Customer Reviews

Times Tales

5 star:		(14)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Length:: 3:35 Mins

Learning multiplication tables can be fun using Times Tales. It only goes through 3,4,6,7,8,9 multiplication facts, but still is well worth it since these are the hardest to remember. This hands down beats skip counting songs and tricks. Easy for the teacher and the student! I homeschool my 3 kids (ages 9,6,5) and by the end they all joined in with their big brother. My son dreaded those multiplication drills even to the point of tears, but by the end of this he had a big grin on his face. Also a big plus for me was that it was $10 cheaper buying it through amazon (plus free 2 day shipping with my free Amazon mom membership).

Times Tales

The illustrations are terrible. The narration is condescending.

But it WORKS.

My 8-year-old felt like it was babyish. She complained. But I told her "Sit down, and listen. It's either this, or I make you agonizingly remember the facts with flashcards alone. Take your pick."

The stories are not entertaining, but they do establish a strong visual image useful for instant recall. My daughter lost the bad attitude after experiencing the satisfaction of proficiency after watching the video once.

I don't care if it is dumb, I only care that it works quickly and effectively, and it does. She was afraid people might think she was dumb for using this. She doesn't want anyone to know she pictures snowmen and butterflies when remembering her facts. No one will know! All THEY will see is smart kid who knows her multiplication facts. Who looks more dumb? A girl who knows her facts or one who doesn't? No one knows what she is picturing in her head and MANY smart and successful people use memory tricks to succeed. She understood.

I also watched the video with her so that I would learn the stories too, and could use the clues from the story to cue her in on the facts when quizzing her on facts in the future. I think this is essential. And because I watched this with her, I could see that it does work. Even though I already know my multiplication facts and can perform math through calculus, I do occasionally have to do a quick mental calculation to check my accuracy on a fact due to a mental blip, and I could see the visual imagery easily inserted itself into my own memory to increase instant recall.

So, I can see how if someone (as the 1-star review stated) stuck a 6-year-old in front of the video and walked away, it might not work. It is not magic, you have to give it a chance, and it requires some reinforcement, ideally from a parent or teacher who is familiar with the stories and can tip off on a cue as necessary during initial review. ("Remember? 3 is a butterfly?") It is a very minimal investment of time and it is worth doing. It is WAY more time intensive to quiz with raw memorization, I think.

I do wish the illustrations were better quality, but whatever. It's not really important (and I say that as an artist myself). What is important is that it works, and it does.

My 8 year old daughter that has dyslexia learned her times tables in two nights with this book and flash cards. She was so proud of herself. She didn't complain about reviewing the stories since she saw it was working for her. I emailed her teacher and my sister who is also a teacher to let them know about this program in case they had any students who were struggling with the times tables. It has been a few months since she learned these and she still remembers the stories and usesr them daily for her math facts. I would highly recommend.

It really does work. The stories sound stupid, but they were successful in helping my 6 year old learn her facts after reading it twice in a week.

My 7-year-old daughter learned her upper times tables in about one hour total. She knows them even better than the "easier" tables. She really enjoyed learning through the simple stories and is very proud of herself for being able to answer so quickly. I am amazed at how easily she picked it up. Highly recommend!

I think this is going to work for some of my students that have trouble remembering their facts. We've just started, but it's good so far.

Skeptical, but desperate I ordered Times Tales to solidify my 9 year olds multiplication facts. To my suprise, IT WORKED. After months of writing, flash cards and, beating my head against a brick wall--one week flat, all done. Thank you for such an amazing product. The stories are not entertaining or whitty, but they get the job done. The book is great for visual learners.

I saw this advertised in a home school magazine. It took my girls one time watching it to remember the times tables. When they look at an equation, they'll use a prompt from the stories (for example; just saying "hello" prompts their memory that 8X9=72). These are simple, but memorable stories. I've since looked into other multiplication "stories" to help my girls with twelves and none compare to these. They are so simple. I ended up making my own story for 11 using the characters, but still want something for twelves to jog their memory. Some people think they should just memorize them, but with this, they are-it is just more fun. I did lend it to a friend to try with her son over the summer and he thought it was too babyish. I think it is good for first and second grade. My twins were in 3rd when I bought it and it didn't bother them at all.

My 8 year old dd needed to work hard on memorizing her multiplication facts. I was dreading the flash card method. A friend suggested Times Tales and boy am I glad she did! I handed it to my dd the first time and we read over the stories together. For the next week, I would have her 'study' the stories. After that week was over, she knew the whole first set with no help! She even surprised herself with her new knowledge! She can't wait to move on to the second section. Thank you for making a fun way to learn our facts!

I used this program to teach my 9 year old son who was struggling to memorize the multiplication facts. He learned them all in 2 separate 1 hour sessions. He loved the time we spent together and he was so proud of himself for learning them so quickly. I would highly recommend this - my 7 year old was anxious to learn along with his older brother and he learned very quickly as well.