Multiplication Worksheet Generator

How to make it

1. Multi-digit or factsLeave Facts practice off and set the top number to 1 to 5 digits and the bottom to 1 to 4, or tick it for quick recall.
2. Narrow the factsIn facts mode, keep Mixed or pick one table and set Facts up to 5, 10 or 12; times tables worksheets drill a single table beside a chart.
3. Lay out and printVertical suits the column method and horizontal suits quick recall. Set up to 40 problems, then print with the key.

Facts practice or multi-digit problems

Facts practice is for recall. With Mixed, both factors are drawn at random up to your Facts up to setting, in either order, which makes a useful check once several tables are known. The table menu can also fix one number, so every problem has a 7 in it, though a week spent on a single table is better served by the drill sheets on the times tables page.

Multi-digit mode is for written methods. Each factor has exactly the number of digits you set, and neither is ever 0 or 1, so every problem needs real work. A 2-digit top with a 1-digit bottom, the starting setting, gives problems like 58 × 7; a 3-digit top with a 2-digit bottom gives 406 × 38. The key prints the final product in pink, in the same place as the problem. In rows, a sheet of big numbers gets fewer problems across, so long products have room.

On US and Canadian sheets (those that open on Letter), the standard in the footer follows the mode: facts sheets show CCSS 3.OA.C.7, sheets up to four digits by one digit or two digits by two show CCSS 4.NBT.B.5, and anything larger shows CCSS 5.NBT.B.5.

The column method, from short to long multiplication

Short multiplication, one digit by a larger number, comes first. For 34 × 6, multiply the ones: 4 × 6 = 24, so write 4 and carry the 2 into the tens. Then 3 × 6 = 18, plus the carried 2, is 20. Write 20 in front: 204. The order matters, and a child who adds the carry before multiplying (3 + 2 = 5, then 5 × 6) will get 304.

Long multiplication by a two-digit number builds two rows. For 46 × 23, the first row is 46 × 3 = 138. The second row is 46 × 20, so write a 0 in the ones place first, then 46 × 2 = 92 in front of it: 920. Add the rows: 138 + 920 = 1,058. Those two rows are partial products, and many US textbooks show them; UK schools usually call this formal written method long multiplication.

Before any formal method, many classes use the grid or area model: split 46 into 40 and 6, and 23 into 20 and 3, then multiply each pair in a box and add the four results. It is slower but shows why the column method works, and it uses the same worksheet; just ask children to draw a grid beside each problem.

Which settings fit which grade

Third grade is the year of facts in most US schools, so start there with one table at a time, then Mixed up to 10. Fourth grade brings multi-digit work: two digits by one, then three and four digits by one, then two digits by two. Fifth grade extends to three digits by two and beyond. In England pupils are expected to know their tables up to 12 × 12 by the end of Year 4, with short multiplication in Year 4 and long multiplication by two digits in Years 5 and 6. Australian schools build multiplication facts through Years 3 and 4 and multi-digit methods through Years 5 and 6.

Use these as starting points. A child who still counts up in fives to find 5 × 8 is not ready for 46 × 23, whatever the grade, because every step of long multiplication leans on fast facts.

Mistakes to look for in long multiplication

The placeholder zero is the big one. If a child writes 92 instead of 920 for the second row of 46 × 23, the total comes out as 230, far too small. A quick estimate catches it: 46 × 23 is about 50 × 20, so the answer should be near 1,000. Teach children to estimate first and compare; the key then confirms the exact product.

Other slips: carrying into the wrong column, forgetting to add a carry, adding the carry before multiplying, and plain fact errors such as 7 × 8 = 54. Because the key shows only the final product, a wrong answer is a prompt to look at the working together. If the rows are right and the total is wrong, the problem is addition; if most errors are single facts, go back to facts mode for a week. Squared paper keeps the rows lined up; a page of 1 cm graph paper beside the sheet gives each digit its own box.

From facts to the next step

Many teachers introduce tables in an order such as 2, 10 and 5 first, then 3 and 4, then 6 to 9, with 11 and 12 last. For a week on one table, the times table drills and charts page prints a sheet for that table alone next to a full grid with blanks, and a new variant each day gives steady repetition without repeating the exact page.

Once facts and short multiplication are secure, division builds on them directly. Division facts sheets reverse the tables, and long division worksheets use the same multiply, subtract and bring down routine that multi-digit multiplication prepares.

How many problems to set

Facts: 20 to 40, since each takes seconds, and the slider tops out at 40 a sheet. Multi-digit: 8 to 12 for two digits by one, six to ten for two digits by two, and fewer for anything larger, as long multiplication takes several minutes a problem for a learner. For a quick warm-up, ten facts on the table being learned that week. For a test, use Mixed facts or a multi-digit setting already practiced, and print one variant per row of desks.

A tutor working with a fourth grader on two-digit by one-digit problems might set eight vertical problems, sit beside the student for the first two, and leave the other six for independent work. Mark against the key together, and for each miss ask the student to say which step went wrong before fixing it. Next session, Copy link brings back the same page for a timed second try, or New variant gives fresh numbers at the same level, depending on whether you want to measure progress or keep practicing.

Common Core State Standards: © Copyright 2010. National Governors Association Center for Best Practices and Council of Chief State School Officers. All rights reserved.