Maths at Horton St Michael’s

Our vision for Maths

At Horton St Michaels the biblical verse that informs our vision is ” God saw all that he had made and it was good”   The good world we have been gifted to look after is a complex one and we believe that the love language of God for the world is maths.  Everything in this world runs on maths, from the chemical reactions in our bodies to the shape of a sunflower head, to the entertainment devices we use, there is maths underpinning it.  We want every child in our school to see maths as a real life skill, useful, demystified and fun so that they can be curious about the workings of the world.

Our vision is to foster positive attitudes, curiosity and excitement for maths.

Our aim is to encourage our children to have the confidence to tackle problems and to have the resilience to persevere.

Children learn to see maths as underpinning how our world runs and to make connections across the curriculum.

We feel that it is important for children to achieve their full potential, regardless of ability, taking account of learning needs and preferred learning styles.

We ensure that each child is a respected part of our school family and is loved and valued as one of God’s children.

Intent, Implementation and Impact

Intent

Our Maths curriculum is ambitious for all and prepares children for later life. It is planned coherently using White Rose. It supports the learning of all children.

Implementation

Our experienced teachers present subject matter clearly and with competence. They respond to the needs of all children and skilfully adapt their teaching to challenge or address misconceptions. Maths is related to real-life situations to give the children context.

Impact

Children have a detailed knowledge of Maths concepts, using acquired skills and knowledge and applying them to new learning. They speak positively about the subject and relish challenge.

What is Maths like at Horton St Michael’s?

At our school, the children are provided with a rich and varied Maths curriculum. They are encouraged to use a wide range of equipment throughout their time here to support and consolidate their understanding of key mathematical concepts.

We support a Mastery approach that is intended to ensure key mathematical concepts are secure before moving on to new concepts. All children are challenged using a comprehensive problem solving and reasoning approach to Maths.

Reasoning about their maths learning is key and the children are encouraged to explain how they have reached their answers to maths problems using the language of maths as much as possible.

We use a wide range of resources, including White Rose, the government’s Maths initiative, which has been devised by a range of maths experts. We also use other resources, such as NRich and Classroom Secrets to ensure that the children get access to the best resources available and that the most and least able are both supported and challenged.

All KS2 children have access to online practise and support via Maths Seeds and Times Tables Rockstars. Through diagnostic tools within the websites, children work at their own pace with the aim of addressing misconceptions, plugging gaps and helping to move children forward.

We also use our mathematical skills in other subjects. For example, we create timelines in history, collect data about weather and take measurements in Science.

Maths approaches and resources

It is important that all children have the opportunity to work with concrete apparatus, abstractly and using pictorial representation.

These all help with understanding and can be developed as part of calculation strategies. We use a range of resources to help us picture our problems and work out the answers by physically handling apparatus.

The main resources we use for number include: dice, cubes, compare bears, Numicon, number fans, straws, Base 10 and place value counters.

Further resources include: money, 2D and 3D shapes, rulers, scales, clocks, etc.

When using number resources, we use a variety of models. The main models we use are part, part whole, number lines and ten frames.

Telling the Time in Year 2

Part, part whole models are used during addition and subtraction activities. Children use two or three smaller circles when adding numbers together, with the bigger circle being used for the answer. When subtracting, children work backwards. They use the bigger circle for their starting amount, subtract the given amount away into one of the smaller circles and see what numbers are left over. This can be extended to understand how to find out the inverse and is useful for problem solving.

This model helps children understand the links and relationships between a whole number and its component parts. It helps them to interpret, visualise and solve a range of problems.

Number lines are used as a visual aid during activities such as: number recognition, number ordering, counting on or back, finding one more or one less and adding and subtracting, for estimating and rounding. These can take many forms dependant on the needs and skill levels of the child.

Children have the opportunity to count with a range of things. These include: numicon, cubes, bears, pasta, dinosaurs, counters, etc. The children are used to suing the equipment when they need concrete or real things to physically add or take away.
Place value counters have the numbers 1, 10 and 100 on them. Children can make a two or three digit number using the counters. They can also be used  to support understanding of adding and subtracting when used with a place value chart.
Straws are used singly or in bunches of ten to help with   addition and subtraction and for place value.

Base 10 (Dienes / ‘chips and peas’) is apparatus used for a range of activities. It helps with addition, subtraction and place value in particular. It is especially useful when adding or subtracting bridging 10 and exchanging tens for ones is required.

Place value dice are another way of helping children to understand place value, addition and subtraction. They either have a single digit or a 2-digit multiple of 10. The children roll both dice and put the two together to make a 2-digit number.

Bar models are a visual representation of a problem or idea that can be used for any of the four operation: addition, subtraction, multiplication and division. In a word problem, bar models have the added benefit of helping children to decide which operations they can use or how to visualise a problem.

The range of apparatus, models and resources is used throughout the school at different levels.

Why do we use models and images?

Using models and images helps us to:

• Secure a child’s understanding of what, for example, ten looks like
• Understand how addition and subtraction are linked
• Support the teacher in recognising where and why mistakes are being made. Sometimes, the errors that children make can be addressed by using models. For example, making 13 and 31 would show if a child has understood the different values of the two numbers.

What can you do at home to support your child?

Often the simplest ideas can be the most effective. Here are just a few examples, but you may be able to think of more!

• Dominoes
• Memory games such as pairs
• Cards (Snap)
• Board Games (using a dice)
• Shape hunt
• Weighing and measuring – weighing and measuring, building, measuring timber and estimating length and height and our own height and mass.
• Sing nursery rhymes

Online resources

https://www.bbc/cbeebies/shows/numberblocks 

https://www.ictgames.com