Maths

At St Michaels school we believe that every child can be helped to reach their full potential as resilient life-long mathematicians. We promote positive mindsets in our children, we believe that no child should be intimidated by numbers, in fact we think that they should be excited by what numbers can help them to do.
Our staff provide a supportive and nurturing environment, with engaging and accessible opportunities for learning in which all children are encouraged to explore mathematical concepts, access high quality resources and develop a love for the learning of mathematics. 

Our Mathematics Intentions

At St. Michaels we ensure that children are taught a concrete base knowledge of the fundamentals of mathematics and taught the skills required to use and apply this knowledge in a range of mathematical contexts.

We develop children’s fluency in maths and also their ability to reason and problem solve. Each child is encouraged to master each area of mathematics and then apply it to new areas of learning.

We build on children’s confidence in maths, encouraging children to have a go at new and unfamiliar maths problems and that it is alright to make mistakes as this is how we learn. We teach children resilience, a ‘can do’ attitude and a love of maths.

We ensure early identification of children who are working towards the expected standards in maths and putting interventions and support in place to ensure that they are able to make good progress. We also make early identifications of children who are working above the expected standard, to ensure that more able children are challenged to make accelerated progress and achieve the highest possible levels in maths. So that excellent levels of progress and positive outcomes are achieved for all learners.

We continually develop our mathematics curriculum, and to adapt our planning to react to the needs of the children in each year group and cohort.

We take advantage of the experience of our staff and our additional training in ‘Maths Mastery’, to implement this.

We teach mathematics with a progression in calculations, using practical resources in the first instance to ensure children’s understanding before progressing to using pictorial representations and finally abstract concepts. Maths is taught in an interactive and fun way to ensure children’s engagement and enjoyment.

We give children daily opportunities to practise mathematics, at an appropriate level for their age and ability level and to explicitly teach mathematical vocabulary. We take advantage of any opportunities to take mathematics outside the classroom and use the outdoor environment to teach maths, using the environment to develop the maths lessons, rather than just taking the same lesson outside.

Our maths displays are useful to the children, with number lines, calendars and clocks visible. Children have access to practical resources to support their learning in maths and use ICT to support their learning.

Our Mastery Approach

At St Michaels we use a mastery approach to maths teaching. This is a research-driven teaching and learning method that meets the goals of the National Curriculum.

What does it mean in practice? A mastery approach means that… 

We put numbers first: We believe confidence with numbers is the first step to competency in the curriculum as a whole.

We put depth before breadth: we reinforce knowledge again and again.

We encourage collaboration: children can progress together, supporting each other as they learn.

We focus on fluency, reasoning and problem solving: which gives children the skills they need to become competent mathematicians.

Our Implementation of our Mastery Approach

Using Concrete, Pictorial and Abstract…

At St Michael’s central to our mastery approach is the Concrete Pictorial Abstract (CPA) model for learning. Research shows that when children are introduced to a new concept, working with concrete physical resources and pictorial representations leads to a better understanding of abstract concepts.

How children learn and grow in mathematics

Early mathematical experiences and explorations begin in the Early Years and are developed throughout the St Michaels following the National Curriculum Guidelines.  We follow the White Rose Scheme of Learning enhanced with other resources (including NCETM and NRich). 

Taking a mastery approach we provide a high-quality, progressive Maths curriculum, equipping our children with the skills of calculation, reasoning and problem solving that they need in life beyond school. Rich learning environments are created and adapted to enable all children to access the full range of mathematical concepts.

We intend to make maths learning memorable and enjoyable for all children, as well as to build upon prior learning by making mathematical links and following the WRM small steps. 