Mathematics
Curriculum Intent:
Mathematics is important in everyday life and, with this is mind, the purpose of Mathematics at Holy Name is to develop an ability to solve problems, to reason, to think logically and to work systematically and accurately. Our aim is to provide children with an engaging and empowering curriculum which not only equips them with everyday life skills, but challenges them to excel. We believe that Maths is for everyone! At Holy Name we teach the skills to ensure our children are resilient learners who become life-long mathematicians and we firmly believe that children should be able to select which mathematical approach is most effective in different scenarios as their understanding of a mathematical topic becomes deeper.
Our children need to develop the necessary skills in order to apply them in different contexts. They need to have a deep understanding of the rich connections across the wider curriculum and be given the opportunity to find links within other subject areas. The intention of the Mathematics curriculum at Holy Name is for children to be excited about maths! Developing a positive attitude to this subject is essential. Teachers promote children’s enjoyment of maths and provide opportunities for children to build a conceptual understanding of maths before applying their knowledge to everyday problems and challenges. We ensure that challenge is provided for all children, whatever their understanding. Children are encouraged to be brave and push the boundaries, deepening their understanding further.
Mathematics is an interconnected subject in which pupils need to be able to move fluently between representations of mathematical ideas. The programmes of study are, by necessity, organised into apparently distinct domains, but pupils should make rich connections across mathematical ideas to develop fluency, mathematical reasoning and competence in solving increasingly sophisticated problems. They should also apply their mathematical knowledge to Computing, Science and other subjects. The expectation is that the majority of pupils will move through the programmes of study at broadly the same pace. However, decisions about when to progress should always be based on the security of pupils’ understanding and their readiness to progress to the next stage. Pupils who grasp concepts rapidly should be challenged through being offered rich and sophisticated problems before any acceleration through new content. Those who are not sufficiently fluent with earlier material should consolidate their understanding, including through additional practice, before moving on.
Our curriculum is designed to be broad, balanced and rich to reflect the diversity and urban nature of the communities we serve, taking advantage of opportunities, responsibilities and experiences that our children may not otherwise experience, so that children are better prepared for their later lives.
The National Curriculum for Mathematics aims to ensure that all pupils:
- become fluent in the fundamentals of mathematics, including through varied and frequent practice with increasingly complex problems over time, so that pupils develop conceptual understanding and the ability to recall and apply knowledge rapidly and accurately.
- reason mathematically by following a line of enquiry, conjecturing relationships and generalisations, and developing an argument, justification or proof using mathematical language.
- can solve problems by applying their mathematics to a variety of routine and non-routine problems with increasing sophistication, including breaking down problems into a series of simpler steps and persevering in seeking solutions.
Curriculum Implementation:
At Holy Name, we recognise that children need to be confident with each objective and we offer a high-quality, differentiated curriculum which is adapted for each year group. We also used high quality resources to allow for an enriched education which suits all styles of learners. Mathematics is non-negotiable is timetabled daily for an hour across the school. As well as this, we also provide children with a cross- curricular approach where we embody Mathematics into a variety of lessons, such as Science and Design and Technology. Children are shown that Mathematics is not a stand-alone subject but can be used across the board, whether it is through coding in Computing or weighing their ingredients in DT. We expect a high level of teaching and learning and always aim for the children to be pushed to reach their potential.
In order to improve our mastery approach and improve the quality of our teaching, we have recently implemented the White Rose Scheme in Key Stage One and Two. Mathematics is the foundation for understanding the world, so at Holy Name, we aim to embed this new approach into the school and provide children with the opportunity to look at how maths links to various job opportunities that our budding city provides, and to understand the purpose behind their learning and be able to apply their knowledge to their everyday lives.
In the EYFS the staff are following the Numicon Firm Foundations scheme with has been designed by Oxford University and are utilising elements from the White Rose Scheme. The scheme provides a comprehensive and varied programme of mathematics activities for children aged 3-5 on the key mathematical ideas children will meet through using Numicon. It offers a wide range of practical ideas for helping children to develop deep understanding of numbers and number relationships, shape, space and measures through activities which are supported by creative suggestions for extending the learning across a variety of environments where children can explore the key concepts.
New mathematical concepts are introduced using a ‘Concrete, Pictorial and Abstract’ approach; enabling all children to experience hands-on learning when discovering new mathematical topics, and allows them to have clear models and images to aid their understanding. Arithmetic and basic math skills are practised daily to ensure key mathematical concepts are embedded and children can recall this information to see the links between topics in Mathematics. Objects and pictures are used to demonstrate and visualise abstract ideas, alongside numbers and symbols. Throughout Holy Name, you will see these three models being used:
Concrete- children have the opportunity to use concrete objects and manipulatives to help them understand and explain what they are doing.
Pictorial- children then build on this concrete approach by using these pictorial representations, which can then be used to reason and solve problems.
Abstract- with the foundations firmly laid by using concrete and pictorial methods, the children can move onto an abstract approach using numbers and key concepts with confidence.
Teaching throughout Key Stage One and Two builds on the on the solid foundations of the previous key stage. Children are introduced to a formal calculation method in Year One and these are developed and built on each year in line with age related expectations and the schools Calculation Policy. Mathematical concepts are taught on a weekly basis from the White Rose scheme. In Key Stage One and Two initial problem-solving activity prompts discussion, reasoning and allows pupils to use mathematical vocabulary. Independent work is demonstrated in children’s books. Mathematical topics are taught to enable the achievement of ‘mastery’ over time. Each lesson phase provides the means to achieve greater depth, with more able children being offered rich and sophisticated problems, as well as exploratory, investigative tasks within lessons, as appropriate.
Teachers have access to a wealth of resources such as: MyMaths, Numbots, Timestables Rockstars, Numicon Online and to one-to-one tuition from A-Level maths students for the Year Six children. Interventions are also taking place in KS2 for a group of Year Three children where they are working through the Firm Foundations scheme.
Curriculum Impact:
Children are tested three times a year using the PUMA tests at the end of the Autumn, Spring and Summer terms. The children also have mini-assessments that are completed at the end of each unit of work. This enables the teachers to assess progress continuously throughout the half-terms (formative) and on a termly basis (summative). Targets are set for children through the Assertive Mentoring Programme. These targets are shared with the children in individual pupil progress meetings which happen twice a year and with parents during Parent’s Evening. These targets are also placed in the front of children’s Maths books so they are always aware of their next steps in their learning. Children are reminded of their targets often and know where they are.
The teaching of Mathematics is monitored through lesson observations, book scrutiny and pupil voice interviews. All tracking for Mathematics is uploaded onto our tracking system, BSquared, where teachers can fill in the areas of teaching and learning for individual children based on their current level.
Impact is measured for children with Special Educational Needs on a termly basis using the Sandwell Assessment. They are currently baselined on our whole school tracking system, BSquared. Targets identified will also be placed on their IEPs to ensure that the children have ample opportunities to meet their targets and develop their maths skills.
At Holy Name we aim to develop a range of reasoning and problem-solving skills that are transferable to other curriculum areas, particularly Science, Geography and Computing. The impact of our Mathematics curriculum is that children understand the relevance and importance of what they are learning in relation to real world concepts. Children know that maths is a vital life skill that they will rely on in many areas of their daily life. Children have a positive view of maths due to learning in an environment where maths is promoted as being an exciting and enjoyable subject in which they can investigate and ask questions; they know that it is OK to be ‘wrong’ and that this can strengthen their learning because the journey to finding an answer is most important. Children are confident to ‘have a go’ and choose the equipment they need to help them to learn along with the strategies they think are best suited to each problem. Our children have a good understanding of their strengths and targets for development in maths and what they need to do to improve. Our maths books evidence work of a high standard of which children clearly take pride; the range of activities demonstrate good coverage of fluency, reasoning and problem solving. We support our children to strive to be the best mathematicians they can be, ensuring a high proportion of children are on track or above. Our school standards are high, we moderate our books both internally and externally and children are achieving well.
As a result of our Maths teaching at Holy Name you will see:
- Engaged children who are all challenged.
- Confident children who can all talk about Maths and their learning and the links between Mathematical topics.
- Lessons that use a variety of resources to support learning.
- Different representations of mathematical concepts.
- Learning that is tracked and monitored to ensure all children make good progress.