Before launching right into the distributive property, help your students to develop confidence multiplying one-digit numbers and two or three-digit numbers that are multiples of 10 or 100. For example, students should immediately recognize the result of 7 times 5; they should recognize just as quickly 7 times 50. You can teach them the shortcut of "adding a zero," in which they multiply 7 directly by the 5 in the tens column, then add on the zero from the ones column.
To introduce the concept behind the distributive property, create special dominoes for your students. Cut out rectangles of paper and divide each rectangle into two sides; one side represents the tens column and the other represents the ones column. Represent the digit in each column by drawing in a set number of dots. Make four dominoes that all represent the same number, 25, and set them in a row. Elicit from the students what this picture represents: 4 times 25. Let them multiply across the tens column by counting up all the dots and then multiply across the ones column by counting up all those dots. Point out that each of the dominoes representing 25 are equal to 20 plus 5. Therefore, they can add 20 and 5 before multiplying out, or afterwards.
To encourage your students to think creatively and inquisitively, present the distributive property not as a set rule but as a proposition they must prove true or false. Let them work in teams to determine through experimentation whether 25 times 4 is the same as 20 times 4 plus 5 times 4. Encourage creativity, but require each of the students to write out a record of the process. To deepen the exercise, have each group present their findings to the class. You might use this activity as a warm-up, before the main lesson, then let the students return to check their experiments at the end of the lesson.
For kinesthetic learners, create a three-dimensional variation on the domino picture presentation of the lesson. Set out marbles, small candies or coins in regular patterns to represent the ones and the tens columns of 25. Have the students represent 25 four times. Let them multiply across using the distributive property, then have them count out the individual marbles or coins to confirm their findings.