The trio of third graders at Tennessee’s Trousdale County Elementary School begin working on their multiplication tables as soon as they sit down for tutoring, quietly penciling in answers. Kelsey Harris, their math tutor, reminds them that this year they will need to know how to multiply all the numbers from zero to 10.

The students review math vocabulary and identify different multiplication equations, getting a jump on some of the concepts they’ll cover in math class the next day. “If I ask you to find the product, what are we going to do?” Harris asks. Multiply. “If I ask you what the sum is, what are we going to do?” Add.