Intent
At Woodcote Primary School our mathematics teaching is aimed at providing all our learners with the skills, knowledge, understanding and enjoyment of maths to equip them with the tools that they need in order to be successful mathematicians.
From Early Years through to the end of Year 6 children have opportunities to use practical equipment to engage with new concepts and support understanding, show thinking, and use models and images. This allows children to demonstrate their understanding without the difficulties that can occur with imagining the equipment or relying on vocalising their ideas.
All children are encouraged to discuss and explain mathematical processes and strategies, building on the use of appropriate mathematical language. By identifying misconceptions early, children become fluent in the fundamentals of all areas of mathematics, confident problem solvers with the ability to give reasons for their decisions.
While we follow the National Curriculum 2014 for mathematics teaching, we use the White Rose maths scheme to support lesson planning and provision of resources for learning and consolidation. At Woodcote, most children are taught the curriculum from their year group content, with the intention that they master the skills and knowledge to apply it in multiple ways. Some children will also need to be taught curriculum content from other years.
Implementation
By following the White Rose mathematics scheme, we ensure that there is progression in all areas of the mathematics curriculum from EYFS through to Year 6. The scheme is clearly structured in small steps to allow children to grasp the concepts quickly, with the support of a mixed range of resources to support their learning.
Children have a daily mathematics lesson, as well as a daily “maths meeting” of 10 – 15 minutes. The maths meeting allows children to revisit and practise skills to help embed them. Teachers will also use this time to support those children who they have identified as needing more support working on the current learning steps, or work with those they have identified as potentially working at greater depth.
The mathematics lessons all contain opportunities to develop knowledge, use concrete or practical equipment, use models and images to both learn and practise skills and to explain thinking before moving on to the abstract approach with confidence. Children are challenged to reach a greater depth of understanding through the use of targeted questioning, provision of resources at a deeper level and problem solving that links to the area of learning currently being undertaken.
Children who are finding maths difficult are identified as early as possible and extra support is put in place through the use of interventions. The use of assessments across the term and year allows teachers to monitor progress closely. Marking is rigorous and feedback is aimed at giving children the opportunity to respond and improve their work.
Throughout Lower Key Stage 2, children use Times Tables Rockstars to build up both their tables knowledge and the quick recall of the facts in preparation for the Year 4 test. Other online resources are also used to build confidence and speed of facts recall, such as Hit the Button.
Each class has a “working wall” where children can look for support independently within the maths lesson. Number lines are on display in all classrooms.
White Rose Curriculum by Year Group
Teachers will ensure that children are ready to move on to the next small step before planning new concepts. Those that are will be provided with opportunities to deepen their knowledge and understanding within the area of learning. Where practical, teachers will plan opportunities for mathematics to be taught outside the classroom, or within other curriculum areas, promoting an engaging and motivating learning environment.
Through assessments, teachers will provide children with appropriate levels of work, scaffolding or other support, to enable them to move forwards in their learning. Teachers will use summative and formative assessments during and at the end of units to monitor progression and inform next steps. They will use PUMA at the start of the academic year, and then at the end of each term to assess and review progression.
Impact
Children will have a love of mathematics, be confident problem solvers, with the knowledge and skills that will take them successfully through their secondary education.
Children will be able to:
discuss their mathematics freely with their peers and teachers
model their understanding in a variety of ways - using models, images and concrete materials
and make connections between different areas of maths.
Assessment and Monitoring
The impact of our Maths curriculum is measured through the monitoring cycle in school:
Lesson observations, book monitoring and learning walks
Skills progressing (mental calculations) throughout the school is evident in children’s books.
Gathering pupil voice – to check understanding, understanding of key skills and knowledge, progression, confidence in discussing Maths
Moderating pupils work in school and in cluster meetings with other schools to ensure accurate assessments are made
Tracking pupils’ progress each half term in. This informs planning and any intervention needed
Pupil progress meetings ensure different groups (including EAL, PP and SEND) and individual progress is monitored, and interventions organised to support good and better progress
Parents and carers will understand how they can support spelling, grammar and composition and home, and contribute regularly to homework.
Links to On-line resources.
NCETM ‘Teaching forMastery’ Resources
https://www.ncetm.org.uk/classroom-resources/assessment-materials-primary/
https://londonsouthwestmathshub.co.uk/current-projects/greater-depth-2016-2017