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. A high-quality mathematics education therefore provides a foundation for understanding the world, the ability to reason mathematically, an appreciation of the beauty and power of mathematics, and a sense of enjoyment and curiosity about the subject.

The national curriculum for mathematics aims to ensure that all learners:

• 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.

In the practise of Mathematics, learners need to be able to move fluently between representations of ideas and begin to develop their knowledge of selecting efficient methods to present their ideas effectively. The programmes of study are, by necessity, organised into apparently distinct domains, but learners 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 other subjects within the curriculum.

The expectation is that the majority of learners 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 learners’ understanding and their readiness to progress to the next stage. Learners 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.

At Wentworth, we endeavour to teach our learners to apply their knowledge and skills to a range of practical, real life contexts, to ensure their learning is both purposeful and meaningful. Skills are linked and taught together to maximise teaching and learning time to give context to learning. An emphasis on varied mathematical approaches from an early age will aid fluency. As learners develop confidence and fluency we then want them to have the developed confidence to reason and rationalise in a thoughtful way to develop strong problem solving skills. Our intention to provide the knowledge and skills to become fluent and confident mathematicians:

• Three aims of the NC should be addressed each day: Fluency, Reasoning and Problem Solving.
• We aim to equip all learners with the skills and confidence to solve a range of problems through fluency with numbers and mathematical reasoning.
• Targeted children to be tracked through school to make accelerated progress by the time they leave Y6.
• Resources and manipulatives to be used: visual, concrete and pictorial aids to help support children in learning – evident in lessons
• Mathematicians who are confident in using and applying mathematical vocabulary, accurately and confidently across a wide range of context
• To follow a progressive curriculum with opportunity for skills and key learning to repeat and build over time – revisit and review throughout each year group.

Implementation

Our teaching is based on the recommended National Curriculum to ensure a robust approach. This is then personalised to meet the needs of our learners. 'White Rose Maths' has been used to help sequence the objectives for each individual year group and to ensure pace and progression within skills throughout school, taking the necessary ‘small steps’ to ensure our learners have a depth of understanding of mathematical concepts. Our daily teaching aims to support key subject knowledge, address common misconceptions and make links with other math’s concepts to support an integrated approach.

Impact

Our children are confident in their approach to mathematical challenges, demonstrating resilience to new learning. Their approach to problem solving is multi-faceted drawing on concrete methods, pictorial representations and written methods at various stages of their development. Their application of key mathematical facts is progressive across the year groups and regular assessments, such as time tables and weekly arithmetic quizzes contribute to ownership for their own improvement. Project based learning provides opportunities for learners to apply their mathematical skills to problem solving, recording and interpreting data.

Approaches in the timetable allow for same day intervention, delivered by the class teacher to support bridging gaps in a timely manner and identify learners needing additional support.

Assessment

We assess math attainment at least once a term and use a point in time judgement to decide if the child is working below/at/above age related expectation. To validate teacher assessments we also use a termly test to obtain a standardised score. This helps us identify whether learners are where they should be for that point of the year and if any additional support is required such as additional tuition or intervention.