Times Tables: The Best Order to Teach Them In

Times tables are often introduced in numerical order (2, 3, 4, 5...) simply because that's the natural counting sequence — but this isn't actually the easiest learning order, and a smarter sequence can genuinely build confidence faster.

A genuinely easier order, based on difficulty

1. 10s — genuinely the easiest, just add a zero
2. 5s — familiar from clock-reading and counting in 5s from an early age
3. 2s — doubling, a skill usually already fairly secure
4. 4s — double the 2s answer, building directly on an already-secure fact
5. 8s — double the 4s answer, same principle extended one step further
6. 3s — genuinely new territory, but manageable once 2s, 4s, 5s and 10s are solid
7. 6s — double the 3s answer
8. 9s — has several genuinely useful tricks (see below), often easier than it initially looks
9. 7s and 11s/12s — the genuinely hardest, tackled last once everything else provides a solid foundation

Why doubling-based tables cluster so well

Once 2s are secure, 4s and 8s become "just double it, then double it again" rather than entirely new facts to memorise from scratch — genuinely reducing the total new information needed, since three tables build directly on one already-known skill.

The 9s trick worth teaching explicitly

For any number 1-10 multiplied by 9, subtract 1 from that number for the tens digit, and the two digits add up to 9 for the units digit. 9 x 4: one less than 4 is 3 (tens digit), 3+6=9 so units digit is 6 → 36. This genuinely surprises children and often makes 9s a favourite rather than a fear.

Why 7 is genuinely the hardest

7 doesn't share an easy doubling relationship with any earlier table the way 4/8 relate to 2, or 6 relates to 3 — it needs to be learned largely on its own merits, which is exactly why leaving it until other tables provide broader number familiarity tends to work better than tackling it early.

Applying this at home

If your child is struggling broadly with times tables, checking whether the order being practised matches this easier-to-harder sequence — rather than strict numerical order — can genuinely make a noticeable difference to how quickly confidence builds.