Mathematics
Intent
The intent of our mathematics curriculum is to have a curriculum, which is accessible to all and will maximise the development of every child’s ability and academic achievement. We deliver lessons that are creative and engaging. The 2014 National Curriculum for Maths aims to ensure that all children:
Become fluent in the fundamentals of Mathematics
- Are able to reason mathematically
- Can solve problems by applying their Mathematics
At Monkleigh, these skills are embedded within Maths lessons and developed consistently over time. We aim to ensure that children are able to recognise the importance of Maths in the wider world and that they are also able to use their mathematical skills and knowledge confidently in a range of different contexts. We want all children to enjoy Mathematics and to experience success in the subject. We are committed to developing children’s curiosity about the subject, as well as an appreciation of the beauty and power of Mathematics. As a school, we have identified the understanding of number, fluency of factual recall and fluency of mathematical procedures to be a pivotal area that children need to become confident in. We place extra emphasis on these elements, particularly in KS1 and LKS2, so that children have the greatest chance of succeeding with the rest of the mathematical curriculum.
Implementation
Our whole curriculum is shaped by our school vision which aims to enable all children, regardless of background, ability, additional needs, to flourish and achieve the best they can. As a school we follow the National Curriculum and use the White Rose Maths scheme to help implement the delivery of the maths curriculum from Reception onwards. We chose this as we felt it best suited the school’s approach to teaching. All teachers use the long-term planning and sequences to help plan and teach engaging lessons whilst still giving each teacher the freedom to use other resources and ideas so that they can tailor their lessons to the children in their class. Our nursery aged children begin their maths journey with counting, songs, rhymes and exploring number in a variety of ways.
At the start of each topic, an assessment is done to find out the children’s prior knowledge of a subject. This assessment serves two purposes: firstly to aid the teacher in the planning of the unit and secondly to help show the children and teachers the progress they have made throughout a topic. Key vocabulary is taken from our vocabulary progression map and shared and discussed with the children throughout a unit of work.
Throughout the unit of work all children are taught about and given opportunities to increase their confidence within the subject. Although each class is in a mixed year group setting, every year group is taught separately. Every year group gets 30 minutes of teacher led maths time, whilst the other year group in the class get 30 minutes of PE. All children are then given extra tasks to complete independently, in group tasks or with adult support where appropriate.
A typical lesson (Year 1 onwards) at Monkleigh Primary School follows as such:
- Flashback 4 – a chance for children to revisit previous learning and embed the knowledge they have gained.
- A teaching input from the class teacher to 1 single year group, supported by teaching assistants.
- A 30 minute PE lesson
- Time for children to apply what they have learnt in an independent, paired or group task. Adult support is provided where appropriate.
- Teachers and support staff do live marking, where appropriate, throughout the lesson so children get instant feedback.
- On top of this, all KS1 children participate in a daily 20 minute Number sense lesson.
Once all objectives/steps have been taught, revisited and also taught within reasoning tasks, the children are then re-assessed and this informs the formative assessment that teachers update.
Children have access to a wide range of resources within school and outside of school, including the online platforms Times Table Rockstars, Numbots and Mathletics so that children can continue to develop their skills outside of lessons and continue to enjoy the subject. Children also complete the school ‘maths challenge’ that helps children improve their recall ability with number facts and times tables. Any children that are finding learning in Mathematics difficult are picked up by our Maths Intervention Teaching Assistant, who completes a diagnostic assessment based on one of these interventions: Spot on with number, counting to calculating, making a difference and fair and equal.
She works with the children to fill in any gaps that this assessment shows they have in their learning to ensure all children have the best chance of succeeding in Maths.
Impact
By the time children leave our school, we aim for children to be fluent in the fundamentals of mathematics. We aim for them to have a conceptual understanding of Mathematics and have the ability to recall and apply knowledge quickly and accurately and also to be able to reason mathematically. They should have the skills to solve problems by applying their mathematical knowledge to a variety of situations with increasing efficiency and confidence, including in real-life scenarios. Finally we aim to give children the confidence to succeed in maths in the hope that they continue this into their future education and continue to enjoy the subject.
Reception_math_progression_Map.pdf
