The Asquith Way for Maths

Growing to succeed- Mathematics The Asquith Way           

“Without mathematics, there's nothing you can do. Everything around you is mathematics. Everything around you is numbers.”

Shakuntala Devi

At Asquith Primary School we have ambitious expectations for our children in mathematics and use a mastery approach to prepare children for the next stage of their education and the real world. We develop a secure understanding of mathematical concepts through exposing children to a progression of concrete, pictorial and abstract representations. 

Through explicit teaching and daily pratice, children become fluent in essential number facts and procedures. There are daily opportunities for reasoning and problem-solving and children explain and justify their problem-solving decisions. Children persevere with complex problems and learn from their mistakes.

Mathematical skills are used across the curriculum so that children see the relevance of these skills in enabling them to advance in the real world.

Our curriculum is underpinned by 5 golden threads: High aspirations for all, Fostering resilience, Embedding key skills, Respecting diversity and Creating global citizens- with the intent that all our children have the opportunity to grow and succeed as a mathematician.

 

Intent

At Asquith Primary School, we recognise the importance of mathematics as a vital tool for everyday life. We aim to deliver a balanced, progressive and enjoyable curriculum with a range of cross-curricular links to support the application of both skills and understanding.  We want all children to develop a secure knowledge and understanding of concepts so they can experience both success and enjoyment as their knowledge and skills progress throughout their time at primary school and beyond.          

Our four principle aims for mathematics are:

  • For all children to be equipped with the foundational knowledge to enable them to confidently access the next step in their learning
  • For all children to be fluent in fundamental mathematical procedures
  • For all children to have the ability to reason and solve a range of problems
  • For all children to make choices about the maths they use and be able to apply with confidence

It is our intent to ensure that all children have access to a high-quality maths curriculum that is both challenging and enjoyable and raise children’s aspirations.

Our maths curriculum is carefully planned to enable children to build on their prior knowledge at each stage of their journey through the school.

Learning from mistakes, building resilience and encouraging inquisitiveness is at the heart of our maths teaching.  We strongly believe that anyone has the aptitude to learn maths, and our curriculum is carefully planned to ensure small steps of progression so that each child has every opportunity to be challenged, to deepen their mathematical learning and to reach their potential.

 

Implementation

The Curriculum:

We deliver a broad and balanced mathematical curriculum that follows the White Rose Maths blocks of learning from Reception through to Year 6.  This ensures a consistent approach, with each unit of work carefully planned to build on the prior year’s learning.  This includes elements of number, calculation, fractions, geometry, measures and statistics.  A wide range of resources (White Rose Maths, Classroom Secrets, NCETM, and Nrich ) are used to support the delivery of lessons and there are regular opportunities to use concrete, pictorial and abstract resources to represent mathematical concepts. 

 

Developing Foundational Knoweldge:

Children aquire secure foundational mathematical knowledge in the Early Years through a curriculum which  develops a deep understanding of each number to 10. This is embedded through concrete experience of number in the learning environment as well as through stories, rhymes and songs.

As children progress through school, there continues to be a strong focus on foundational knowledge through our daily 'Firm Foundations' sessions. These sessions revisit and embed key knowledge to develop autimaticity of number facts which enables children to use these efficiently in more complex mathematical tasks. There is a clear, planned progression for how children develop and practice this knoweldge which links to the taught mathematics curriculum (see the link in the left-hand menu).

Developing a strong knowledge of time-tables facts is essential in enabling children to achieve success in mathematics in Key Stage Two. The school explicitly teaches these facts which are then revisited during the 'Firm Foundations' sessions to ensure that they are retained over time. TTRockstars is also used to give children the opportunity to practice these facts at home as part of home learning expectations.

 

Concrete, Pictoral and Abstract representations:

Throughout our school, we develop children’s understanding of mathematical concepts by implementing concrete, pictorial and abstract teaching methods. Children firstly experience mathematical concepts through hands-on experience of concrete resources. When they are ready, they move on to pictorial representations which support their understanding. Abstract methods are only introduced when children show a secure grasp of the concept at the concrete and pictorial. The school's calculation policy is planned around this approach and can be found in the left-hand menu.

There is a strong focus on explicit modelling during maths lessons through our 'My Turn, Our Turn, Your Turn' approach which gradually increases children's independence while providing clear models and steps to success so that as many children as possible are able to access the learning and gain success.

 

Procedural Fluency:

To develop children's fluency in a range of mathemtcial procedures, we implement daily practice through “Fluent in 15” sessions in Year 1 – Year 6. During these sessions children revisit prior learning to embed and revise concepts and procedures. This approach means that children are constantly strengthening their memory and understanding so that when these procedures are needed, they can be quickly retrieved.

 

Reasoning and Problem-Solving:

We implement daily opportunities for reasoning and problem-solving within maths lessons and children are given opportunities to explain and justify their problem-solving decisions. There is an expectation that children will use the correct mathematical vocabulary, and this is modelled by teaching staff. Our school’s strong focus on growth mind-set means that children are encouraged to persevere with complex problems and learn from their mistakes.

 

Impact

We assess children's knowledge and understanding in mathematics all the time using observations of children, discussions with children and work in children’s books. This information is used to inform future lesson planning and to provide feedback to children. We assess more formally at the end of each term, using standardised tests in Year 1 to Year 6.  The school carries out the following statutory assessments in mathematics:

  • End of year Early Years judgements.
  • Year 4 Multiplication check
  • End of Key Stage 2 SATs tests.

We seek to inspire in children a curiosity and fascination about the role mathematics plays in the world around them and to provide them with the confidence to tackle mathematical challenges. 

 

Maths in EYFS

In Early Years, we implement a mastery approach to the teaching of mathematics to develop a deep understanding of each number in turn. Each number is initially explored through hands on experience of concrete resources and children are encouraged to make their own jottings to show their understanding.  Mathematics is taught in daily lessons but is also developed in other areas of provision to allow children to make links in their learning and to experience mathematics in different contexts.

In Nursery and Reception, the statements from the EYFS Development Matters are used to inform planning. In Reception, the White Rose Maths scheme of learning and NCETM resources are used to plan lessons and enhance indoor and outdoor provision.

Maths is taught through whole class sessions involving stories, rhymes and songs. Lessons to begin with a few minutes of; oral counting, a number rhyme or subitising practise. Adult focus and independent activities are built into areas of provision around the classroom building on prior or current learning so that children gain a practical and hands on experience of mathematical concepts and exploration.

Assessments are mostly through adult observations some of which are uploaded to Tapestry. The children in Reception also have Maths books to showcase some of their written work from independent and adult focused tasks.

Linked Texts:

EYFS- One Is a Snail, Ten is a Crab by Jeff Sayre

KS1- The Digits (Double The Fun) by Tony Bradman and Sr. Sanchez

KS2- How Many mice make an elephant by Tracy Turner

KS2- A Remainder of One by Elinor J. Pinczes

Places to visit:

Eureka, National Children's Museum, Halifax https://www.eureka.org.uk/

Yorkshire Sculpture Park https://ysp.org.uk/ 

MathsCity Leeds https://mathscity.co.uk/