Mathematics – All Saints Catholic Primary School

What makes a good Mathematics pupil?

A good maths pupil is someone who understands the big ideas of maths and can create models of maths ideas as this develops deeper thinking and understanding. They will have computational fluency and a strong sense of numbers. They will understand how maths ideas are connected and not see them as a set of isolated skills as this allows the pupils to continually build their math knowledge. The interconnectedness of math ideas allows our pupils to build on previous knowledge and discover important insights.

A good maths pupil will have a strong repertoire of skills and strategies to be able to solve complex math problems and to reason mathematically. They should be able to communicate their mathematical thinking precisely in order to process their ideas and refine their own thinking and should maintain a positive disposition, be willing to take risks and to develop resilience in their maths work.

About Mathematics

Maths is a central part of the All Saints Curriculum. It is the school’s vision to produce fluent mathematicians through providing all children with a secure conceptual understanding and efficiency in procedural approaches; this is reflected in the school’s calculation policy. We believe in the importance of making connections between concrete materials, models and images, mathematical language, symbolic representation and prior knowledge. Through our teaching sequence, we ensure that children have the opportunity to practice key skills whilst developing their understanding and application to more complex questioning. The children develop strong number sense throughout their learning which helps them identify the interconnectedness of mathematical concepts. In September 2021 we started working with our local MathsHub as part of the Mastery Readiness Program which in time will develop and shape our teaching further.

Why do we teach Mathematics?

Mathematics is a creative and highly interconnected discipline that has been developed over centuries, providing the solution to some of history’s most intriguing problems. It is essential to everyday life, critical to science, technology and engineering, and necessary for financial literacy and most forms of employment. A high-quality mathematics education therefore provides a foundation for understanding the world, the ability to reason mathematically, an appreciation of the beauty and power of mathematics, and a sense of enjoyment and curiosity about the subject.

Aims of Mathematics

The national curriculum for mathematics aims to ensure that all pupils:

become fluent in the fundamentals of mathematics, including through varied and frequent practice with increasingly complex problems over time, so that pupils develop conceptual understanding and the ability to recall and apply knowledge rapidly and accurately
reason mathematically by following a line of enquiry, conjecturing relationships and generalisations, and developing an argument, justification or proof using mathematical language
can solve problems by applying their mathematics to a variety of routine and non-routine problems with increasing sophistication, including breaking down problems into a series of simpler steps and persevering in seeking solutions

The programmes of study are, by necessity, organised into apparently distinct domains, but pupils should make rich connections across mathematical ideas to develop fluency, mathematical reasoning and competence in solving increasingly sophisticated problems. They should also apply their mathematical knowledge to science and other subjects.

The expectation is that the majority of pupils will move through the programmes of study at broadly the same pace. However, decisions about when to progress should always be based on the security of pupils’ understanding and their readiness to progress to the next stage. Pupils who grasp concepts rapidly should be challenged through being offered rich and sophisticated problems before any acceleration through new content. Those who are not sufficiently fluent with earlier material should consolidate their understanding, including through additional practice, before moving on.

The programmes of study for mathematics are set out year-by-year for key stages 1 and 2. Schools are, however, only required to teach the relevant programme of study by the end of the key stage. Within each key stage, schools therefore have the flexibility to introduce content earlier or later than set out in the programme of study. In addition, schools can introduce key stage content during an earlier key stage, if appropriate.

The national curriculum for mathematics reflects the importance of spoken language in pupils’ development across the whole curriculum – cognitively, socially and linguistically. The quality and variety of language that pupils hear and speak are key factors in developing their mathematical vocabulary and presenting a mathematical justification, argument or proof. They must be assisted in making their thinking clear to themselves as well as others, and teachers should ensure that pupils build secure foundations by using discussion to probe and remedy their misconceptions.

Curriculum

We follow the White Rose Hub National Curriculum document which shows how the Maths Curriculum progresses through the topics for Years 1 – 6. The scheme is linked to the Key Stage 1 and Key Stage 2 National Curriculum and displays the objectives of the major topic areas of Number, Measurement, Geometry and Statistics and is available in the link below. A lesson by lesson overview for 2021-22 for Year groups 1 – 6 which shows you the daily objectives that your children will cover in Autumn, Spring and Summer following the White Rose Hub scheme of learning are also linked below.
To support mental arithmetic and basic skills sessions, All Saints classes (Yrs 1 – 6) have a dedicated daily session where the children complete a daily set of arithmetic practice designed to help children develop and maintain fluency in both written and mental calculations. Lesson by lesson overviews can be found at https://whiterosemaths.com/lesson-by-lesson-overviews-2020-2021.

Times Tables Rock Stars (TTRS) is used to support children’s learning of multiplication and division facts. This interactive sequenced programme of daily times tables practice helps children to become secure and maintain fluency. There is also plenty of fun involved through year group battles and whole school competitions, which are recorded on our school leader board. All Saints love rocking out whilst consolidating and rehearsing their tables. In addition to this, children can practice their number facts (number bonds and related facts) on the Numbots section of TTRS and the whole curriculum on Sumdog in Year 1 & 2. Maths Shed is also used to support the White Rose planning which is adopted at All Saints. Children compete in leagues, challenges and are set assignments by their teachers. Maths Shed covers a wide range of maths skills categories which can be accessed and played in school and at home.

At All Saints Catholic Primary School, we have developed our own Maths Calculation Policy from EYFS – Year 6 which is underpinned by CPS (Concrete, Pictorial and Symbolic) approach to teaching and learning.

Pupil voice

Theo (Y5) “Maths is everywhere. Football is maths. Science is maths. Everything is maths!”

Mary (Y3) “If you want to be a scientist, it’s one of the most important things to know.”

Eleanor (Y1) “We do number sense to get clever.”

Jack (Y1) “Your brain gets stronger when you know your sums.”

Maths-progression Download

Home Learning Guidance

USEFUL LINKS:

https://ttrockstars.com/login2

https://nrich.maths.org/primary

https://www.topmarks.co.uk/Search.aspx?Subject=16

https://www.bbc.com/bitesize/ks1/maths