Intent

When teaching mathematics at Sherborne St John, we intend to provide a curriculum which caters for the needs of all individuals and sets them up with the necessary skills and knowledge for them to become successful. We aim to prepare them for a successful working life. We incorporate sustained levels of challenge through varied and high quality activities with a focus on fluency, reasoning and problem-solving.

Mastery Pupils are required to explore maths in depth, using mathematical vocabulary to reason and explain their workings. A wide range of mathematical resources are used and pupils are taught to show their workings in a concrete, pictorial and abstract form wherever suitable. They are taught to explain their choice of methods and develop their mathematical reasoning skills. We encourage resilience, adaptability and acceptance that struggle is often a necessary step in learning and that they need to apply a growth mindset.  Our curriculum allows children to better make sense of the world around them relating the pattern between mathematics and everyday life.

This is underpinned by:

High Expectations:  All children are expected to succeed and make progress from their starting points.

Modelling:  Teachers teach the skills needed to succeed in mathematics providing examples of good practice and having high expectations.

Vocabulary: We intend to create a vocabulary rich environment, where talk for maths is a key learning tool for all pupils. Teaching key vocabulary is a driver for pupil understanding and develops the confidence of pupils to explain mathematically.

Patterns and Connections: All children will have opportunities to identify patterns or connections in their maths; they can use this to predict and reason and to also develop their own patterns or links in maths and other subjects.

Fluency: We intend for all pupils to 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.

Reasoning: We intend for all pupils to reason mathematically by following a line of enquiry, conjecturing relationships and generalisations, and developing an argument, justification or proof using mathematical language.

Problem-Solving: We intend for all pupils to 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 using their growth mindset in seeking solutions.

Mastery: All children secure long term, deep and adaptable understanding of maths which they can apply in different contexts.

Implementation

White Rose: Every class from EYFS to Y6 follows the White Rose scheme of learning which is based on the National Curriculum. Lessons may be personalised to address the individual needs and requirements for a class but coverage is maintained.

 In order to further develop the children’s fluency, reasoning and problem-solving, we use challenges which correlates to the White Rose lessons and further develops children’s understanding of a concept and the links between maths topics.

We also use a range of planning resources for example those provided by the NCETM and NRICH to enrich our children’s maths diet. I See Maths

Consolidation/Pre-Teaching:  Either through EMA or at the start of maths lessons the children are set a maths task to ensure general maths knowledge and fluency are maintained and developed; these may take many forms, for example: arithmetic, specific times tables or several questions about a mixture of maths topics. While the class are solving the questions, the staff are able to support children with consolidation or pre-teaching ensuring they are confident with skills required for the upcoming session.

Assessment: Through our teaching we continuously monitor pupils’ progress against expected attainment for their age, making formative assessment notes where appropriate and using these to inform our teaching. Summative assessments are completed at the end of each unit and half-term; their results form discussions in termly Pupil Progress Meetings and update our summative school tracker. The main purpose of all assessment is to always ensure that we are providing excellent provision for every child.

Online Maths Tools: In order to advance individual children’s maths skills in school and at home, we utilise Times Tables Rock Stars for multiplication practise, application and consolidation.

Concrete Pictorial Abstract (CPA): We implement our approach through high quality teaching delivering appropriately challenging work for all individuals. To support us, we have a range of mathematical resources in classrooms including Numicon, Base10 and counters (concrete equipment). When children have grasped a concept using concrete equipment, images and diagrams are used (pictorial) prior to moving to abstract questions. Abstract maths relies on the children understanding a concept thoroughly and being able to use their knowledge and understanding to answer and solve maths without equipment or images.

Continuing Professional Development (CPD): We continuously strive to better ourselves and frequently share ideas and things that have been particularly effective.  Updates given from termly maths managers meeting and the annual conference.

Cross Curricular: Maths is taught across the curriculum ensuring that skills taught in these lessons are applied in other subjects.

Impact

Evidence in Knowledge:  Pupils know how and why maths is used in the outside world and in the workplace. They know about different ways that maths can be used to support their future potential. Mathematical concepts or skills are mastered when a child can show it in multiple ways, using the mathematical language to explain their ideas, and can independently apply the concept to new problems in unfamiliar situations. Children demonstrate a quick recall of facts and procedures. This includes the recollection of the times table.

Evidence in Skills: Pupils use acquired vocabulary in maths lessons. They have the skills to use methods independently and show resilience/growth mindset when tackling problems. The flexibility and fluidity to move between different contexts and representations of maths. Children show a high level of pride in the presentation and understanding of the work. The chance to develop the ability to recognise relationships and make connections in maths lessons.

Outcomes: At the end of each year we expect the children to have achieved Age Related Expectations (ARE) for their year group. Some children will have progressed further and achieved greater depth (GD). Children who have gaps in their knowledge receive appropriate support and intervention.

Mastery: All children secure long-term, deep and adaptable understanding of maths which they can apply in different contexts.

Pupil Voice: Through discussion and feedback, children talk enthusiastically about their maths lessons and speak about how they love learning about maths. They can articulate the context in which maths is being taught and relate this to real life purposes. Children show confidence and believe they can learn about a new maths area and apply the knowledge and skills they already have.