Skip counting to familiar tunes is a great way to learn to skip count. Learning to skip count at a young age is the best precursor to mastering the multiplication facts. I started having my kids listen to our skip counting songs in kindergarten.
We just cycle through our 33 math songs each school year, starting at the beginning of the year. I don’t force the kids to try reciting them until 1st grade, but usually the 4 or 5 year old gets the 2s, 5s, and 10s pretty quickly with our songs. And once kids know something, they’re so proud & love to say it over and over.
Even if a 5-6 year old child doesn’t get every number correct at first, they’ll eventually master them all.
As you know, young children memorize things so easily, especially with a fun song. And the good news is – whether you’re teaching 5 year olds or third graders – if kids learn the times tables through song, they’ll know them for life. Which is of course what matters.
Though there are many popular skip count songs on Youtube, I really wanted an easy way for my kids to review math facts (and other memorization work) without having to be online. Which is why we wrote our own short songs that you can download & play any time, any where, any way you want to.
(You can even burn a CD if your kids are cool and have boom boxes like ours do 😎)
We created downloadable songs, each with a catchy tune and under 45 seconds! You do not need to learn a 2-3 minute song to learn to count by 3s. (No offense to Jack Hartmann or Mr. Demaio’s multiplication songs.) Their songs are fun and silly & my kids definitely giggle to them. In fact, it’s great for kids to hear the same concepts in lots of different ways!
But when it comes to actually memorizing the multiplication tables for life, the easiest way to do it quickly is to learn the string of numbers associated with each set in the times table chart.
When it comes to multiplying, factors, and dividing for the long run, you want kids to remember that 18 was in the 2s, 3s, and 6s. I guarantee – our short skip-counting tunes that count the strings of numbers for each set are the best. They even come with printable flash cards that visualize the equal groups in a fun way.
All of our skip counting songs for multiplication are less than 45 seconds long. Talk about short & sweet!!
You can get the skip counting 1-12 songs & flashcards as an instant download. BUT you might as well get the math bundle instead. It includes all the skip counting songs plus 21 other super important math facts & formulas.
The entire math song playlist that includes skip counting PLUS has 33 songs covering all the basics of K-8 math. The whole playlist is less than 20 minutes!! You could listen to the whole thing every time you drive across town if you wanted to. (How’s that for plenty of math songs?! 🤣)
Some tunes are original, some facts are rapped or chanted, and others use familiar children’s songs such as:
- Twinkle twinkle little star
- Mary had a little lamb
- Jingle bells
- London bridge
- Happy birthday (everyone’s favorite because this one is sung with a silly opera voice…)
We’ve seen hundreds of kids learn our entire multiplication songs playlist easily. Students of all ages (even first graders) have mastered these. I can’t tell you how many parents I’ve heard say something to the effect of, “Our kids learned these math songs so quickly!! Finally an easy way to learn skip counting & math formulas.”
Putting the skip counting sequences to the tune of a simple song or familiar melody is one of the best ways to give kids success at learning their multiplication facts. Skip counting sets the stage for success with multiplication problems. This makes multiplication skills feel like one of the easiest skills for kids of any age.
FAQs About Math Songs
Do these songs work with any math curriculum?
Yes! Our math song album includes catchy songs for all the basic mathematics facts, formulas, and skip counting sequences. Here’s a complete track of the numbers on the album:
- Counting by 1
- Counting by 2
- Counting by 3
- Counting by 4 – check out the 4s song & activities
- Counting by 5
- Counting by 6
- Counting by 7
- Counting by 8 – you can listen to this song here!
- Counting by 9
- Counting by 10
- Counting by 11
- Counting by 12
- Counting the Squares (up to 12 x 12)
- Counting the Cubes (up to 12 x 12 x 12)
- Commutative Property for Addition & Multiplication
- Associative Property for Addition & Multiplication
- Distributive Property
- Definition & Formula for Perimeter of a Polygon
- Area of a Rectangle
- Area of a Parallelogram
- Area of a Circle
- Area of a Triangle
- Volume of a Rectangular Prism
- Volume of a Sphere
- Volume of a Cylinder
- Types of Triangles
- Types of Angles
- Definitions of Line & Line Segment
- Definition of a Ray
- Metric Measurements
- Customary & Metric Measurement Conversions
- Liquid Equivalents
- Teaspoons & Tablespoons
Does using familiar children’s songs confuse kids?
Nope! In fact, we’ve only had stellar reviews from parents & kids alike. The songs kids love the most are the silly ones. Every single song above is short & sweet and parents say that when they first download our catchy number songs, the kids request the songs all the time! So consider yourself warned because you’ll be listening to a whole lot of counting by 6s once you download our songs. Haha!
What about a mnemonic device?
Mnemonic devices are great tools for memorization. I utilize them often in our homeschool. For example, we didn’t create a song for the order of operations specifically because everyone and their mom has been using “PEMDAS” for 100 years. And who needs to improve upon that!? 🙂 Not me! In fact, I just taught that to my 4th grader last week.
Do the songs really help kids learn single digit multiplication facts?
Yes!! I can’t reiterate enough how helpful skip counting songs are for early learners. Just play the songs for young children. Then around 1st grade (ish), try to get your student to master a few. Slow the songs down sometimes to make sure the child is hearing and singing the correct number. It’s okay if they don’t master every single one at first. Hearing the songs at a young age gives kids a real head start for learning the intervals of whichever number sequence they’re learning.
Do I need the flashcards?
We provide flashcards for all of our math songs, including the skip counting ones. The skip counting flashcards show objects in equal groups. I start having my kids practice with the flashcards around age 7-8. I usually introduce the idea of equal groups counting with the 2s first. Then we do 5s and 10s, which helps kids with understanding the analog clock as well as counting money. I save most of the other math flashcards for slightly older kids – around 3rd-5th grade. Whenever the given concept comes up in your math curriculum, you can pull out the flashcard, sing the song together, and the concept will click in a very deep and permanent understanding.
What about a song for the entire times table?
A times table song that covered the entire 12 x 12 times table would be quite long. Ha! We prefer short & sweet musical arrangements with skip counting number sequences. (And so will your kids.)
In 3rd grade, I teach a lesson on filling in the entire times table. A kid who already has all the skip counting songs memorized by 3rd grade usually finds filling in the table pretty fun. In fact, I love having the child fill in the times table chart horizontally and watching their eyes light up when they realize it works vertically too. This leads to a discussion of the commutative property of multiplication and how 4 x 5 = 5 x 4. (We have a commutative property song too!)
Why memorize the songs starting in kindergarten?
Memorizing the number sequences is an important skill for eventually understanding factoring, prime numbers, fractions, and division. You might as well have the child learn the skip counting songs to cutesy children’s songs when they’re little & think it’s fun. Then, when the information becomes relevant and they’re old enough to understand the math concepts, the songs will come to top of mind and the concepts will sink in more deeply. It is easier to think deeply about something that you’ve already memorized. It’s hard to fill in the entire multiplication chart while simultaneously trying to recall how to skip count by 7s. It’s much much easier to fill in the chart & understand how the numbers fit together if you already have the sequences of 7s stored in your mind effortlessly through a short, repetitive tune.
Do kids really learn with these? They’re so short! I really think kids know instinctively when their time is being wasted. Would you rather watch three minute and thirty second youtube videos for all the different facts or sing a few 30-second songs? Short & sweet songs are the favorite multiplication songs for sure.
SUMMARY
Our math album is the best math trick in the book. I first heard about the idea of memorizing for young children from Leigh Bortins’ book The Core. (She is the founder of a popular homeschooling group and publishing company called Classical Conversations.)
Over the course of our last 5 years of homeschooling, I’ve co-written and developed a memory work program that is 100% set to song… memorization is so good for kids and it can be done simply & effectively by using short & sweet songs.
If you use our songs for memorizing skip counting & other math facts, I guarantee your kids will be using these little ditties for the rest of their academic careers. I can just hear my kids whipser-singing the the area of a circle formula (track number 15) to themselves while taking a college entrance exam. Hey, whatever it takes!
Related Articles You Might Enjoy:
- No prep skip counting activities
- How to teach skip counting concepts
- Why memorize? 5 benefits to memorizing with your elementary aged kids
- How our memorization songs are set up