“Pure mathematics is, in its way, the poetry of logical ideas.” – Albert Einstein, German theoretical physicist

Maths Intent

At the heart of our innovative and inclusive Mathematics curriculum is facilitating opportunities for children to develop skills and knowledge which places a focus on perceiving how Maths surrounds their everyday lives. Putting children at the forefront of their learning is paramount to providing a 21st century education, ready for their next steps. Through fluency of fundamental skills, reasoning of key concepts and making connections in problem solving, children are taught to detect patterns, explain their thinking using mathematical vocabulary, think logically and respect others’ approaches when exploring different mathematical concepts. As well as independent work, a range of paired, group and whole class activities allow children to build upon their knowledge and understanding and support others in their learning.

By the time the children reach Year 6, they will have been exposed to high standards of subject-specific vocabulary and will be competent in mathematical oracy. Embedded within our Mathematics provision, which we aim to instil, are core values of resilience, perseverance and determination, key values that are not standalone; they allow children to flourish in real-life situations.

 

The Maths National Curriculum aims to ensure all pupils:

  • 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 nonroutine problems with increasing sophistication, including breaking down problems into a series of simpler steps and persevering in seeking solutions.

Maths at Ann Edwards

In order to further develop children’s understanding of Maths, our approach to teaching Mathematics increases the depth in which we were covering Maths, instead of purely teaching Mathematical skills. We want children to develop a greater conceptual understanding of Maths and where it can be used. Objectives from the National Curriculum are broken down into manageable steps, taken from the CanDo Maths Scheme.

This document outlines the skill taught in Year 1 through to Year 6 and in which order. This is a crucial part of the Maths curriculum as the content taught builds upon skills previously learned.

Yearly Progression Y1-Y6

Our approach is a three-step system which allows all children, regardless of confidence in Maths, to access all key mathematical skills. Our system follows a ‘chilli-based’ order, in which the activities completed first are ‘Mild’, followed by a slightly deeper activity ‘Hot’ and finally a deeper activity again ‘Spicy’. The children are able to work their way through each activity, as outlined below.

In Year 1, the maths activities are recorded in a floor book. During the summer term, the children will begin to use individual maths books to record their daily work.

Fluency (Mild)

Children begin with an activity that consists of 6-8 questions. These questions will practise of the overall skill that the children are being taught. These questions come in different forms as it is important for children to be able to connect mathematical concepts to even the most abstract situations. This is also in preparation for statutory assessments that the children sit at the end of Key Stage 1 (Year 2) and Key Stage 2 (Year 6).

Reasoning (Hot)

Once ‘Mild’ has been completed, the children move onto the ‘Hot’ activity. This will present the children with 1 question, where they need to use the skills they have learnt in order to reason. An example of a reasoning question would be to challenge either a statement or answer presented to them, which provides an idea or theory about a mathematical concept. It is the children’s job to use their knowledge and mathematical language where appropriate to justify their answer.

Problem Solving (Spicy)

The final activity children are tasked with in everyday Maths lessons is a ‘Spicy’ activity. This usually challenges the children to apply their understanding of mathematical concepts to real life situations, where there are often multiple solutions to a problem. This is also an opportunity for children to put into practice the British and school values that we promote at Ann Edwards Primary School, e.g. perseverance and resilience.

Maths Vocabulary

We place a big focus on vocabulary here at Ann Edwards Primary School across all subjects. Specifically in Maths, it is crucial that the children are exposed to and aware of subject specific vocabulary as this is key to understanding mathematical concepts. Children are expected to use their learnt mathematical vocabulary in lessons on a regular basis, particularly when reasoning, both verbally and in written format.

Calculation Policy

Our policy documents are split by year group and maths focus; it outlines and details the strategies for thriving in Maths at Ann Edwards Primary School. This document is written according to the National Curriculum 2014 and all of the methods which are included in this document can be found in the appendices of the National Curriculum document, which is available on the education.gov website.

Our Calculation Policy uses the White Rose policy as its bedrock, which we have built upon to tailor it for our school.

Year 1 Addition

Year 2 Addition

Year 3 Addition

Year 4 Addition

Year 5 & 6 Addition

Year 1 Subtraction

Year 2 Subtraction

Year 3 Subtraction

Year 4 Subtraction

Year 5 & 6 Subtraction

Year 1 Multiplication

Year 2 Multiplication

Year 3 Multiplication

Year 4 Multiplication

Year 5 Multiplication

Year 6 Multiplication

Year 1 Division

Year 2 Division

Year 3 Division

Year 4 Division

Year 5 Division

Year 6 Division

 

Useful Maths Links

  • The Numtums – CBeebies – Join in with the Numtums and learn about numbers from 1 to 10.

Useful Maths Documents