Times tables spreadsheet

My daughter's in the midst of learning her times tables. There are various apps out there that can help, but I was after something that addressed a specific need.

I wanted to be able to specify the times tables that she had learnt, and to give her a randomised, exhaustive test containing one question for each one learnt.

So if I selected 2, 3, 5 and 10, I wanted a randomised test containing 48 questions – one for each of the 12 multiples within each of the four times tables.

Not being able to find anything, I decided instead to create something. It can be downloaded here: times tables spreadsheet.

The first tab allows the parent or guardian to choose the times tables that the child has allegedly mastered. Enter the same one twice, and it will double-up the questions for that times table.

The second tab presents the questions in a randomised order to the child. Each question is presented in turn, each question not showing until the child has attempted to answer its predecessor. The child is given a tick or a cross as soon as they answer the question, and at the top of the screen, they're given a live status (at a jaunty angle) showing their progress through the test.

My favourite feature is that the ordering of the questions is randomised, and that random order changes each day you open the spreadsheet. So kids can't get complacent about remembering the order in which the questions appear.

=MOD(10000*A1/DAY(TODAY())/MONTH(TODAY()),1)

(Basically, take a random number between o and 1, divide it by the day of the month; divide it by the month of the year, multiply the result by 10,000 and figure out its decimal remainder. Not proper random; but random enough.)

Here's hoping it helps.

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