How it works
This 36 multiplication chart shows every fact from 1 × 1 to 36 × 36 = 1,296. A yard is 36 inches, so the tinted 36 row turns yards into inches: 36 × 5 = 180 means 5 yards is 180 inches.
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Six square numbers in the tinted row
36 is 6 × 6, and a square number times a square number is a square number again. So the 36 row holds six of them, at its 1st, 4th, 9th, 16th, 25th and 36th squares: 36, 144, 324, 576, 900 and 1,296. Each one also sits on the framed diagonal.
A chart the shape of a square yard
A multiplication chart of 36 rows and 36 columns has 1,296 squares. Draw each one 1 inch wide and the grid is 1 yard on every side, which is why a square yard is 1,296 square inches. They hold only 423 different answers. 60, 72, 120 and 180 fill 10 squares each, more than any other.
- To multiply by 36, multiply by 6 and then by 6 again: 7 × 6 = 42 and 42 × 6 = 252, so 36 × 7 = 252.
- Every fourth answer in the 36 row is a multiple of 144, a gross: 36 × 4 = 144, 36 × 8 = 288, 36 × 12 = 432.
- Roll two dice and multiply them. Every answer you can get sits in the top left corner, rows and columns 1 to 6: 36 squares.
Questions and answers
How do I change yards to inches with the chart?
Find the number of yards along the top and read down to the tinted 36 row. Under 7 is 252, so 7 yards is 252 inches. Going the other way, 432 sits under 12, so 432 inches is 12 yards.
Why does 36 fill 9 squares and not 10?
Because 6 × 6 is its own turnaround, so it fills 1 square where other facts fill 2. Add 2 squares each for 1 × 36, 2 × 18, 3 × 12 and 4 × 9 and you get 9.
How many facts are on the chart?
Count a fact and its turnaround once and there are 666. Each row adds as many new facts as its number: row 1 adds 1, row 2 adds 2, and row 36 adds 36. The total is 1 + 2 + 3 and on up to 36.