Mathematics

 “Mathematics is the language with which God has written the universe.” – Galileo Galilei

Intent:

Mathematics is a creative and highly interconnected discipline that has been developed over centuries, providing the solution to some of history’s most intriguing problems. It is essential to everyday life, critical to science, technology and engineering, and necessary for financial literacy and most forms of employment.

At Chingford CE Primary, our main aim is that pupils acquire the necessary knowledge, skills and understanding to become life-long learners and mathematicians, who are academically prepared for life beyond primary school and throughout their educational journey.

 It is important for us that pupils become confident and skilful mathematicians with the ability to calculate fluently, reason mathematically, and solve problems efficiently whilst nurturing an appreciation of the beauty and power of mathematics, and a sense of enjoyment and curiosity about the subject.

In-line with the expectations of the National Curriculum and Early Learning Goals for Maths, we deliver a curriculum that 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.

Wherever possible, this is taught through real-life contexts or themes so that pupils can explore, enjoy, learn, practice and discuss their understanding. Pupils are actively engaged in their learning in order to process it meaningfully.  This is promoted through focus activities and the children’s individual interests. The classroom environment provides real life practical opportunities to support the application of mathematics. Practical apparatus such as real life objects, Numicon and links are used alongside pictorial representations to support pupils’ learning at every stage.

We understand that parents can play a vital role in the development of Maths skills and, therefore, we aim to foster a strong home-school partnership. Parents are informed about how they can support their child’s learning through a number of sessions including: an expectation meeting for each year group, held at the beginning of the academic year and at individual pupil progress meetings. Parents are invited into school for our termly ‘Stay and Play’ sessions where they are given the opportunity to learn a range of Maths games that can then be played at home.

Implementation:

The Maths curriculum is overseen by the Maths Lead.

At Chingford CE Primary, we take a mastery approach to the teaching and learning of mathematics.

At the centre of the mastery approach to the teaching of mathematics is the belief that:

• All children have the potential to succeed with the correct level of challenge and support.
• Most children will move through the programmes of study at broadly the same pace.
• 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 teaching for mastery is underpinned by the NCETM’s 5 Big Ideas. 

Opportunities for Mathematical Thinking allow children to create chains of reasoning connected with the other areas of mathematics. A focus on Representation and Structure ensures that concepts are explored using concrete, pictorial and abstract representations: the children actively look for patterns as well as specialise and generalise whilst problem solving. Coherence is achieved through the planning of small connected steps to link every question and lesson within a topic. Teachers use both procedural and conceptual Variation within their lessons and there remains an emphasis on Fluency with a relentless focus on number facts and times tables.

In reception through to year 6, children are taught Maths within their classes in mixed ability and flexible groupings. Through differentiation and the support of Early Years Officers and Learning Support Assistants, all children will receive high quality teaching and appropriate support in order for every child to reach their full potential. Children may receive additional support, if necessary, outside of the Maths lessons. Regular quality CPD is provided, including working with our local Maths Hub, to ensure that subject knowledge for Maths teaching for all staff continues to develop and remain strong.

To support the teaching and learning of all pupils in the subject of mathematics, we work with the following planning documents, resources and websites to provide a well-rounded and deep learning experience for all of our pupils:

• White Rose
• NCETM
• NRICH
• Third Space Learning
• Number Sense Maths

The quality and variety of language that pupils hear and speak are key factors in developing their mathematical vocabulary and presenting a mathematical justification, argument or proof. Pupils are assisted in making their thinking clear to themselves as well as others and teachers ensure that pupils build secure foundations by using discussion to probe and remedy their misconceptions.

Impact

Children leave Chingford CofE prepared for the next steps in their learning journey.

They are someone who:

• Can see patterns and can represent their understanding in a variety of ways (using concrete materials, pictures, diagrams or symbols)
• Can see connections between concepts and facts and apply their mathematical knowledge and skills in a variety of situations
• Is systematic and resilient

• Enjoys maths and feel confident to explore many aspects of the subject
• Is fluent with the basics of mathematics
• Confident to experiment with number; adopting flexible, open-ended approaches
• Can think clearly and logically for themselves and able to reason and conjecture in maths
• Can work both independently and through participation and collaboration with others