In this episode, Anna Stokke chats with Bruno Reddy, a math teacher and the creator of Times Tables Rock Stars. They discuss his journey from founding a school to creating Times Tables Rock Stars to address foundational skill gaps. Bruno shares great ideas for generating excitement in the math classroom and motivating students to practice essential math facts. They also discuss the importance of math fluency, insights from a teacher exchange in Shanghai, and effective teaching strategies such as mastery learning and variation theory.  This is an energizing conversation full of useful takeaways for anyone passionate about improving math outcomes.

Times Tables Rock Stars will be running national and regional competitions in Australia and New Zealand in August, September and October, 2025.  Follow their socials on Facebook, Instagram, or LinkedIn for more information.

Times Tables Rockstars: https://ttrockstars.com

TIMESTAMPS

[00:00:00] Introduction

[00:04:50] The origin story of Times Tables Rock Stars

[00:14:20] Global times tables competitions 

[00:15:38] The impact of TTRS on math outcomes

[00:18:20] How to motivate students to practice

[00:22:56] The importance of positive math experiences

[00:28:25] Choral chants and community building

[00:30:54] Lessons learned from the Shanghai teacher exchange program

[00:34:50] Variation theory

[00:43:37] Implementing mastery learning 

[00:50:28] Fluency: What most math programs get wrong

[00:52:29] The importance of times tables

[00:56:05] Finding common ground in educational debates 

RELEVANT PREVIOUS EPISODES

From decline to top rankings: How England transformed education with Nick Gibb

Math fact crisis: Strategies for improving numeracy with Brian Poncy https://www.podbean.com/ew/pb-u9y84-165d773

Math fluency matters with Brian Poncy

Cognitive load theory in math class with David Morkunas

How to build automaticity with math facts: A practical guide

EPISODE TRANSCRIPT

https://www.annastokke.com/transcripts/ep-51-transcript

MUSIC

Intro and Outro: Coma Media – Catch it

Blue Dot Sessions: Avoiding the Backroom, Neatly Folded, Cornicob, Partly Sage

Website: www.annastokke.com

X: @rastokke

LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/anna-stokke-3a1b4c

Bluesky: @rastokke.bsky.social