Factors and Multiples

As we learn more about multiplication, we have learned about factors and multiples. These are tricky concepts and children frequently get confused between each vocabulary word.

We learned:

Factors are the numbers that you multiply together to get a product (or multiple). For example, 4 and 5 are factors of 20 because 4 x 5 = 20. You can also think about factors with skip counting. If I can skip count by a number and land on another number, then the first number is a factor of the second. For example, I can skip count by 4 and land on 20 - 4, 8, 12, 16, 20. Therefore, 4 is a factor of 20.

Multiples are like the opposite of factors. Multiples are the answers you come up with when you multiply numbers. For example, 30 is a multiple of 6 because I can multiply 6 x 5 to get to 30. You can also think about multiples with skip counting. All the numbers I skip count by starting with a certain number are multiples of that number. For example, if I skip count by 6 - 6, 12, 18, 24, 30... All the numbers I skip count are multiples of 6.

Some children remember this way:

Factors (starts with f) come first (also starts with f). They are the smaller numbers that build up to multiples that come at the end (last - also ends with e).

***Most importantly, children should remember that skip counting is the same as multiplication! (And they've been doing that since kindergarten!!! :o) It is the same as multiplication because your adding equal groups each time you count up.

Please don't hesitate to contact me with any questions, comments or concerns. :o)Melanie