Alexis Flanders

If you walk into my classroom during math time, you will probably hear us singing. Skip-count songs are one of my favorite tools for teaching multiplication because they really work! Kids connect to rhythm and melody much faster than to a plain list of numbers. I have seen the magic firsthand. A student who struggles to remember 6 × 7 can sing through the sixes, use their fingers as markers, and suddenly the answer is right there.

What I love about these songs is how they give students a clear path. The melody keeps the sequence organized, the rhythm sets the pace, and the lyrics help explain the idea of groups of numbers. Instead of juggling disconnected facts, students get a sense of flow and connection. They can visualize the groups, keep track on their fingers, and hear the numbers in order at the same time.

When I created my Skip Count Song Machine model using the Information Processing lens, it confirmed what I already knew from experience. The songs grab attention during input, support practice and chunking during processing, strengthen memory during storage, and make recall easier when students solve a problem during output. Beyond the theory, what matters most is that these songs make multiplication feel doable. They are fun, engaging, and confidence building, and that is what makes them powerful.