Mathematics

Maths Curriculum Intent:

At Greenhaugh we are using a Mastery Approach to Maths teaching.  Mastery is what we want pupils to acquire (or go on acquiring), rather than teachers to exhibit, we use the phrase ‘teaching for mastery’ to describe the range of elements of classroom practice and school organisation that combine to give pupils the best chances of mastering mathematics.  Mastering maths means acquiring a deep, long-term, secure and adaptable understanding of the subject. At any one point in a pupil’s journey through school, achieving mastery is taken to mean acquiring a solid enough understanding of the maths that’s been taught to enable him/her move on to more advanced material.

We recognise that Maths can be a subject that adults and children can feel they are ‘good at’ or ‘not good at.’  We want the children in our school to see Maths in less black and white terms and to recognise that making mistakes and understanding misconceptions are useful and necessary stepping stones to developing their ‘Maths brains!’

 

Five Big Ideas in Teaching for Mastery

A central component in the NCETM/Maths Hubs programmes to develop Mastery Specialists has been discussion of Five Big Ideas, drawn from research evidence, underpinning teaching for mastery. This is the diagram used to help bind these ideas together:

 

 

Maths Implementation:

 At Greenhaugh we use the White Rose scheme to support us in our teaching and learning.  It has Interactive Whiteboard resources that we discuss and work through with our class. There is a great emphasis on using lots of different methods and a wide range of physical resources to solve problems and on using fluency, reasoning and problem solving in every lesson.

We also use elements of NCETM (including Numberjacks with Reception) and Math's Hub resources to support our planning and to ensure children are given a range of activities.

The school also uses ‘Big Ideas’ for each year group; they focus on the knowledge children should have by the end of the year. White Rose end of block and end of term assessments are used to ensure that teachers know exactly where children are in their learning and are able to support or challenge as needed.

 Our headteacher  played an active role in writing the Hexham Partnership Calculation Policy, which we have now adopted and staff also refer to this in their teaching, ensuring that children encounter a range of representations that will support their learning.

Class 1 are currently taking part in the Maths Hub and NCETM Mastering Number Programme.

 We will make every effort to share methods that are used in class with parents. Please let us know if you  are unsure of how to best support your child with their maths. 

 

Maths Impact

At Greenhaugh you will see children who

• are developing their maths fluency

• are using a range of maths resources to support their learning

• are able to explain their thinking and make links between different mathematical concepts, “If I know….. then I also know…..”

• aren’t afraid to make mistakes and know that they can learn from them

• can represent mathematical concepts in different ways.

When children leave our school we want to ensure that they are equipped with the confidence, resilience, the basic skills and problem solving habits they need in order to succeed in the wider world. At Greenhaugh Primary School, we recognise that Mathematics is essential to everyday life, critical to science, technology and engineering, and necessary for financial literacy and most forms of future employment.