Maths
Mathematics is a beautiful subject which has its own place in the curriculum of Whyteleafe School. Pupils can experience a sense of awe and wonder as they solve a problem for the first time, discover a more elegant solution and make links between different areas of mathematics.
Tiny coherent steps will be made in each lesson to develop a secure understanding. The small steps that were learnt in the previous lesson will be reviewed before moving on. Learning objectives are tight and reflect the new learning taking place in the lesson. By breaking down concepts into tiny steps, children are more likely to be secure and confident. By grouping key concepts and patterns they will be able to make connections to other areas of maths and apply their skills to a range of problems.
Questions will be planned carefully to ensure all children can access the learning and that their knowledge is deepening. All children will be expected to understand and use accurate mathematical vocabulary when explaining their mathematical thinking. They will be expected to speak in full sentences when sharing an answer. Relevant maths vocabulary will be displayed in the classroom, on slides and in books throughout all lessons in order to support their oracy.
When new learning is introduced, ideas and activities regularly move from teacher to children and back again. Planned mini plenaries will take place during independent tasks through questioning. The teacher will move around the room, checking the understanding of all pupils throughout the lesson allowing for instant feedback and formative assessment.
In each lesson, the children will complete fluency (know), reasoning (understand) and problem-solving tasks (apply). Children will be taught rules and patterns within areas of maths rather than just a technique to find an answer.
As a school, we put a high importance on improving the children's number and times table facts. By the end of Year 1, most children will know number bonds within 20. By the end of Year 4, most children will know their times tables to 12 x 12. They will be able to apply these facts confidently during maths lessons. Number facts and times tables will be taught through various activities including TT Rockstars and counting sticks. If children are secure with number facts, they will be able to focus on the concept/method/pattern rather than the number facts needed to know the answer.
Children in Year 1-6 complete a Fluency Booklet daily as homework. It is intended to give each student a chance to regularly practise their basic facts and improve their fluency. Each child answers a small number of questions each day and it is marked in class the following day. The questions in the booklet are a combination of new learning and revision of topics which were covered during the previous year/term.
Alongside daily feedback, at the end of each unit, we assess the children’s progress against the aims for the unit. This informs next steps and planning for subsequent lessons. Termly PIxL assessments help to identify successes and areas of development.
By the end of Year 6, a Whyteleafe child will be fluent in their times tables to 12 x 12. They will be able to reason about mathematics verbally and in written form using precise vocabulary. Children will spot patterns and make connections between different areas of mathematics whilst applying this understanding to problem solving situations.
Mathletics:
Mathletics is a fantastic resource which supports learning in the classroom. Homework will be set by your child's class teacher regularly which allows children to consolidate and apply their learning. Children can then independently work towards bronze, silver and gold certificates as they gain more points when solving different tasks and games.
http://uk.mathletics.com/signin/
Resources
Please find below Maths websites which also support extra Maths at home:
http://www.topmarks.co.uk/maths-games/7-11-years/times-tables
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Times Tables Games for 7 to 11 year olds www.topmarks.co.uk Times tables games for Key Stage 2 children |
This site has some fun interactive games to help your child practise their times tables. ‘Hit the Button’ is a particular favourite.
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www.mathsphere.co.uk Two maths dictionaries; the first a general school dictionary. The second, a fantastic detailed maths dictionary explaining the more complex language. |
A few good free resources, including a maths dictionary.
https://www.mathsisfun.com/
Interactive resources and games to support all areas of Maths
Policies
At Whyteleafe School, we aim to provide our children with a variety or representations to help them understand and master a concept. The calculation policy documents state the most common representations that can be used with each skill from the National Curriculum. Although the skills are labelled by year group (in conjunction with the National Curriculum), they may differ in our school learning. Maths learning is extremely versatile and can mean that it is essential to use a particular skill within the learning of a different concept. Therefore, the year groups that are stated may not always be accurate to the year group a child is in.
