Third Graders Move to Make Multiplication Gains in Two Days
March 13, 2025
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Teaching multiplication can be a tedious task for many educators. This is especially true when students find lessons hard and boring. Evidence shows that 20-25% of children experience moderate or high levels of math anxiety. So, where can educators find fun ways to teach multiplication to reduce stress? The answer lies in exploring effective, evidence-based multiplication strategies that go beyond traditional methods.
In this blog, we’re sharing how to teach multiplication with movement-based teaching methods. Discover how these hands-on approaches can transform your teaching and help your students learn multiplication fast!
When educators ask how to teach multiplication to struggling students, they should consider kinesthetic multiplication strategies as an answer. Here’s why.
Sometimes, visual and auditory teaching methods alone may not be enough for young students to learn multiplication.
Kinesthetic teaching strategies, or movement-based teaching strategies, use physical activity to teach students new concepts. It’s a hands-on approach where understanding is achieved through movement and touch. Not to mention, using this strategy can be your new, fun way to teach multiplication.
Students who prefer to learn through kinesthetic methods love to be active participants rather than observers while learning. These students do not learn best when watching and listening to a teacher explain how multiplication works.
Instead, they would understand better by clapping while skip-counting aloud or stepping on a life-sized number line. (We’ll show you how that’s possible!)
Physical activity increases oxygen levels in the blood and blood flow to the brain. As a result, the brain receives more oxygen and can function at optimal levels for learning.
Additionally, during exercise, the brain produces a protein called BDNF, which improves the function of neurons and promotes their growth. So, when the body is moving, the brain is ready to develop new information pathways.
Furthermore, exercise promotes the growth of the hippocampus – the portion of the brain in charge of memory and learning.
When a person is physically active, their brain is ready to comprehend and retain new information. This is why movement is incredibly beneficial during math lessons and should be incorporated into multiplication strategies.
It can be challenging to tailor your lessons to all types of learners. In particular, kinesthetic methods aren’t always as straightforward as visual or auditory ones. But in reality, kinesthetic learners likely make up a large portion of your classroom and school.
As reported by the National Math Foundation, in 1978, a study by Dunn and Dunn found that 30-40% of school-age children are kinesthetic learners. Comparatively, a 2006 study by Muneera Spence revealed that kinesthetic learners may account for as much as 45% of the population.
So, if that many people prefer kinesthetic learning methods, what can we do to support them in school? We have an answer.
Math and Movement is an evidence-based program designed to get students active and confident in learning. We use a multi-sensory approach to learning that combines visual, auditory, and kinesthetic elements to engage all types of learners in math and literacy.
Considering the science supporting movement-based learning, we create kinesthetic educational products, including heavy-duty floor mats and stickers, that students can move on during lessons.
We also provide various resources for implementing kinesthetic learning strategies, including movement ideas, activities to go with our materials, and professional development opportunities.
Our materials and resources are designed to supplement your school’s existing curriculum. Select a mat for the day’s lesson, and your students can learn by walking, jumping, tracing, and crawling on our materials.
Students benefit from “experiencing” new information. Likewise, our interactive materials and engaging activities are here to make lessons more accessible and understandable for students. Our program especially works to enhance multiplication strategies.
Every teacher wants their students to learn multiplication fast and painlessly. It’s a miracle when they find fun ways to teach multiplication!
We all know younger students have seemingly endless energy and never like to sit still. Math & Movement harnesses that inclination for activity and turns it into enthusiasm for learning! Here’s how it works.
First, teachers can start incorporating active math movements into the school day. Active math movements are Math & Movement’s short exercises that allow students to practice skip counting while moving.
Best of all, these exercises do not require any materials. All you need is your students’ bodies, energy, and imaginations! These exercises are designed for students to do while sitting at their desks, standing between lessons, or traveling in the hallway.
Most of our active math movements are cross-lateral movements, meaning they engage both sides of the brain. As a result, these short movement breaks are perfect for energizing and refocusing young minds.
Our active math movements are broken into two parts – whisper/loud movements and skip counting movements. First, students practice whisper/loud movements to reinforce the intervals in the number line for different multiples.
To do this, students whisper the numbers that are not multiples and shout the numbers that are multiples. For example, to count by threes, your class would say: 1 (whisper), 2 (whisper), 3 (loud).
Once students understand the whisper/loud patterns, they can move on to skip counting movements, another effective multiplication strategy. In these exercises, we eliminate the whisper part and only skip count.
Given that, here’s an example of an active math movement led by Math & Movement Founder Suzy Koontz. This one is for practicing skip counting by 4s.
By all means, teachers can start incorporating movement into their classes today! Our Training Manual features over 250 different active math movements. Enter your email below to receive a FREE copy of the Math & Movement Training Manual!
Want to get started with movement-based learning right now? Enter your email to get our training manual with over 250 active math movements. No materials necessary!
See how simple adding movement can be!
When teaching multiplication, it is important to remember that learning the multiples in order is not the easiest way.
Start with the easier multiples, like 0s, 1s, 10s, and 11s. Multiplication by 2s and 5s is also easier for students since the multiples follow a predictable pattern. Generally, many students are familiar with skip counting by 2s from learning odd and even numbers. They are also familiar with skip counting by 5s from learning to tell time and count money.
Math & Movement’s Skip Counting Mats are some of our most popular products. These mats are life-sized number lines that have large blocks for each multiple of the main factor. Each block contains the numeral, number word, and group of symbols representing the corresponding quantity.
By all means, skip counting on these mats can be a whole-class activity! For example, we’ll use the Skip Counting by 4s mat.
First, the teacher instructs students to stand on either side of the mat. Ideally, students each stand next to a multiple of 4.
Students skip count aloud by chanting the multiples together, “4, 8, 12, 16…” Continue to 40. Repeat this multiple times. Students may clap along as they recite the numbers.
After that, students take turns jumping down the mat, landing only on multiples of 4. The student standing closest to the “START HERE” block starts first. The rest of the students will continue to skip count aloud in sync with the student jumping on the multiples.
If the jumping student hops too slowly or too fast, the teacher corrects them and reminds them to land on the feet icons on the big, bright pink blocks.
When the jumping student reaches the end of the mat, they will rejoin their peers on the sides of the mat by the 40 space. The next student by “START HERE” can hop down the mat now. Repeat this until every child has had a turn to jump on the mat.
Overall, the goal is to have students be able to skip count without being able to see the mat. With this in mind, have students turn around and face away from the mat and skip count aloud together. Repeat the activity until they can skip count fluently with their backs turned.
After that, once students know skip counting patterns, they can use the mats to solve multiplication problems. Let’s return to multiplication by 4s. We’ll solve 4×3 as an example.
To begin with the problem, the student stands on zero or “START HERE.” They jump forward the number of times the 4 is multiplied by, only landing on the multiples of 4. The final number they land on is the answer.
So, the student jumps forward three times, landing only on the big, bright pink blocks. The third number they land on is the answer, which – in this case – is 12!
Next, students can drill and practice multiplication problems repeatedly until they memorize the products. The Skip Counting mats can be used alongside worksheets for a combined multiplication strategy. Students can read a multiplication problem, jump on the mat to solve it, and then record their answers.
For this purpose, we’re sharing some of our worksheets and workbook resources below!
In addition to our movements and mats, Math and Movement has many other resources that are easily accessible. These tools will help tremendously with teaching multiplication!
This workbook is perfect for use alongside the Skip Counting mats. It includes over 200 pages of practice problems. Students are introduced to one multiple at a time, starting with 0s and finishing with 12s. In summary, the pages include challenge problems, application problems, review problems, mixed multiplication problems, and pre- and post-tests.
A unique feature of this book is the inclusion of positive affirmations on each page. Additionally, students can document their mastery of each multiple by placing stickers in the Personal Progress Report spaces.
This series of workbooks teaches multiplication and division strategies for solving problems that students encounter in their daily lives. Book A covers multiples 2 through 6, while Book B covers multiples 7 through 12.
Each book starts by introducing students to arrays as a tool for illustrating and solving multiplication problems. Each multiple’s section includes practice pages for the following concepts:
Students can track their progress at the start and end of each section by taking the included pre- and post-tests.
In similar fashion to Jump & Learn Multiplication, these books also include positive affirmations and stickers for documenting personal progress.
Many Math and Movement activities help educators gamify math, keeping students engaged in their learning. Subsequently, we’re sharing one of our favorite multiplication games.
One of our favorite multiplication games is Bean Bag Baseball. To play, divide students into teams.
One team lines up behind zero on your Skip Counting mat. (We’ll keep using the Skip Counting by 4s mat.) Meanwhile, the other team(s) will wait off to the side until it is their turn “at bat.” Place a bucket at the top of the mat. For us, that’ll be above 40.
The game’s goal is to get the most bean bags in the bucket before all rounds/innings are over. You can determine how many innings you play.
Give the first student in line a multiplication by 4s problem. They will solve the problem by jumping on the mat.
If they answer correctly, they can toss a bean bag into the bucket. The team gets a point if the bean bag goes into the bucket.
If the student’s answer is wrong, the team gets a “strike,” and the student does not get to toss the bean bag. Repeat with the next student in line. Once the team receives the set amount of strikes, switch to the next team and repeat the process.
When you complete the chosen number of innings, the team with the most points wins!
For more game ideas for teaching multiplication and other concepts, check out our extensive activity database.
Now that you know how movement and our products work, here are some of our kits featuring kinesthetic educational products suitable for teaching multiplication.
The 3-5 Math Kit includes materials for 3rd, 4th, and 5th graders to help them learn more advanced math concepts. This kit is available as a set of floor mats or floor stickers. The materials provide an engaging way to teach students multiplication, division, fractions, algebra, and more.
Our Classroom Kits are tailored to meet the individual needs of grades K-5. The materials create opportunities for kinesthetic learning in foundational math lessons. Each kit is versatile and designed to meet state standards.
Next, our Multiplication Package is a kit specifically compiled to provide fun and active ways to teach multiplication. It includes six of our skip counting floor mats, digital banners, e-books, and activities.
Overall, movement is one the best ways for children to learn. Teaching multiplication through kinesthetic activities will bring more fun and engagement to your lessons without a doubt! These methods will brighten up your classroom—literally and figuratively—as your students learn multiplication fast. Given that, set aside the multiplication tables and get your class on their feet!
Children typically start learning multiplication in third grade at age nine. Although, the exact timing depends on the child’s readiness and prior math skills. Multiplication requires a thorough understanding of addition, grouping, and skip counting.
Students can learn multiplication four to five times faster with movement-based strategies. A third-grade class in Sarasota, FL used the Math & Movement program for 10 days. Students made more progress in multiplication during those 10 days than they had all school-year long. In fact, there was an average improvement of over 89% among students across all multiples.
Students struggle with multiplication for many reasons, including:
The best teaching aids for multiplication are Math & Movement’s Skip Counting Floor Mats. Each mat focuses on a single multiple, helping students reinforce these numbers as they jump along. Students can use these mats as a tool to solve multiplication problems while engaging their full bodies in the learning experience.
Here are some tricks to share with your class when teaching multiplication:
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Movement isn't just for recess
Want to get started with movement-based learning right now? Enter your email to get our training manual with over 250 active math movements. No materials necessary!
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