Mathematics at Paddocks

 Why is Mathematics important?  - Our Curriculum Intent

At Paddocks, we believe that it is essential to prepare our children for a rapidly changing world through the use of mathematical; systematic and logical thinking. Maths is an integral part of everyday life with knowing how to calculate the amount of money needed to purchase items, what time to meet a train or weighing ingredients when following a recipe being vital skills.

We aim to develop independent children who are inquisitive, creative, resilient, numerically literate, confident and financially responsible. Through the provision of a stimulating, supportive learning environment and wide range of concrete resources and visual representations in lessons, we aim to develop all pupils’ mathematical skills to the furthest reach of their potential in the subject.

Our Vision

The Maths curriculum at Paddocks follows a mastery approach. Maths Mastery is a teaching and learning approach that aims for children to develop deep understanding content and concepts in areas of study. Its aim is to provide pupils with a deep understanding of maths through a concrete, pictorial and abstract approach and regularly practising those skills. This is alongside the expectation for all children to have acquired fluency in appropriate fundamental facts and concepts of maths, rooted in the National Curriculum.

Mastery of a mathematical concept means that a child can successfully apply knowledge of concepts to solve unfamiliar problems and undertake complex reasoning, using appropriate mathematical vocabulary. Our curriculum aims for all children to achieve this.

       What does Mathematics look like at Paddocks?                  - Our Curriculum Implementation

Developing problem solving and reasoning skills and practicing fluency, are the two threads that run through all our maths teaching at Paddocks. Use of White Rose resources and other reasoning and problem-solving activities ensures that children are constantly challenged to explain why, to prove how they know, convince others that they are correct or to find all possible outcomes for a given challenge. These lessons follow the White Rose progression: a carefully designed learning path for children to follow that builds on the previous steps, aligning with the mastery approach taken at Paddocks.

In lessons, children work through ‘chilli challenges’ to experience a range of fluency, reasoning and problem-solving tasks with increasing challenge relevant to that lesson’s content. Children are encouraged to use objects and pictures to demonstrate and visualise abstract ideas, alongside numbers and symbols. Exploring maths in this way encourages children to use different representations, allowing them to internalise the mathematical concepts and allows fluent manipulation of those key ideas in many ways.

Children have the opportunity to use a wide range of manipulatives to support their learning such as base ten, number lines, Numicon, Diennes blocks, place value counters and Cuisenaire rods. These are used, where and when appropriate, across the school to scaffold understanding. Effective, confident understanding and recall of times tables and other number facts are a foundation of most mathematics pupils do at primary school. Times tables in particular are vital tool for children to use in learning, with fluency in them being essential (and assessed in Year 4 through the Multiplication Timetables Check). At Paddocks, every child has access to Times Table Rockstars or Numbots to develop these skills both at home and in lessons. As well as this, Children are supported in developing their understanding of number facts and place value by use of the NCETM Mastering Number resources that are used across Early Years and in Key Stage 1.

What do our pupils think?  - Our Curriculum Impact

 “I enjoy using Numicon when we work on number bonds”

 “I love solving real life problems with money”

“I like being pushed and working my brain. I feel great when I solve a difficult question.”

“My favourite maths activity involves teaching my classmates how to multiply fractions”

Progression