Mathematics Subject Leader: Mr F Kotze and Mrs J Hatton
Having a high-quality mathematics education is an essential part of everyday life and is crucial to providing a foundation for a child’s future.
Intent
The 2014 National Curriculum for Maths aims to ensure that all children:
- Become fluent in the fundamentals of Mathematics
- Able to reason mathematically
- Can solve problems by applying their Mathematics
- Can solve problems actively by applying their Mathematics in active maths lessons.
At Cliffe Woods Primary, this semantic and procedural knowledge is embedded within Maths lessons and developed consistently over time. We are committed to ensuring that children will be able to recognise the importance of Maths in the wider world and that they are also able to use their knowledge confidently in their lives in a range of different contexts. We want all children to enjoy Mathematics and to experience success in the subject, with the ability to reason mathematically. We are committed to developing children’s curiosity about the subject, as well as an appreciation of the beauty and power of Mathematics.
In EYFS, developing a strong grounding in numbers is essential so that all children develop the necessary building blocks to excel mathematically. Children should be able to count confidently, and develop a deep understanding of the numbers to 10, the relationships between them and the patterns within those numbers. By providing frequent and varied opportunities to build and apply this understanding – such as using manipulatives, including small pebbles and tens frames for organising counting – children will develop a secure base of knowledge and vocabulary from which mastery of mathematics is built. In addition, it is important that the curriculum includes rich opportunities for children to develop their spatial reasoning skills across all areas of mathematics including shape, space and measures. It is important that children develop positive attitudes and interests in mathematics, look for patterns and relationships, spot connections, ‘have a go’, talk to adults and peers about what they notice and not be afraid to make mistakes.
Implementation
The content and principles underpinning the 2014 Mathematics curriculum and the Maths curriculum at Cliffe Woods Primary reflect those found in using high performing education systems. These principles and features characterise this approach and convey how our curriculum is implemented through:
- Teachers reinforce an expectation that all children will be capable of achieving high standards in Mathematics.
- A large majority of children progress through the curriculum content at the same pace. Adaptive teaching is achieved by emphasising deep knowledge and through individual support and intervention.
- Teaching is underpinned by methodical curriculum design and supported by carefully crafted lessons and resources to foster deep conceptual and procedural knowledge.
- Practice and consolidation play a central role. Carefully designed variation within this builds fluency and understanding of underlying mathematical concepts.
- Teachers use precise questioning in class to test conceptual and procedural knowledge and assess children regularly to identify those requiring intervention so that all children keep up.
- Teachers use ‘Teach Active’ as an active resource for children to do Maths linked with cross-curricular subjects like P.E.
- Teachers use flashbacks and reasoning on a regular basis in their lessons.
To ensure whole school consistency and progression, the school uses the DfE approved ‘White Rose’ Maths scheme, and actively engages with the DFE-funded Maths Hubs programme. This ensures that staff at all levels understand the pedagogy of the approach. New concepts are shared within the context of an initial related problem, which children will be able to discuss with partners. This initial problem-solving activity prompts discussion and reasoning, as well as promotes awareness of maths in relatable real-life contexts that link to other areas of learning. In KS1, these problems are almost always presented with objects (concrete manipulatives) for children to use. Children may also use manipulatives in KS2 and we encourage the use of manipulatives at all times. Teachers use careful questions to draw out children’s discussions and their reasoning. The class teacher then leads children through strategies for solving the problem, including those already discussed. Independent work provides the means for all children to develop their fluency further, before progressing to more complex related problems. Mathematical topics are taught in blocks, to enable the achievement of ‘mastery’ over time. Each lesson phase provides the means to achieve greater depth, with more able children being offered rich and sophisticated problems, as well as exploratory, investigative tasks, within the lesson as appropriate.
Impact
The school has a supportive ethos and our approaches support the children in developing their collaborative and independent skills, as well as empathy and the need to recognise the achievement of others, ‘Excellence from all’. Children can underperform in Mathematics because they think they can’t do it or are not naturally good at it.
The ‘Teach Active’ programme addresses these preconceptions by ensuring that all children experience an active, enjoyable, challenge and success in Mathematics by developing an active, growth mindset. Regular and ongoing assessment informs teaching, as well as intervention, to support and enable the success of each child. These factors ensure that we shall be able to maintain high standards, with achievement at the end of KS2 well above the national average and a high proportion of children demonstrating greater depth, at the end of each phase.
Mathematics in Each Stage
In EYFS we want children to be able to:
- Recognise numbers to 10,
- Subitise to 5.
- Number bonds to 5.
- Doubling numbers to double 5.
- Count beyond 20.
- Counting in 2s and 10s.
- Compare quantities using vocabulary more, less, greater, and fewer.
- Share quantities equally.
- Add and subtract within 10 using counting resources.
- Complete and create a simple repeating pattern.
- Recognise 2D shapes – square, circle, rectangle, triangle, oval.
- Recognise 3D shapes – cube, cuboid, cylinder, sphere.
To achieve this continuous provision are provided through – number displays, naughty number line, counting resources, numbers, number puzzles, number games, shapes, shape games, blocks, dominoes, measuring resources, teaching clock, sorting, peg boards, loose parts, weighing scales, cubes, containers.
All concepts are continuously reinforced within daily routines – lining up time, number rhymes, wall calendar, class clock, story time.
Children in KS1 will:
- Count and calculate in a range of practical contexts
- Use and apply mathematics in everyday activities and across the curriculum
- Repeat key concepts in many different practical ways to secure retention
- Explore numbers and place value up to at least 100
- Add and subtract using mental and formal written methods in practical contexts
- Multiply and divide using mental and formal written methods in practical contexts
- Explore the properties of shapes
- Use language to describe position, direction and movement
- Use and apply, in practical contexts a range of measures, including time
- Handle data in practical contexts
Children in KS2 will:
- Count and calculate in increasingly complex contexts, including those that cannot be experienced first hand
- Rigorously apply mathematical knowledge across the curriculum, in particular science, technology and computing
- Deepen conceptual understanding of mathematics by frequent repetition in a range of engaging and purposeful contexts
- Explore numbers and place value so as to read and understand the value of all numbers
- Add and subtract using efficient mental and formal written methods
- Multiply and divide using efficient mental and formal written methods
- Use the properties of shapes and angles in increasingly complex and practical contexts, including in construction and engineering contexts
- Describe position, direction and movement in increasingly precise ways
- Use and apply measures to increasingly complex contexts
- Gather, organise and interrogate data
- Understand the practical value of using algebra
Mathematics Progression
Assessments
Times Tables are taught daily and tested weekly, through the use of Time Table Rock Stars. Weekly Mental Arithmetic is given out as homework in Key Stage 2. Calculation methods are tested weekly in Key Stage 2 also.
SEND Information
We ensure that SEND and disadvantaged children are given the necessary support in class to fully access the Maths Curriculum and equal opportunities are given for all to be confident in approaching any problem within the world around them.
Mathematics Extra Resources
Further Mathematics Help
Fun Mathematics Games