Multiplication

Plant an orchard in equal rows and watch each times table grow. For ages 8 to 10.

How hard?
For grown-ups

Your child plants an orchard. The voice asks for an orchard ("Plant 3 rows of 4"), and your child sets the rows and the trees in each row with big plus and minus buttons, then taps Plant. The trees grow one row at a time while the voice counts by rows ("4. 8. 12."), and the fact shows as 3 x 4 = 12. Turned around, 4 rows of 3, counts too, and the voice says why. A different orchard just goes back to soil with a line about what was planted and what was asked.

A round is 8 orchards, then it stops on "All done" with the facts planted. The round's total is the trees planted. There is no timer, no saved best and nothing to buy.

Child lock: tap the lock at the top right. The ways out hide and the back button stays in the game. To unlock, hold the lock for 3 seconds and answer a sum.

Easy (age 8): the 2, 5 and 10 times tables and small arrays up to 5 rows. Normal (age 9): every fact to 10 x 10, and "plant 24 trees in equal rows". Hard (age 10): bigger facts, missing numbers ("42 trees in 6 rows: how many in each row?") and two different ways to plant the same number. On a computer, Tab and Enter press the buttons.

Evening look (dimmer and warmer)

Why it's good for your child, what they learn, and how we designed it

Free, no ads, no sign-in. We count plays without names or anything that identifies your child, and your child is never recorded. The trees are our own drawings.

Why it's good for your child

Arrays, things set out in equal rows, are how many classrooms first teach multiplication, because a child can see that 3 rows of 4 is 4 + 4 + 4 and is also 4 rows of 3. Studies of primary school children found that the array picture helps them reason about multiplication and see why the order doesn't matter (Barmby et al. 2009). Multiplication builds each fact as an orchard and counts it out loud by rows, and the line on the "All done" screen finds arrays in real life.

What they learn

Multiplication as equal groups and rows (Common Core 2.OA.C.4 and 3.OA.A.1), times tables to 10 x 10 (3.OA.C.7), finding the missing number in a fact like 6 x ? = 42 (3.OA.A.4), and that 3 x 4 and 4 x 3 are the same (3.OA.B.5). On Hard, finding two different ways to plant the same number of trees, which is factor pairs (4.OA.B.4).

How we designed it for ages 8 to 10

For 8 to 10 year olds it plays like an arcade game, with a total for this round only (trees planted), as our big-kid rules allow. There is no timer, no saved best, no bonus for coming back and nothing to buy, because tricks that lengthen play are common in apps for children (Radesky 2022). A different orchard costs nothing: the voice says what was planted and what was asked, the trees go back, and praise names what your child did (Mueller & Dweck 1998). The row buttons are big enough for one thumb, and the Child lock keeps leaving and settings with you.

About the game

Multiplication is a free times tables game for 2nd to 4th grade built on arrays: things set out in equal rows. Your child plants trees in rows, hears them counted by rows, and sees the fact written underneath. It practices the times tables to 10 x 10, and shows why 3 x 4 and 4 x 3 make the same number.

How a round goes

The voice asks for an orchard. Your child sets the rows and the trees in each row with big plus and minus buttons, and the empty holes show the plan. Tapping Plant grows the trees one row at a time while the voice counts by rows. The right orchard shows its fact (3 x 4 = 12); a different one goes back to soil with a line about what was planted. After 8 orchards the game stops on "All done".

Three levels

  • Easy, age 8: the 2, 5 and 10 times tables, and small arrays up to 5 rows.
  • Normal, age 9: every fact to 10 x 10, and planting a number of trees in any equal rows.
  • Hard, age 10: facts from 6 to 9, missing numbers like 6 x ? = 42, and two different ways to plant the same number (factor pairs).

More: Counting Money for coins and dollars, Tell the Time for clocks, and 2nd grade games.

Questions parents ask

Is the multiplication game free?

Yes. No sign-in, nothing to download or buy. It runs in the browser on phones, tablets and computers.

What ages and grades is it for?

Ages 8 to 10, around 2nd to 4th grade. Easy is the 2, 5 and 10 times tables, Normal is every fact to 10 x 10, and Hard adds missing numbers and factor pairs.

Why arrays instead of flash cards?

An array shows what a fact means: 3 rows of 4 is 4 + 4 + 4, and turned around it is 4 rows of 3. The voice counts by rows, so skip counting and the times table grow together.

How long is a round?

8 orchards, then the game stops on an All done screen with the facts planted and a line for you to talk about together. Nothing starts by itself.