This game in this free math tutoring video can be played without Cuisenaire Rods, but it would be especially valuable to use them with children who don’t yet have their multiplication tables memorized or don’t know how to figure out products without counting or using a chart.

This not only gets children practicing their multiplication facts, but also gets them adding large numbers as they keep track of their score, and there is some strategy involved as well in figuring out where to put the rectangles. Winner is the child with the most total points at the end of the game (when no more moves are available).

Another example of something you can do besides drill and kill to help your kids learn their multiplication facts!