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"Castle School Education Trust is committed to high quality education across the primary, secondary and sixth form key stages. Our schools cover the South Gloucestershire area. We encourage independence within each school within a strong framework of values."

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Charfield School

Maths at Charfield

At Charfield, we want our children to be confident with and enjoy using mathematics because it is essential to everyday life, critical to science, technology and engineering, and necessary for financial literacy and most forms of employment. There are two main parts to Mathematics - ability to recall and use number facts, times tables and arithmetic skills and the ability to reason and problem solve using these. 

A solid grasp of number facts and fluency is essential for everyday life and happiness. Too many children express a fear around maths and believe 'they are no good at it'. We aim to break this cycle and show that maths is fun, creative, satisfying and above all relevant.

Our Maths Intent

  We have designed our Maths curriculum so that our children:

  • Become fluent in the fundamentals of mathematics.
  • Develop conceptual understanding and the ability to recall and apply knowledge rapidly.
  • To reason and problem solve by applying mathematics to a variety of increasingly complex problems.
  • To build upon children’s knowledge and understanding from Reception to year 6.
  • To develop resilience that enables all children to reason and problem solve with increased confidence.
  • Leave school with a secure and deep understanding of mathematical concepts and principles; confident in their application and reasoning as well as fluent in the recall of basic mathematical facts.
  • Are taught that Mathematics arises from and is applied to thematic learning but is also delivered separately in discrete learning sequences.
  • Understand Maths is used in our lives daily and as a result, we believe that the children should be exposed to the skills they will need in later life.
  • Have a sound understanding of mathematical concepts which will ensure that our children feel comfortable and confident when the time comes for them to head out into our community.
  • See that Maths can be creative, relevant and fun, breaking any 'fear factors' that may surround it

Our Maths Implementation

 Our Maths curriculum is taught:

  • Following the National Curriculum for Mathematics. We ensure the 3 aims of the National Curriculum (Fluency, Reasoning and Problem Solving) are planned for routinely in our lessons.
  • Using of the NCETM Teaching for Mastery materials and focus on the ‘Five Big Ideas in Teaching for Mastery’: coherence, representation & structure, mathematical thinking, fluency and variation. Mastering maths means pupils of all ages acquiring a deep, long-term, secure and adaptable understanding of the subject.
  • So all children have regular opportunities to explore and represent mathematics using carefully selected equipment and a concrete and pictorial approach is used alongside abstract representations.
  • So children are expected and supported to explain their reasoning and understanding and use an APE approach to do this (Answer, Prove, Explain).
  • By providing children with learning opportunities that will utilise and embed maths skills learned during core maths lessons across the curriculum - for instance, using their knowledge of nets of shapes to create packaging for a product in a Design & Technology lesson.
  • Using NCETM Teaching for Mastery materials to provide challenging and engaging Maths lessons every day across the school.
  • to ensure challenge for all children throughout the week and support children to develop their fluency, reasoning and problem-solving skills through the ‘five big ideas’.
  • In Key Stage 1 through Mastering Number materials (NCETM) and in Key Stage 2 through discrete arithmetic sessions.
  • By providing access to a deep and connected understanding of mathematics
  • By selecting representations to expose mathematical structures so that pupils ‘see’ the mathematics (and are not just using a tool to ‘do’ the mathematics)
  • By looking for patterns & relationships, making connections, conjecturing, reasoning, and generalising. Using precise mathematical language Fluency – accurate recall or key facts and procedures alongside the flexibility to move between different contexts and representations of mathematics, to recognise relationships and make connections, to explain their ideas and to choose appropriate methods and strategies to solve problems.
  • Drawing closer attention to key features of mathematical concepts or structures through varying some elements and keeping others constant in order to focus thinking and discussion on the key feature in question.

  • All children are encouraged to use a range of Concrete, Pictorial and Abstract (CPA) strategies to support them whilst answering questions. We believe this equips them with the confidence to independently problem solve and experiment with methods when answering questions that are challenging for them. Each class, has Maths manipulatives easily accessible for children independently use to help support them.

  • Using worked examples to silently model a method or concept, then repeat with verbal explanations. The children then replicate this into their books, applying the same method confidently to solve a new problem.

  • Using Mastering number to secure firm foundations in the development of good number sense for all children from Reception through to Year 1 and Year 2. The aim over time is that children will leave KS1 with fluency in calculation and a confidence and flexibility with number.

  • By having daily session which gives attention to key knowledge and the understanding needed in Reception classes, and progression through KS1 to support success in the future.

  • Supported by the use of Maths working walls in every classroom which highlights key vocabulary and calculation methods, and to show the journey of a unit. It allows the children to see which skills they have previously learnt to help them, whilst also clearly showing them what their final outcome will be.

  • By allowing all children independent and targeted access to Maths manipulatives to help support them.

  • Through daily ‘Mastering number sessions in Reception, Year 1 and Year 2 and daily arithmetic lessons in Key Stage 2. These sessions are designed to expose the children to the expectations needed for the end of Key Stage 2.

  • With supplementary access to Numbots and TTRS , where children practice their key number facts, bonds and times tables through fun, interactive activities.

Our Maths Impact

The impact of the Maths curriculum at Charfield Primary School can be see through:

  • Our children becoming fluent in the fundamentals of mathematics
  • Our children having a range of strategies to solve mathematical questions and problems
  • Our children developing conceptual understanding and the ability to recall and apply knowledge rapidly and accurately.
  • Our children reasoning mathematically by following a line of enquiry, conjecturing relationships and generalisations, and developing an argument, justification or proof using mathematical language
  • Our children solving problems by applying their mathematics to a variety of routine and nonroutine problems with increasing sophistication
  • Our children breaking down problems into a series of simpler steps and preserve in seeking solutions.
  • Our children making rich connections across mathematical ideas to develop fluency, mathematical reasoning and competence in solving increasingly sophisticated problems.
  • Our children meeting the end of key stage expectations outlined in the National curriculum for Maths  

Key Curriculum Documents

 

 

Parent Support

All of the strategies above have been put in place after work with the Boolean Maths Hub and research into recommendations made by the Education Endowment Foundation.

Number talk blog: http://www.dailynumbertalks.info/node/19 

Numbots TTRs Freckle