The Times Tables Drill, in which students recite multiplication facts at high speed, is based on a 200 year-old American military education practice. Emphasising "commands," "obedience," "rules," "silence," "separation," "surveillance," "speed," "competition," "testing" and "ranking," it makes students anxious as well as failing to support a conceptual understanding of multiplication. This article shows teachers how to teach the multiplication facts in an engaging, conceptual, and democratic way. The article includes an alternative Times Tables quiz that teachers can use in the classroom to promote conceptual learning, social interaction and automaticity.