Mathematics

Weekly Maths Lessons

A Typical Maths Week in our Classroom

Monday, Tuesday, Thursday & Friday:

Whole class teaching with Grade 3 & 4

Each session begins with an immersion, e.g. practicing partitions, MFacts, quick fire quiz. This is followed by targeted focus teaching groups and seat-work or rotations with follow-on consolidation. Throughout each unit, a hands-on mathematical investigation is included to enable practical application of what we are learning.

Wednesday:

Mixed-up Maths Grade 3 & 4

This is a shorter session and includes mathematics from all areas of curriculum. NAPLAN style questions and problem solving are a major focus.

Term 2: Current Maths Focus #4: Problem Solving and Mathematical Reasoning (Mental and Written Strategies)

In Term 2, we have begun by consolidating our learning in addition and subtraction through worded problems. To help support us in tackling maths problems in context, we are using investigations focused on the proficiencies of problem solving and reasoning. This thinking and understanding enables students to make decisions about what strategies they can/ should use and why.

We are continuing to use and record an every growing range of mental strategies for addition of 2-, 3-, 4- and 5- digit numbers and grade 4 students have been introduced to the written formal algorithm which seems to have caused great excitement!

NAPLAN is taking place during week 4 for our grade 3 students after which we will begin exploring fractions. Later in the term we will be revisiting measurement and geometry to explore 3D shape and time.

Please ask your children to help you solve everyday maths problems and ask them about their thinking. Some examples of the kinds of questions we ask students to assist them with explaining their own thinking and understanding are listed here.

What do you notice?
Can you explain that step by step?
What is the rule?
What is the pattern here?
How can we be sure?
Tell me what is wrong with...
How could we show or prove that it is true?
How could you explain the rule to someone else?
What is the same and different about...?

Term 1: Maths Focus #1: NWS & CPV (Place Value) / Patterns / Mental Computation / Estimation

These are some key concepts we are trying to understand:

Whole numbers can be expanded into their place value parts
Whole numbers can be rounded
Numbers can be ordered by their size by using place value
Our number system is based on grouping quantities in tens. Each place has a value that is 10 times greater than the place to its right and one tenth of the value to its left.

Term 1: Current Maths Focus #2: Addition and Subtraction (Mental and Written Strategies)

In Grade 3/4, we are learning about lots of different strategies for addition and subtraction.

We are learning to use and record a range of mental strategies for addition of 2-, 3-, 4- and 5- digit numbers. This is a selection of what we are focusing on:

1. Fact families and known facts

2. Splitting and partitioning (using number lines)

2. Jump strategy

3. Compensation (tidy numbers)

4. Reversibility (using addition to solve subtraction problems)