What is multiplication really, and how is it just fast adding?
Math's Running Shoes
What is multiplication really, and how is it just fast adding?
Here's a small secret hiding inside every math class: multiplication isn't some new, scarier kind of math. It's just addition wearing a fast pair of running shoes. That's the whole trick. Let's go catch it in the act.
Imagine you're setting tables for a party. Each table needs 4 plates. You set one table, then another, then another — four plates, four plates, four plates. You're adding the same number over and over. That repeating sameness is the soil where multiplication grows.
