Topics · Numbers & Calculations
Multiplying and dividing
Multiply two-digit numbers and divide three-digit numbers, and see WHY the steps work.
Big multiplications are just easy rectangles added together.
More ways into this idea
- Play with itMath Story MakerBuild a story problem of your own — print it or pass the code
- Make it a gameArray ArchitectBuild facts you don't know from pieces you do
- Test yourselfA fresh mixed set, whenever you likeExplanations after every question. Nothing is recorded.
Common sticking points
- A common sticking point is following the steps without knowing what they mean. Seeing multiplication as a rectangle cut into easy pieces fixes the why.
- Another is splitting 23 into 2 + 3 instead of 20 + 3 — twenty columns of the rectangle silently vanish. The area model keeps the tens visible.
Try this together
Find an egg carton or muffin tray. Ask: how many spots? How did you count — one by one, or rows times columns? That's multiplication thinking.
1–5 minutes, no materials to buy, nothing to hand in.
Ontario curriculum details
- B2.6Multiply two-digit by two-digit numbers
- B2.7Divide three-digit by two-digit numbers
Plain-language summaries. See the full curriculum for every expectation and the official source.