Marton-cum-Grafton Primary School

Maths

INTENT:

Engage, inspire and challenge our pupils, so they achieve excellent standards in all aspects of the National Curriculum for Maths.

Encourage resilience and perseverance when tackling problems.
Develop our pupils’ ability to reason mathematically, problem solve and develop fluency and conceptual understanding.
Inspire a love of maths so that pupils have a sense of pride when presenting their work.
Enable our pupils to remember knowledge and vocabulary so they can articulate their learning confidently.
Provide a consistent whole school approach to teaching arithmetic.

Prepare and inspire our children for further learning in mathematics in secondary school and beyond.

IMPLEMENTATION:

In EYFS, Maths is taught through a number-based approach. A number-rich classroom environment is provided to absorb pupils in, and familiarise pupils with ‘number’. Opportunities for exploring with numbers, as well as shape, space and measure, are provided in the areas of provision, with adults regularly encouraging and modelling mathematical concepts. Reception uses the White Rose Maths scheme of work.

Curriculum Maths Lessons. Following the White Rose Maths scheme of work, we provide a balanced, logically-sequenced, progressive curriculum, building on pupils’ prior knowledge and skills, which caters for the needs of all pupils, striving to achieve their potential. Our maths teaching uses a mastery approach (see below) - there is an expectation that all pupils are capable of achieving high standards in maths. Once a week, there will be a more creative or open-ended lesson which is specifically aimed at developing pupils’ reasoning and problem-solving skills. Differentiation is achieved by emphasising deep knowledge and extension activities (for faster learners) and through individual support and intervention, such as ‘pre-teaching’ and ‘corrective teaching’, for slower learners. Pre-teaching is used in order to teach selected pupils concepts, skills or vocabulary prior to a lesson so they can hit the ground running. It provides pupils with more knowledge and confidence when approaching a new topic in order to increase engagement and reduce frustration. Corrective teaching offers any slower learners repeated practice and gives them the opportunity to address misconceptions, in line with our academy’s ‘Keep Up Not Catch Up’ (KUNCU) approach.

Wake Up Maths. This focuses on calculations and arithmetic strategies. Children are exposed to this a minimum of 3 times per week. It may include a focus on work covered in the past (re-visiting it helps embed the learning in their long-term memory). It may focus on aspects of the curriculum yet to be covered in lessons (so pupils are exposed to some pre-teaching of the chosen topic). Misconceptions may also be addressed during these sessions, to ensure the children are becoming fluent and confident with a range of calculations.
Learning Instant Recall Facts. Pupils use Times Tables Rockstars both at home and at school to repeatedly practise multiplication and division facts. Pupils learn mathematical facts and knowledge off-by-heart through the SMIRF scheme (Space Mission Instant Recall Facts).

Mastery Maths - The five ‘Big Ideas’ in the teaching of Mastery Maths are: 

Coherence. Logically sequenced lessons with a gradual step by step progression. [This is provided through the White Rose Maths scheme of work].
Fluency. To develop efficient recall of facts and procedures and the flexibility to use the most effective method or strategy for each particular situation. [This is developed through Wake Up Maths sessions, and efficiency is improved through SMIRF targets and Times Table Rockstars].
Mathematical Thinking. To deepen the pupils’ levels of understanding, skills/knowledge/concepts that have been taught are actively worked on by the children: thought about, reasoned with and discussed with others. [This is developed through a once-weekly lesson, which has a specific focus on Reasoning and Problem-Solving].
Representation and Structure. Actual objects, and then representations are used to help show the mathematical structure being taught, the aim being that pupils can eventually do the maths without needing the representation. [A progressive, age-appropriate Concrete-Pictorial-Abstract approach is used to improve pupils’ understanding].
Variation. The teacher represents the concept being taught, often in more than one way, to develop deeper understanding.

IMPACT:

Pupils are confident and passionate about Maths, believing that they will achieve and are keen to attempt a range of problems.
Pupils are developing their ability to reason verbally, pictorially and in written form; to make connections between topics; and to independently apply their knowledge to a range of increasingly complex problems.
Pupils make measurable progress against National Curriculum objectives, with our end of key stage data being in line with or above national.
Pupils have excellent arithmetic strategies and select the most efficient strategies both for themselves and for the situation.
Pupils can access age related mathematical objectives (supported for some by KUNCU strategies) and all children have the opportunity to demonstrate a greater depth of understanding.