The principles
Tablito is not just a quiz. Every design choice is grounded in research from cognitive psychology and mathematics education. Five pillars hold the app together:
- Spaced repetition — the Leitner boxes. Each fact lives in one of five boxes numbered from 1 (just learned) to 5 (firmly anchored). A new fact starts in box 1: it is reviewed the same day. A correct answer moves it up one box and pushes the next review further out: 1 day in box 2, 3 days in box 3, 7 days in box 4, 21 days in box 5. A mistake sends it back to box 1, long enough to re-anchor it. The child reviews each fact just before forgetting it, with longer and longer intervals — far more durable than cramming in a single evening. Kang (2016) ; Cepeda et al. (2008) ; Rea & Modigliani (1985)
- Low interference. Facts that look alike (same operand, close answers) are never introduced in the same week. A session contains only facts dissimilar enough that the child won't confuse them in memory. Dotan & Zviran-Ginat (2022)
- Interleaving. The tables are mixed within a single session rather than worked through one after another. The child has to reach for the right operation at every question, which solidifies long-term recall. Rohrer & Taylor (2007) ; Rohrer, Dedrick & Burgess (2014)
- Understand before memorizing. Each new fact is first shown as a grid of dots (repeated addition), then through commutativity (3 × 5 = 5 × 3), and finally with a derivation trick suited to it (× 9 = × 10 − n, × 4 = double-double, × 6 = × 5 + n, etc.). A few anchor facts (doubles, × 5, × 9, squares) support the derived ones. The scaffolding fades away once recall becomes automatic. Van de Walle via Wichita Public Schools (2014) ; Brendefur et al. (2015)
- Progress-oriented feedback, not performance. No numeric score on the child's side, no stars computed from a success rate: only steady encouragement and a spotlight on the facts learned. The goal is intrinsic motivation and mastery, not the grade. The raw numbers stay available in the parent area. Butler (1988) ; Hattie & Timperley (2007)
Welcome
On the very first launch, Tablito runs a four-step welcome flow: a greeting from the mascot, entering the child's name, an introduction to the placement test, then the test itself (15 well-spread questions). The result is used to place already-known facts directly in the higher Leitner boxes.
Home screen
The daily hub. The mascot is a steady companion — it welcomes the child at every session, reacts to correct answers, encourages after a mistake, and never judges. The flame shows the current streak. The big button starts the day's session, and the bottom bar opens progress, badges and the ×1 / ×10 rules. The gear icon opens the parent area, after a short multiplication gate to keep curious fingers out. When all the tables are mastered, level 2 (division) unlocks — with no second button and no new tile: the “My picture” tile becomes “My pictures” and the day's session switches to division (see level 2 below).
The session
A session has 12 to 15 questions. When a new fact appears, it is introduced in three steps: a grid of dots showing the multiplication as repeated addition, the commutativity property (3×5 = 5×3, except for squares), and a derivation trick suited to the fact (for example “× 9 = × 10 minus one”). Then come the questions. The child can answer with the keypad or with their voice — a button below the keypad switches mode mid-session, and the choice is remembered for later sessions. A quick correct answer earns a golden star. After a mistake, the correct answer is shown with the grid of dots and — while the fact is still early in learning — the derivation trick is recalled. The fact is asked again a little later in the session.
Session recap
At the end of a session, the recap screen shows any new facts, invites the child to go see the mystery picture (with a special mention when it has changed), and triggers confetti when a table is fully mastered, when the mystery picture is completed, or for a new badge. Overall progress is shown with a “X facts known out of 36” bar.
My mystery picture
An 8×8 grid (tables 2 to 9) where each cell is a fragment of a hidden picture. The better the child knows a fact, the sharper its fragment gets — blurry silhouette, flat color, colors, shadows, full detail, mirroring the 5 Leitner boxes. A forgotten fact sees its fragment blur a little again, with no notion of failure. When all 36 facts are mastered, the picture is fully revealed. The “discovered / mastered / total” counts are shown at the top.
Level 2 — division
Once the child has mastered all their tables (the “Times tables genius” badge), a level unlocks: reviewing the same facts, but as divisions (“56 ÷ 7 = ?”), with its own mystery picture — the tables picture stays earned. The “My picture” tile becomes “My pictures”: you switch between the multiplication picture and the division one. There is still a single “Let's go” button: the day's session becomes division, and the few tables due for maintenance are slipped in along the way (× and ÷ in the same session). Divisions arrive gradually (not all at once), in the same carefully designed order as the tables — from easiest to hardest — and the app explicitly teaches the key trick: for 56 ÷ 7, you look for “7 times what makes 56?”. Everything else — Leitner boxes, the picture revealing itself, encouragement without judgment — works exactly like multiplication.
The badges
Eighteen badges for the tables, across three families: milestones (first session, 7 days, 30 days), performance (10 answers in a row, 5 answers under 2 s), and mastery (first fact in box 4, first in box 5, one badge per table + a “times tables genius” badge when everything is in box 5). Once all the tables are mastered, a set of badges dedicated to division joins the collection. Each thumbnail is clickable and opens a card explaining the unlock condition. For locked badges, a progress bar shows where the child stands — the icons alone aren't self-explanatory for anyone new to the gamification.
The ×1 and ×10 rules
Two rules the app highlights from the start to lighten the memory load: multiplying by 1 (the number doesn't change) and multiplying by 10 (the digits slide one place to the left, a 0 takes the place of the ones). These tables are therefore not part of the 36 facts to learn. A third “bonus” rule, ×11 (just repeat the digit: 3×11 = 33, 7×11 = 77…), appears later, once all the tables from 2 to 9 are mastered — signaled by a discreet “New” dot on the Rules button.
Parent area
Reachable from the home screen via the gear, after a small multiplication (one operand between 11 and 19, the other between 3 and 9) to confirm an adult is behind the screen. You'll find: general statistics, a histogram of the Leitner boxes, the success-rate trend, the hardest facts, average response times per table, the history of the last 10 sessions, the profile export / import actions (JSON), and profile management — adding a child or deleting the displayed profile (see “Several children” below).
Several children
One tablet for the whole family: each child has their own profile — progress, badges, streak and mystery pictures fully separate. You add a child from the parent area (“Add a child”, Profiles section) or straight from the player-selection screen. With two or more profiles, the app asks “Who's playing?” on launch, and a dedicated button at the top of the home screen lets you switch player at any time. With a single profile, nothing changes: no extra screen or button. Deleting a profile happens in the parent area, after confirmation — and backup export / import stays available profile by profile.
