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Maths
We want all children, regardless of age, stage or need, to develop secure and fundamental mathematical knowledge. We want them to be able to quickly draw links between mathematical knowledge and concepts, within and across subjects and apply these skills in a wide range of problem-solving situations. We will give our children the opportunity to develop a familiarity with a range of solving strategies, including using concrete, pictorial and abstract models so that they can articulate these to others and select suitable skills when problem solving. We want our children to engage with maths and develop a love of learning within the subject.
At Hampreston First School, we use the maths mastery approach to enable our children to become confident mathematicians.
WHAT IS MASTERY?
Mastering maths means pupils acquire a deep and secure understanding of the subject. We believe that children should be taught to master maths, rather than just learning rules by rote, and by using a mastery approach our children are encouraged to develop their mathematical thinking and problem-solving skills.
When taught to master maths, children are given time to think deeply about and understand the concepts which can be applied to real-life situations. This slower pace leads to greater progress because it ensures that students are secure and confident while also ensuring that all children have the opportunity to succeed.
We have adopted the White Rose Maths approach to teaching maths. This means making sure all children have the same opportunities to learn and the support they need to fully grasp concepts. The philosophy behind White Rose Maths also focuses on making maths fun for children and helping them to find enjoyment in number problems.
For more information, visit White Rose Maths
Times Tables Rock Stars is a carefully sequenced programme of daily times tables practice that our children have access to in Years 2, 3 and 4.
Each child has their own individual login to allow them to concentrate on targeted times tables and have fun in the process!
This free app has very successfully boosted times tables recall speed for children around the world and our children love it. The app is free to download on all platforms and children can access it at home as well as in school.
Curriculum
Intent
At Hampreston, we take a mastery approach to the teaching and learning of mathematics and we believe that all children can be successful in the study of mathematics. We teach the skills to ensure our children are resilient learners who become life-long mathematicians. We aim to deliver an inspiring and engaging mathematics curriculum through high-quality teaching and ensuring that all teachers feel that they are properly equipped to teach amazing maths. In order to improve our mastery approach we consider the NCETM Teaching for Mastery model.
Coherence
Lessons are broken down into small, connected steps that gradually unfold the concept, providing access for all children and leading to a generalisation of the concept and the ability to apply the concept to a range of contexts. This is reflected in the small steps that each unit is broken down into.
Representation and Structure
Representations used in lessons expose the mathematical structure being taught, the aim being that students can do the maths without recourse to the representation. For further information on the different representations that we use in maths lessons see appendix 3 of the Maths Policy.
Mathematical Thinking
If taught ideas are to be understood deeply, they must not merely be passively received but must be worked on by the student: thought about, reasoned with and discussed with others. Each lesson we provide time for children to practice each of these skills.
Fluency
Quick and efficient recall of facts, procedures, and the flexibility to move between different contexts and representations of mathematics. We encourage children to see the relationships between taught facts and the wider mathematical world. For more information on how we teach times tables see appendix 4 of the Maths Policy.
Variation
Variation is twofold. It is firstly about how the concepts are taught, often in more than one way, to draw attention to critical aspects and to develop deep and holistic understanding. It is also about the sequencing of the episodes, activities and exercises used within a lesson and follow up practice, paying attention to what is kept the same and what changes, to connect the mathematics and draw attention to mathematical relationships and structure. The small steps within each unit allow for appropriate variation and that key concepts are given enough time to be embedded.
The Five Big Ideas were first published by the NCETM in 2017.
Our maths approach enables children to be numerate, creative, independent, inquisitive, enquiring and confident learners. Children should not be afraid to make mistakes and should fully embrace the fact that mistakes are part of learning. A mastery curriculum promotes a deep, long-term, secure and adaptable understanding of the subject, so that children become fluent in calculations; possess a growing confidence to reason mathematically and hone their problem-solving skills.
The intention of the maths curriculum at Hampreston is for children to be excited about maths and active participants in their learning. Teachers promote children’s enjoyment of maths and provide opportunities for children to build a conceptual understanding of maths before applying their knowledge to everyday problems and challenges. We ensure that challenge is provided for all children, whatever their understanding and believe that equality of opportunity is important. We wish to develop children’s ability to communicate verbally and structure their thoughts so that they make sense to other people, through developing their presentational and dialogic oracy skills. Children are always encouraged to be brave and push the boundaries, deepening their understanding further.
Implementation
At Hampreston, we recognise that children need to be confident and fluent mathematicians. To ensure consistent coverage, teachers follow the White Rose Hub scheme of learning to support their planning. Through this approach, carefully designed variation builds fluency and understanding of underlying mathematical concepts while maintaining continuity and progression in the teaching of maths at Hampreston. Teachers mark off the various small steps that have been taught in each unit to provide a learning picture of individual cohorts. Teachers have access to high quality CPD videos that explore each topic being taught and how it fits into the overall learning journey of the children. This highlights links to previous learning and how it links to future topics. These CPD videos also talk through the five big ideas and how fluency, variation, mathematical thinking, reasoning and structure can be used effectively in planning and delivering lessons.
Our curriculum builds on the concrete, pictorial, abstract approach. By using all three, the children can explore and demonstrate their mathematical learning. Together, these elements help to cement knowledge so children truly understand what they have learnt.
Teachers reinforce an expectation that all children are capable of achieving high standards in Mathematics. The large majority of children progress through the curriculum content at the same pace and differentiation is achieved by emphasising deep knowledge and through individual scaffolding, support and intervention. 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. We promote classrooms rich in mathematical talk, in which questions are planned, peer conversations are modelled and scaffolded and teachers use talk skilfully to develop children’s thinking and communication skills.
Impact
At Hampreston, we tell our children that it is OK to be ‘wrong’ because the journey to finding an answer is most important. Our WRH books and Maths Journals contain a range of activities, showing evidence of fluency, reasoning and problem-solving. Our feedback and interventions are supporting children to strive to be the best mathematicians they can be, ensuring a greater proportion of children are on track.
Children persevere when attempting to solve problems and choose the equipment and strategies they think are best suited to each problem. Our Maths Mastery approach ensures that their knowledge is well-embedded and gives them the right tools to solve problems in different contexts. Children are developing skills in being able to reason verbally, pictorially and in written form.
Regular and ongoing assessment informs teaching, as well as intervention, to support and enable the success of each child. Summative assessment takes place at the end of each half term. Formative assessment takes place on a daily basis and teachers adjust planning accordingly to meet the needs of their class. In addition, we place a strong emphasis on the power of questioning: this enables us both to explore topics together as a class as well as verbally develop reasoning skills during our lessons. Children are encouraged to take ownership of their learning through self and peer assessment and group learning activities.
The effectiveness of teaching and learning is monitored termly by the subject lead and SLT through learning walks, book scrutinies, termly assessments and pupil interviews.
This information will be used to evaluate the effectiveness of subject plans and subject practice. The impact on the whole school learning and teaching will be used to inform the school development plan.