Maths

CURRICULUM STATEMENT

At Sacred Heart Catholic Primary School and Nursery, we recognise the importance of mathematics throughout each child’s everyday and future life. It enables children to understand relationships and patterns in both number and space in the world around them. It is essential to everyday life, critical to science, technology and engineering and necessary for financial literacy and most forms of employment. As well as securing positive attitudes and mathematical skills, we want our Maths Curriculum to inspire a ‘love of learning’ and enthusiasm for Maths that will stay with children throughout their lives. We intend to give each child the self-confidence and resilience to reach their full potential by ensuring that they have the tools to calculate fluently, reason logically, problem solve and think in abstract ways.

Intent – What are we trying to achieve?

• Children become confident, competent and independent mathematicians

• Build a deep conceptual understanding of maths and its interrelated content so that children can apply their learning in different situations

• Develop children’s ability to articulate, discuss and explain their thinking using appropriate mathematical vocabulary

• ‘Mistake friendly’ classrooms where children see mistakes as learning tools – there is an emphasis placed upon developing the power to ‘think’ rather than just the ‘do’

• Instil the mind-set in every child and staff member that everyone can do maths and that maths is for everyone

• Children develop into resilient and inquisitive learners – skills needed to become life-long mathematicians

• Deliver an inspiring and engaging mathematics curriculum, taught by highly-enthusiastic staff, which sparks curiosity and excitement and which nurtures confidence in maths

Implementation – How is our vision translated into practice?

In order to secure quality and consistency of our maths curriculum, and our mastery approach of teaching, we have implemented Power Maths – a government-recommended, high-quality scheme. Power Maths provides a structured, rich curriculum, with a clear whole-school progression of skills, which meet the statutory requirements of the National Curriculum for mathematics.

We recognise the value of making a coherent journey through the national curriculum and each year group follow a medium term plan where small, cumulative steps build a solid foundation of deep mathematical understanding. Formative assessment is threaded throughout both each lesson and unit of work; and appropriate revisions to planning are made by the class teacher to ensure all lessons are tailored to best meet the needs of all their children.

It is essential that children have a deep understanding of the most important elements that underpin the mathematics curriculum so that there is consistency and continuity as children move from one year group to the next. Therefore, if necessary, time may be weighted towards those objectives set out in the ready-to-progress criteria (non-statutory guidance provided by the Department for Education, created in partnership with the National Centre for Excellence in the Teaching of Mathematics).

In order to meet our aims above and the requirements set out in the EYFS Framework and the National Curriculum, we will implement the following:

• Teachers reinforce an expectation that all children are capable of achieving high standards in Mathematics

• Teaching is underpinned by methodical curriculum design and supported by carefully crafted lessons and resources to foster deep conceptual and procedural knowledge

• To develop secure and deep conceptual understanding, priority is given to the use of concrete resources, varied pictorial representations and structures, as well as opportunities for abstract thinking (outlined and guided through Power Maths)

• The vast majority of children progress through the curriculum content at the same pace

• Sessions include explicit reference to vital mathematical vocabulary and the use of stem sentences tosupport and encourage all children to communicate their ideas with mathematical precision and clarity. These sentence structures often express key conceptual ideas or generalities and provide a framework to embed conceptual knowledge and build understanding.

• 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. Children’s explanations and their proficiency in articulating mathematical reasoning, with the precise use of mathematical vocabulary, are supported with teachers placing a strong emphasis on the correct use of mathematical language.

• Regular and on-going formative assessment informs teaching, as well as intervention, to support and enable the success of each child

• Differentiation is achieved by emphasising deep knowledge and through individual support and intervention. It is seen through the concrete resources used, and/or the reliance on the pictorial representations and structures within a lesson to help embed a mathematical concept. All children are expected to be exposed to age related expectations and teaching staff allow the time to plug gaps children may have in a particular area of mathematics. Teaching staff understand what age-related expectations and mastering looks like for each objective and plan for how their children will get there. In order to meet the needs of all pupils, children working at a greater depth of understanding within an area of mathematics have ‘going deeper’ opportunities planned by staff

• Success criteria are set out in each session in order to guide children to achieve success

• Mathematics 'working walls' are in each classroom to provide key information and vocabulary with modelled examples to support learning

• Summative assessments take place at the end of a unit and termly (half-termly in Year 6) and planning is adjusted accordingly

• Children’s attainment and progress is discussed by teachers and school leaders and, if appropriate progress is not made, support is immediate and steps provided

• Children’s attainment and progress is discussed with parents/carers during Parent Information Meetings

• Provision will be made for children who are not making the expected level of progress through ISPs and interventions

• The curriculum time for mathematics is non-negotiable and will be followed by all staff in school (15 minutes basic skills and 1 hour maths sessions daily from Years 1-6. Children in Early Years Foundation Stage learn mathematics through a mix of teacher-led, adult-led and child-initiated activities.

• Daily fluency sessions (Smart Maths), discrete from the maths objectives of the day, are taught using the Mastering Number / Fluency in Five scheme. Basic skills sessions recap, rehearse and embed key number facts, times tables and arithmetic and calculation skills to aid retention and support fluency. Children’s ability to recall key facts and improve the speed at which they remember these are essential to aid Maths progression by freeing up their working memory: practice and consolidation play a central role.

• We are committed to ensuring that pupils secure their knowledge of Times Tables and related Divisional Facts by the end of Year 4. We use Times Table Rock Stars to enthuse the children in learning times tables, at home as well as in school. Our pupils engage in regular low stakes testing through Times Tables Rock Stars to practise fluent recall

• Mathematics homework is provided on a weekly basis to help embed the week’s learning

• Cross-curricular links are provided, when opportunities arise, particularly through the use of Computing

Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS)

At Sacred Heart Catholic Primary School and Nursery, we understand the importance of early experiences of maths.

We place a significant emphasis on developing a strong grounding in number – understanding that this is a necessary building block for children to excel in the subject.

The two key Early Learning Goal’s for mathematics are:

1. Number: Number composition, subitising, recall of bonds to 5 and 10 and doubling

2. Numerical Pattern: Verbally count beyond 20, Compare quantities, explore and represent patterns

Practitioners provide creative and engaging opportunities for children to ignite their curiosity and enthusiasm for the subject.

Activities and experiences are frequent and varied, and allow children to build on and apply understanding of Numbers to 10. Concrete manipulatives are a key focus within sessions, as is the use of pictorial representations.

Children are actively encouraged to use mathematical terminology within their understanding, with a focus on developing positive attitudes and interest in the subject.

Impact – What is the impact of our curriculum?

Our teaching of, and curriculum for, mathematics will lead to effective progress over time across all key stages relative to each individual child’s starting point. More consistent teaching practices are to be more effective for pupil progress - to be evident across the school and for pupils in the longer term. Our maths curriculum is designed to prepare children for their future in and outside of education so they can become successful in whatever they pursue by leaving our school at least at the expected standard for their age, as well an increasing proportion of children demonstrating greater depth. Our rich and broad mathematics curriculum aims to make the children enthusiastic about learning mathematics and gain an understanding of its importance in everyday life.

Maths Curriculum Progression Maps

Our Curriculum Progression Maps outline the coherent and progressive curriculum followed across all phases of the school to ensure that children learn in small, cumulative steps that build a solid foundation and enable an ever-growing and deepening understanding of mathematical concepts and skills. Our Curriculum Progression maps are based on Power Maths yearly overviews which set the curriculum out in blocks enabling children to get to grips with different areas of maths through extended periods of time.

CLICK HERE TO VIEW CURRICULUM PROGRESSION DOCUMENTS

Key Hallmarks of our Mastery Approach - C-P-A

Children are encouraged to solve problems each day through the use of concrete resources, pictorial representations and abstract thinking (the C-P-A approach). This helps children tackle concepts in a tangible and more comfortable way.

Children engage with a wide and varied range of Concrete manipulatives, Pictorial representations and Abstract methodologies on a daily basis, within each Maths session. Cohesive, consistent use of CPA across all phases of the school is a fundamental part of mastery in mathematics for all learners, not just those pupils with SEND. Concrete and pictorial references scaffold and strengthen understanding and are widely used as a teaching and learning tool from Early Years Foundation Stage to Year 6.

Our Calculation Policies below offer further information and examples on how the Mastery Concrete – Pictorial - Abstract approach is used at our school.