Area Model Multiplication Studio
See why multiplication works by drawing rectangles. Break numbers into tens and ones, find the area of each section, then add the pieces together for the full product.
Try an example
23 × 14 = ?
We want to multiply 23 × 14.
Press Next to break these numbers into tens and ones.
1
2
3
4
Step 1: See the problem
Area Model Reference
How the Area Model Works
The area model shows multiplication as a rectangle split into parts.
- 23 × 14 = (20 + 3) × (10 + 4)
- 20 × 10 = 200 (top-left)
- 20 × 4 = 80 (top-right)
- 3 × 10 = 30 (bottom-left)
- 3 × 4 = 12 (bottom-right)
- 200 + 80 + 30 + 12 = 322
Distributive Property
The area model uses the distributive property:
a × (b + c) = a × b + a × c
You break one factor into smaller pieces, multiply each piece, then add the results.
This is the same strategy used in the standard algorithm - the area model just makes it visible.
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