Maths
Why Maths matters:
Alongside science, engineering and technology, Maths is essential to everyday life and our understanding of the world around us. We aim to develop an enjoyment of, and curiosity about, the patterns and structures of mathematics as well as creativity and imagination through problem solving and reasoning. Pupils will discover the joy of working with numbers, the satisfaction and pride that comes with solving a challenging problem, and the skills which enable them to contribute to society in the future.
The study of Maths in our school enables us to realise our vision of life in all its fullness by:
Growth: a good mathematician is a resilient mathematician. Children need to be prepared to try different approaches to solving a problem and to be prepared to feel challenged when they are introduced to new concepts and methods. We encourage children to see mistakes as evidence that they are being brave and are trying their very best, and help them to understand that making mistakes is a crucial part of learning.
Joy: we believe every child can do maths and we want every child to believe that with hard work, they can succeed. We have high standards of their work and we want all children to challenge themselves.
Kindness: a mastery approach means children working together on the same content, but we know that some children will grasp concepts more quickly than others. They are encouraged to be respectful and supportive of each other in their interactions.
Integrity: We want children to learn to take responsibility for their learning. This includes asking for help when they need it, presenting their work neatly, explaining their reasoning, and learning and practising key number facts.
How we deliver it:
Maths is taught daily by the class teacher. Additional time is set aside in skills slots across the week for fluency, for instance Numbersense in Year 3 and Times Table Fluency in Year 4.
Teachers aim to provide same-day or next-day intervention themselves or by a TLSA where a child has struggled to grasp a concept.
We follow the NCETM (National Centre for Excellence in the Teaching of Maths) ‘Curriculum Prioritisation’ scheme of learning and use their lesson resources. Our maths lead undertakes maths mastery training with the NCETM, and the NCETM curriculum resources support us in our teaching for mastery approach across the school. While we aim to broadly follow their learning objectives, it is adapted to the needs of each class as required.
The NCETM curriculum incorporates the DfE’s guidance on ‘ready to progress criteria’. This means that the school devotes more teaching time to these core concepts, so that children can access new learning in the next school year.
The NCETM CP overview years 1- 6 document show what is covered in each year group at St John’s.
For those children who have not yet mastered key fluency skills from KS1, we use ‘Number Sense’ as a targeted intervention to ensure all children can fluently recall number facts and use effective mental strategies by the time they leave Year 3.
How we know we are doing it well:
Assessment: at the end of a topic, teachers will assess children’s understanding more formally, using assessment questions taken from the DfE’s Ready-to-Progress criteria documents. Teachers then use the assessment outcome alongside children’s work in their books to form a judgement on whether a child has met the relevant RTP criteria. These judgements are recorded on Pupil Asset and teachers then make a summative judgement on the extent to which they are on track to achieve end of year expectations. All children’s attainment and progress, including those failing to meet the RTPs, are discussed in Pupil Progress Meetings.
Subject leader monitoring takes place through book looks, learning walks and monitoring of judgements on Pupil Asset.
As part of our participation in the Teaching for Mastery workgroup, the maths lead supports colleagues across the school to become more confident in their teaching for mastery.
The end of Key Stage 2 assessments.
The national multiplication tables check in Year 4.