Mathematics
“The essence of mathematics is not to make simple things complicated, but to make complicated things simple.”
S Gudder
“Arithmetic is being able to count to 20 without taking your shoes off.”
Mickey Mouse
What is the intent of Maths at Meadows?
Here at Meadows, we aim to help our children to aspire to have confidence in maths, for their understanding to grow and their confidence and ability to flourish, so that they can achieve their true potential.
We want our children to know and understand the purpose, relevance and importance of mathematics in everyday life. Our intention is for every child to be number confident, so that they can make a valued contribution for themselves, the wider community and the world around them.
Mathematics is a creative and highly connected discipline that has been developed over centuries, providing the solution to some of history’s most intriguing problems. It is essential for everyday life, critical to science, technology and engineering, and necessary in most forms of employment. A high-quality maths education, therefore, provides a foundation for understanding the world, the ability to reason mathematically, and a sense of curiosity about the subject.
How is Maths implemented at Meadows?
To implement mathematics at Meadows we use Abacus as our core offer, this is an on-line program that allows teachers download differentiated lesson plans that are at the correct pitch and expectation for their individual year group. The planning has differentiated activities to cater for the differing abilities of all pupils. These can be further adapted to give a bespoke learning experience for our children.
The planning tool gives direction on challenge activities and higher-level problem-solving activities which are linked to NRICH. It also provides visuals and activities for the whole class, and to support the individuals understanding and the different concepts in maths.
To develop our curriculum provision further we use White Rose Maths to provide extra resources, question types and challenges for our pupils. The Iceberg Challenge is used at the end of the lesson to put the aspect of maths being taught into a familiar or new context. This allows our children to relate the maths skill they have learnt to their everyday world and see the purpose of maths.
We have our own calculation policies for the four operations for KS1 and KS2. These show:
- progression of strategies that children will learnt and develop as they move through the school
- what children have learnt or had experiences within their previous year group
- progression in vocabulary used
- the three main ways that mathematics is taught:
- concrete (equipment),
- pictorial (picture)
- abstract (calculations)
- essential knowledge we would like our children to achieve by the end of their school year.
| Key Stage One Calculation Policies | Key Stage Two Calculation Policies |
|---|---|
How does Maths progress at Meadows?
The use of the Abacus program gives a clear progression through the National Curriculum. The Abacus curriculum works on a spiral theory, this allows the children to repeat each aspect of maths at least once a term, each time they revisit the next steps are added to improve their knowledge and understanding. This allows children to have the time to process and develop their knowledge and skills, as we move through the academic year.
We have developed our Learning Pathways for Maths, which contain all the key objectives for each year group that we a required to teach. These cover the following areas from Reception to Year 6:
- Number Sense
- Addition and Subtraction
- Multiplication and Division
- Fractions
- Measurement
- Algebra – even from Year 1
- Geometry
- Statistics (graphs and charts)
- Ratio and Proportion (Key Stage Two)
The Learning Journeys allow us to keep track of progress through each term, to identify if a child is on track and meeting age-related expectations, or if they need support in the form of intervention. This could be in the form of a small group session or a one-to-one session to develop an individual’s knowledge and understanding. Also, we can see if childen are understanding at a greater depth, so that more challenge can be given to again allow them to progress with their learning. This information can be recorded directly onto our Sonar Tracking System for a quick and easy management of a pupil’s individual progress.
We also use NFER tests to find out how our children can complete maths tasks independently. These are a termly opportunity to show what they can do; we then analyse the test papers and use this information to identify their strengths and areas where they may need extra support to keep their learning moving forward.
my maths learning journey years 1 6 completed version june 2024.pdf
How can I support my child's Maths?
Relaying the importance of maths in our everyday life with your child is very important, we need maths for a multitude of daily activities:
- Addition and subtraction
- How much money do I have?
- How much have I spent?
- Multiplication and division
- Working out area and perimeter.
- Sharing out resources
- Working out wages
- Times tables
- Singing times tables songs – encouraging your child to go onto Times Tables Rockstar (TTRS)
- Repeated addition but quicker.
- How many items do I need for a party?
- Telling the time
- Being able to know when TV programmes start.
- How long will food take to cook?
- Reading a timetable to catch a bus.
- Weighing and measuring
- Helping to cook a meal.
- Baking a cake.
- Making more than one lot of cakes (ratio).
- Fractions
- Cutting a pizza/cake into equal parts.
- Halving and quartering fruit.
- Know that fractions are equal parts of a whole.
- Decimals
- Adding and subtracting money.
- Using a stopwatch and recognising the tenths and hundredths.
- Measuring in cm and mm as an example for accuracy.
Please refer to our calculation policies if you are teaching a strategy at home, so that it matches what we do in school. If you are unsure, please ask your child’s teacher and they will support you, so that you can support your child.