I started by understanding. I could multiply by repeat addition (each addition counted one at a time with the aid of fingers) before I had the 10x10 addition table memorized. I learned university level calculus before I had more than half of the 10x10 multiplication table memorized, and even that was from daily use, not from deliberate memorization. There wasn't a day in my life where I could recite the full table.
Maybe schools teach by memorization, but my mom taught me by explaining what it means, and I highly recommend this approach (and am a proof by example that humans can learn this way).
Maybe schools teach by memorization, but my mom taught me by explaining what it means, and I highly recommend this approach (and am a proof by example that humans can learn this way).