Mathematics
At Bowsland Green we strive to ensure that our pupils develop a positive and enthusiastic approach to mathematics, with a skillset that will enable them to become active, lifelong learners who understand numbers, patterns and shapes in the world around them. We encourage and promote resilience within our pupils and plan activities that enable them to explore and discover key mathematical concepts so that when working either collaboratively or independently, they have the confidence to master and challenge these ideas.
At the beginning and end of each unit, pupils complete entry and exit assessments so that learning can be tailored to their needs to ensure that learning promotes good progress. Throughout a lesson, strong AfL strategies are used such as questioning and observations to ensure that learners are supported and challenged in the best way possible.
Curriculum coverage:
On Team BG, every pupil receives at least an hour and 10 minutes of maths a day to make sure that all areas of the National Curriculum are covered. As a school, we follow the White Rose overview. Here, calculation work takes priority as these are the skills that underpin all areas of mathematics. These overviews are easily accessible via the link below:
https://whiterosemaths.com/resources/primary-resources/primary-sols/
Whilst this is a guide, teachers work at the pace and needs of their class and plan lessons accordingly.
Cross-curricular maths learning is also encouraged through our enquiry-based curriculum to ensure that pupils see the concepts they learn in their morning sessions in a variety of real life contexts. This enables our learners to become more confident, makes their learning purposeful and allows them to understand the importance of maths in our lives.
Each class has a fluency slot within their timetable which focuses on learning the key facts needed to support with other areas of the curriculum. In KS1, we use the Mastering Number programme for these sessions. In LKS2, we follow a our times table progression to ensure coverage of all of the multiplication facts and in UKS2, times table facts are still rehearsed within the flashcard system used, along with a fluency session which involves teaching to the children’s gaps in their arithmetic knowledge.
We use the Arithmetic Ninja and Dojo resources for rehearsal of key facts and concepts in Key Stage Two. These daily opportunities allow for continual retrieval. Teachers then use information from these to plan their fluency sessions accordingly.
Maths in EYFS:
In Reception, our pupils have constant access to a range of stimulating and challenging mathematical activities. A range of resources are used to support independent learning. Take a look for yourselves:
Our Calculation Policy:
At Bowsland we have developed a clear policy for teaching the four main calculations (addition, subtraction, multiplication and division) consistently across the school which links to the White Rose scheme of learning. Please use the link below to access our policy.
Bowsland Green Calculation policy – Addition and Subtraction
Bowsland Green Calculation policy – Multiplication and Division
Videos to support with addition and subtraction at home
The following videos have been created to support our pupils at home with some of the mathematical concepts we are learning in our maths lessons. These videos can be used at home to remind pupils of the methods we use and how to tackle questions using these. We have used concrete resources to show some of the concepts but don’t worry if you don’t have counters etc at home! Be as creative as you like! Cheerios can make great counter replacements! Some pupils may prefer to draw their thinking – use paper and pencil, a whiteboard and pen or even chalk on the patio!
We hope you find the videos useful 🙂
Our Learning Environment
Working Walls
We are very proud of our school learning environment. In every classroom, we have mathematical learning washing line where we share modelled examples from each lesson. This will include the steps to success for that piece of learning, a sentence stem and a worked example. This is built up over time as a reference point to aid future learning. At the start of each washing line, there is a vocabulary front page which identifies key language for the unit, dual-coded with an image and the definition. On our maths learning walls, you will see the objectives covered in the unit along with key fluency facts that the class are focusing on along with modelled examples from the fluency lessons.
Watch this space for pictures of what we have been up to…
Resources
Across the maths curriculum, pupils in all year groups use a range of resources to enable them to visualise concepts and really understand why and what is happening. Some popular examples include Numicon, Dienes, counters and multilink cubes.
Problem Solving and Mastery:
Pupils are encouraged to explain their thinking and key points are challenged in different concepts and through a range of problem solving. Becoming a better mathematician means being able to explain what is happening and use this knowledge in a range of problems and contexts, as well as being able to share this articulately with others. This is ‘mastery’ maths, where pupils acquire a deep, long-term, secure and adaptable understanding of the subject and are then ready to move onto the next concept.
Maths Fluency:
Maths fluency enables pupils to recall concepts quickly and supports them with their reasoning and problem solving.
In Key Stage two, we use the Arithmetic Ninja and Dojo resources. Please see the link below .
https://vocabularyninja.co.uk/arithmetic-ninja/
We have devised our own times table progression, highlighting which times table facts should be taught and when. Here is the document we use. In daily sessions, all children are expected to recite their known facts using a series of flashcards. This is then added to as more facts become secure. We understand the importance of learning these facts in different ways and so encourage recital, recognising fact families, playing games, singing songs and written retrieval.
Download: Times Table Progression Breakdown
