Maths

Intent - what are we trying to achieve

At Wheatfield Primary School, we understand that maths plays an integral part of developing a child’s understanding of the world around them. We recognise that having a secure understanding of maths is essential for children to develop real-life practical skills such as, thinking in abstract ways and reasoning logically. We also understand that maths is vital in their success in other subjects including science, computing, history and geography. The aim of our curriculum is to ensure that our children master their understanding of maths at their age related expectations. We aim to develop children who:

are confident, competent and independent mathematicians
become fluent in the fundamentals of mathematics
are able to solve varied problems that become increasingly more complex
develop children’s ability to articulate, discuss and explain their thinking using appropriate mathematical vocabulary
can reason mathematically by following a line of enquiry, understanding relationships and justifying or proving using mathematical language
are passionate about maths and believe that maths is for everyone!
Are resilient and inquisitive learners who learn the skills to become lifelong mathematicians

Implementation – How is our vision translated into practice?

In order to further embed our mastery approach and further improve the quality and consistency of our maths teaching Maths lessons are taught by each year group for fifty minutes every day. We use the NCTEM curriculum, which was developed with the Maths Lead of the GLF trust.

Each year group has a yearly overview which is split into topics that last different lengths of time. Each half term is split into segments that then have different teaching points within it. Teachers are provided with a teaching guide that breaks the teaching points down into lessons. The teaching points aim to begin by teaching the basic fundamentals of a mathematical concept and then build in complexity until the children can use key mathematical vocabulary to explain their thinking.

Each teacher runs a maths pre-teach intervention every morning for 15-20 minutes. This aims to expose the children to new mathematical vocabulary, allow them to practise key methods and use resources to support them when working out an answer.

Each lesson starts with a recall activity, this will be something the children have covered in the previous lesson. The aim of the recall is to remind the children of the previous steps in their learning and allow the teachers to assess where the children are at.

Every class is encouraged to use resources whenever it is possible. This allows the children to see different representations of the methods and understand the key knowledge behind them. As we teach for mastery, we also encourage our quick graspers to use resources as well to show a full understanding.

The inputs of the lessons are very interactive. The teachers should be using slides that consist of only the most important information - this avoids sensory overload for all of the children. When the teachers are using their slides that include key representations, they should be allowing the children to practise steps/methods as they go. Depending on the concept being taught, teachers will either provide the children with multiple activities that are completed at different points in the lesson. For example, the teacher may do half of the input, then the children do a task and then they finish the input. Or, teachers may choose to complete the task at the end of the interactive input.

As our curriculum aims to teach mastery to all children, during the input all children, including those with SEND needs, are part of the lesson. Associate staff members are also present so that they are using the same mathematical vocabulary and stem sentences as the teachers. All children will start on the same task and then other tasks will be provided that progress in difficulty. Often, the first task will check for the basic understanding of the method. Then, the teacher will provide a range of other activities that challenge and extend the children’s understanding. These tasks also encourage children to explain the why behind the methods using mathematical vocabulary.

A key part of our maths teaching is the use of stem sentences. In each teacher guide there are key sentences that the children should be exposed to. These should also be added to the maths working wall. Teachers encourage the children to use these themselves and show an understanding of them. As the knowledge progresses in the year groups, these stem sentences become relevant and appropriate for the year group.

SEND

Mastery is an inclusive way of teaching. By ensuring that all children are part of the interactive lesson input and associate staff are there to support, it allows all children to access the learning. Our curriculum teaches a range of strategies that will suit different learners so they can progress together. We believe all children can achieve if they are given high quality taught lessons and enough time to master a concept. At Wheatfield, we understand that children with SEND needs will need further support in order to access and understand the curriculum, therefore teachers plan and adapt for this. Our maths pre-teach sessions allow our children with SEND to have a look at the concepts and vocabulary in a smaller, targeted group. We also have targeted interventions that focus on those children who need extra support to master the concepts.

Home learning

In KS1, children have tasks to complete on NumBots each week. This works on different concepts and areas and helps to create fluency when recalling number facts.

In KS2, the children have tasks to complete each week on Times Tables Rockstars. Teachers carefully chose times tables they would like the children to work on. This helps to build fluency when recalling the times tables.

Impact - what is the impact of our curriculum?

All children have a positive mindset towards maths and believe that everyone can ‘do maths’
Children are happy and enthusiastic to talk about their learning.
Children are inspired to challenge themselves and identify their next steps.
Mathematical language is evident during class/pupil discussions.
Stem sentences are used by all staff and children to show a deeper understanding of a concept.
Children’s fluency in number is a strength and children are confident with arithmetic questions.
Children have a quick recall of number facts.
Children show a high level of pride in their presentation of their work.
More consistent teaching practices that are well-known to be more effective for pupil progress long term, evident across school
Cross-school moderation highlights the high level of challenge for all ability groups, evident throughout topics through reasoning and problem solving activities
Teacher assessment of the depth of learning is also increasingly accurate