Maybe that works best for some people, but as a kid I didn't do it. I used a printed multiplication table while tackling some more-interesting problems[0], and

Maybe that works best for some people, but as a kid I didn't do it. I used a printed multiplication table while tackling some more-interesting problems[0], and let the table soak in as a byproduct. It went quickly and did not turn me off on math for life. Paul Lockhart in Arithmetic also recommended this. [0]: Multiplying two-digit numbers by one-digit, and that sort of thing. Lockhart had more artistic pursuits in mind. (An obvious reason this might not apply: I was more talented than my grade-school peers. But most kids would learn arithmetic better if not forced to before they're ready, and then the talent difference would matter less.)