Quick answer: The Multiplication Tables Check, or MTC, is a statutory on-screen check taken by Year 4 pupils in England in June. It has 25 questions covering the times tables, with 6 seconds to answer each one. The best preparation is steady practice of all the times tables well before June, with some of that practice done at a similar quick pace.
If your Year 4 child has mentioned a timed check on a computer at school, they are likely talking about the Multiplication Tables Check. It can sound more intimidating than it is, especially once you understand exactly what it involves.
This guide sticks to the facts of how the check actually works, what it is checking for, and practical ways to help your child feel ready without turning times tables practice into a source of stress.
This guide focuses on the Multiplication Tables Check as it applies in England. The rest of our site uses general times tables practice that works for any curriculum.
1. What Exactly Is the Multiplication Tables Check?
The Multiplication Tables Check is a statutory check taken by Year 4 pupils in England. It is delivered on a computer or tablet at school, with 25 questions covering the times tables, and pupils have 6 seconds to answer each question before it moves on automatically.
The check is taken in June, during the school year when a child is in Year 4. Because it is statutory, every state-funded primary school in England administers it, so most Year 4 pupils will sit the check around the same time of year.
💡 Practical tip:Ask your child's teacher if the school has set a specific date or window for the check. Knowing roughly when it is happening makes it easier to plan a calm run-up rather than a last-minute scramble.
2. Why the Check Exists and What It Measures
The Multiplication Tables Check measures quick, confident recall of times tables facts, not just whether a child can eventually work out the answer. The 6 second window per question is designed to check fluency, the kind of instant recall that comes from a fact being fully memorized rather than calculated each time.
The check gives schools a score out of 25 that helps teachers see which pupils may need more support with times tables fluency. It is not graded like a traditional pass or fail exam, so there is no letter grade or percentage attached to a child's result the way there might be for other assessments.
💡 Practical tip: Frame the check to your child as a chance to show off facts they already know quickly, rather than a test they need to study hard for at the last minute. Fluency builds over months, not days.
3. How to Help Your Child Prepare at Home
Since the check covers all the times tables, the most useful preparation is steady, well-rounded practice rather than cramming one table at a time. Working through tables in a sensible order, starting with 2, 5, and 10, then 4, 3, and 6, then 8, 9, and 11, then 7 and 12, builds a solid foundation before speed becomes the focus.
Once accuracy feels solid across the tables, our timed practice quizzes are a reasonable way to get used to answering quickly under a bit of gentle time pressure, similar in spirit to the pace of the check itself. Our color-coded learning grid is a good starting point for building that initial accuracy, table by table.
Year 4 in England lines up roughly with the age range our 3rd grade multiplication guide covers, so it is a useful reference for what fluency looks like at this stage even though it is written with a US curriculum in mind. Fluency built for the check also carries over directly into multiplication word problems, since both rely on quick, confident recall of the same facts.
💡 Practical tip: Mix up the order of practice questions rather than always going 1 through 12 in sequence. The check asks questions out of order, so practice should too.
4. A Simple Prep Checklist for the Weeks Before June
A few weeks of light, consistent practice tends to work better than an intense push right before the check. This simple checklist spreads preparation out instead of cramming it in.
- Confirm which tables your child still answers slowly or incorrectly
- Practice those specific facts a few minutes a day, several days a week
- Mix questions out of order instead of reciting tables in sequence
- Add a bit of gentle timing once accuracy feels solid
- Keep the last few days before the check light, not an intense cram session
💡 Practical tip: Short, frequent sessions beat one long session most weeks. Ten minutes a day adds up to far more practice than a single Sunday afternoon push.
5. What to Expect on Check Day
On the day itself, your child will sit at a school computer or tablet and work through the 25 questions, with 6 seconds given for each one before it automatically moves to the next. The pace feels brisk, but it is the same pace for every pupil taking the check.
Some kids feel a flutter of nerves before any timed check, even a low-key one like this. A calm conversation beforehand, reminding your child that it is just a normal part of the school year, usually helps more than any last-minute review session. If your child feels unusually anxious about timed checks in general, talk with your child's teacher or doctor about what fits them.
Make practice feel like a game →Common Questions About the Multiplication Tables Check
What is the Multiplication Tables Check?
The Multiplication Tables Check, often called the MTC, is a statutory on-screen check taken by Year 4 pupils in England. It has 25 questions covering the times tables, with 6 seconds given to answer each question, and it is taken in June.
How many questions are on the Multiplication Tables Check, and how much time do pupils get?
The check has 25 questions in total, and pupils have 6 seconds to answer each one before it automatically moves to the next question.
When do Year 4 pupils take the Multiplication Tables Check?
The Multiplication Tables Check is taken in June, during the school year when a child is in Year 4 in England.
Does the Multiplication Tables Check have a pass or fail score?
The check gives a score out of 25 that schools use to see which pupils may need more support with times tables fluency, rather than working like a traditional pass or fail exam with a grade attached.
Build Fluency Before June
Everything on the site is free, including timed practice quizzes and the color-coded learning grid.
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A Normal Part of the Year 4 School Year
The Multiplication Tables Check is a short, statutory part of Year 4 in England, built to check quick recall rather than catch kids out. Steady practice across all the times tables, with a bit of timed practice mixed in as the June date approaches, is the most reliable way to help your child feel ready.
Keep the lead-up calm and consistent, and the check day itself tends to feel like just another part of the school routine.