-Sized Multiplication Charts for Students
Download 4 desk-size multiplication charts so every student can keep their own chart handy!
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Array Match-Up Activity for 3rd Grade
Challenge your students to create sets of arrays, multiplication facts and products with this matching game for 3rd grade.
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Digital Christmas Escape Room for the Classroom — Elf Investigation
This exciting Christmas escape room has been created by our teacher team to engage your upper elementary students this holiday season. Help the Mayor of Elfton catch the person responsible for some mischievous events in his town.
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Multiplication and Division Minute Math Booklet
Warm-up (or assess) with this 10-page booklet of multiplication and division drills.
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2-Digit by 1-Digit Multiplication Worksheet
A worksheet for students to practice multiplying 2-digit numbers by 1-digit.
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The Case of the Missing Turkey! - Thanksgiving Escape
Uncover the location of the missing Thanksgiving turkey with a 4th-grade multiplication Thanksgiving Mystery escape room activity.
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Halloween Mystery Escape - Multiplication and Division for 5th Grade
Uncover the identify of the thief who stole the pumpkin projects with a printable 5th-grade multiplication and division Halloween Mystery escape room activity.
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Multiplication Facts Master
Help your students track their progress in mastering multiplication facts with this template.
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Color by Number – Repeated Addition and Multiplication
Guide your students to connect repeated addition with multiplication by completing this color-by-code multiplication worksheet.
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Thanksgiving Math- Multiplication Task Cards
Practice solving single-digit multiplication word problems with a set of Thanksgiving Task Cards.
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Problem Solving - Multiplication and Division Worksheet
Practice solving word problems using one-step division and multiplication.
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Area Model Multiplication Worksheets
Guide your students to use the area model when solving multi-digit multiplication problems with this 20-page worksheet pack.
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Double Digit Multiplication Worksheets - Halloween Color By Number
Practice multiplying 2-digit by 2-digit numbers with a pair of engaging Halloween color-by-number worksheets.
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Dot Day Multiplication and Division Color By Number
Integrate Dot Day concepts into your math lessons with printable Dot Day Multiplication and Division color-by-number worksheets.
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Math Graphic Organizers - Printable Work Mats
Practice working on specific math concepts with our set of 5 printable math graphic organizers.
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3-Digit by 2-Digit Multiplication Task Cards
Practice solving vertical 3-digit by 2-digit multiplication problems with this set of 18 task cards.
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Multiplication and Division Worksheets – Facts of 8
A set of worksheets to help students develop fast and accurate recall of the facts of 8.
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Multiplication and Division - Which Operation Is It? – Interactive PowerPoint
An interactive 64-slide PowerPoint to use when learning to solve multiplication and division word problems.
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5th Grade Multiplication Test - Multi-Digit Multiplication
Assess your students' skills with multiplying whole numbers using a printable 5th Grade Multi-Digit Multiplication Test.
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Math Word Problem Task Cards - Multiplication and Long Division
Solve multi-step multiplication and long division word problems with a set of printable math task cards.
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Area Model Worksheets for 4th Grade
Teach your students how to determine factors and the product of an area model with this worksheet pack.
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Area Model Multiplication – Color by Number Worksheet Pack
Download this color-by-number worksheet pack for your students to practice using the area model when multiplying multi-digit numbers.
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Area Model of Multiplication Task Cards
Guide your students to use area model multiplication to solve multi-digit multiplication problems with this set of 24 task cards.
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Number Talks – Multiplication Strategies Task Cards
Help your students build number sense skills and sharpen their understanding of how to multiply 2 digits by 1 digit with this set of 24 task cards.
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Group It Many Ways – Multiplication Activity
Promote hands-on learning with this activity, where students will practice making equal groups to represent multiplication.