Multiplication and Division Sometimes Always Never

In a series of interactive slides designed for Year 4 students, the concept of "Sometimes, Always, Never" is used to deepen their understanding of multiplication and division. Each slide presents a statement related to these mathematical operations, and students are tasked with determining whether the statement is 'sometimes true', 'always true', or 'never true'. This exercise encourages critical thinking as students must provide examples or counterexamples to support their reasoning. To extend the challenge, for statements that are 'sometimes true', students are asked to explain the conditions under which they hold true and to rephrase the statement so that it becomes unequivocally 'always true' or 'never true'.

The activity is designed to be an engaging starter that not only tests students' knowledge but also promotes the use of mathematical vocabulary. For instance, statements such as "When multiplying a number by 0 the answer will be 0" and "A multiplication calculation can be done in any order" invite discussion on the properties of multiplication. Other statements like "An odd number of counters cannot be arranged in equal groups" or "Multiples of 2 are not multiples of 3" challenge students to explore number properties and divisibility rules. By engaging with these statements, students are able to explore key concepts in multiplication and division, while teachers are provided with insights into their pupils' understanding and misconceptions.