Fact Family Forge

For grown-ups

• How long: 5 to 10 minutes is plenty. Short and frequent beats long and occasional — the early-numeracy trials with the largest effects ran eight weeks or less.
• The strategy to reinforce: “Use the family” — Three numbers make four facts. If 6 × 7 = 42, then 42 ÷ 7 = 6. If they stall, remind them of this rather than giving the answer.
• When they get one wrong: the page shows the working. Read it together rather than moving straight on. Feedback that explains is worth several times more than feedback that only marks right or wrong, and that gap is wider in maths than in any other subject.
• On the timer: it is off unless you turn it on, and it is never needed. Use it only once the skill is comfortable, never to introduce it.
• Print it too: doing the same problems on paper a few days later is worth more than doing twice as many today.