Maths

HCPS Maths Policy HCPS Maths Calculation Policy HCPS Maths Long Term Plans

Maths at HCPS is led by Mrs A. Worsley.

Mrs A. Worsley

Aims and Objectives:

At Hornsea Community Primary School we aim to develop in each child:

A positive attitude towards Mathematics and an awareness of the fascination of Mathematics;
Competence and confidence in Mathematical knowledge, concepts and skills;
An ability to solve problems, to reason, to think logically and to work systematically and accurately;
Initiative and an ability to work both independently and in cooperation with others;
An ability to use mathematical language to discuss and explain work, sharing ideas with adults and peers;
An ability to use and apply Mathematics to a variety of routine and nonroutine problems with increasing sophistication across the curriculum and in real life;
An understanding of Mathematics through a process of enquiry and experiment;
Persistence and perseverance through sustained and engaging activities;
Competence and confidence in the quick recall of basic number facts and times tables and in the understanding and use of a variety of methods of calculation;
Opportunities for pupils to satisfy their curiosity, use their creativity and learn in the outdoor environment;
An ability to develop conceptual understanding and apply such knowledge rapidly and accurately;
An ability to select the most efficient and effective strategies for all mathematical solutions;
A secure knowledge of number facts and recall of key number facts instantly (Eg. All addition and subtraction facts for each number to at least 10 and multiplication facts for all numbers to 12x12;
A good understanding of the four operations;
An efficient, reliable, compact and written method of calculation for each operation that can be applied with confidence when undertaking calculations which cannot be done mentally;
The ability to use their knowledge and understanding to carry out calculations mentally and to apply general strategies when using one-digit and two-digit numbers and particular strategies to special cases involving bigger numbers

As Mathematics is an inherently interconnected discipline, teachers should make links between the different areas of Maths at all times and they are also encouraged to look for links and opportunities for drawing mathematical experiences out of other curriculum areas and deliver Maths in a cross curricular way where appropriate.

Intent

At HCPS our intent for Mathematics is to teach a rich, balanced and progressive curriculum using Maths to reason, problem solve and develop fluent conceptual understanding in each area. We believe all pupils can achieve in mathematics! There is no such thing as a ‘Maths person’, that is the belief that some pupils can do Maths and others cannot. We teach the skills to ensure our children are resilient learners who become life-long mathematicians. We aim to deliver an inspiring and engaging Mathematics curriculum through high quality teaching. Lessons are child focused and Maths is kept fun and current in school. The intention is for our children to be excited about Maths! We expect Mathematics to be utilised as a tool beyond the daily Mathematics lessons and beyond the classroom.

Our curriculum enables pupils to be proficient, competent and confident with a range of mathematical ideas and concepts. We want our children to have a positive attitude towards Mathematics and develop confidence in the subject. We value the importance of mathematical discussion and vocabulary, allowing all children to build connections Maths in lessons and Maths in the real world - therefore allowing our children to better make sense of the world around them relating the pattern between mathematics and everyday life.

Following a mastery curriculum, and its strategies, helps promote a deep, long-term, secure and adaptable understanding of the subject, with teaching for conceptual understanding at the heart of everything we do. This ensures that children become fluent in calculations; possess a growing confidence to reason mathematically and hone their problem-solving skills. In order to improve our Mastery approach and improve the quality of our Maths teaching, in September 2021, we implemented the ‘White Rose Maths’ mastery scheme. The scheme is used to help build a culture within the school of deep understanding, confidence and competence in Maths.

With the support of the Maths Hub, our staff are working hard to further embed the Mastery approach in school. Teachers are developed, supported and aided in their roles ensuring confidence in the skills and facts they are required to teach. Both governors and parents are kept regularly informed of all developments in our curriculum. The mapping of Mathematics across school shows clear progression in line with age related expectations. Pupils are challenged and we believe in a child-led approach whereby pupils can take ownership of their learning. Mathematics in our school is enhanced by:

Introducing mathematical content through stories and learning about inspirational mathematicians;
individual class Maths displays and working walls designed to aid children through each topic;
individual class Maths resource areas where children have access to a variety of concrete manipulatives.
Celebrating World Maths Day each year; and
Inviting parents/other members of the community into school to discuss financial matters and careers.

Implementation

All children in the EYFS have daily opportunities to develop their mathematical understanding. Children in EYFS have a daily 30-minute Number Crunch session as well as Maths focused Continuous Provision during Busy Time in order to facilitate supporting them meeting the needs of Development Matters. The 2 strands of Mathematics taught in the EYFS are Numbers (for which Number Blocks is used) and Shape, Space and Measure. We continually observe and assess children against these areas using their age-related objectives and plan the next steps in their mathematical development through a topic-based curriculum.

To ensure consistent coverage, teachers follow the White Rose Maths scheme of learning to support their planning, together with Big Maths. In March 2018, HCPS became part of a year-long SSIF Maths Project (implementing a Maths No Problem Mastery approach to teaching across school) however after the impact of Covid-19, we moved away from the Maths-No Problem scheme and teachers used a list of non-negotiables created for each year group alongside the National Curriculum objectives to ensure children’s gaps in knowledge and understanding were more secure. We are continuing to embed Mastery Maths within school through the White Rose Maths scheme.

High quality resources are used in conjunction with White Rose Maths, such as Big Maths, NRICH and the NCETM Professional Development materials.

Materials to further support our delivery of the Mathematics Curriculum and enable our children to be exposed to a variety of different types of learning and problems. In addition, the school’s Calculations Policy is used to ensure a coherent approach to teaching the operations across HCPS.

All resources and equipment are audited and kept up to date and enable us to better use models and images to support learning in each area. All classrooms have access to appropriate concrete manipulatives which is integral to any Maths learning and all children are encouraged to use these.

Summative assessment is used when appropriate to assess children but we constantly complete diagnostic assessments through formative assessment. Formative assessment is incredibly important at HCPS and this is ongoing throughout every lesson. Maths lessons promote the use of whole class discussions, paired work and independent learning, all of which require them to persevere and develop resilience. Children are given the opportunity to reason and solve problems regularly; learning is varied and allows for deep and secure understanding.

Mathematical vocabulary and example STEM sentences are explicitly written within all short-term planning and all children are encouraged to use these. Discussion is essential to our learning and time is planned into lessons for this. Children are encouraged to take ownership of their learning through self- and peer- assessment and whole class discussions.

Our Curriculum, and indeed Mastery Mathematics, places emphasis on the cumulative mastery of essential knowledge and skills in mathematics. It embeds a deeper understanding of Maths by utilising a concrete, pictorial, abstract approach so that children understand what they are doing rather than just learning to repeat routines without grasping what is happening. By using all three, the children can explore and demonstrate their mathematical learning.

All children, when introduced to a new concept for the first time, are encouraged to physically represent mathematical concepts.

Objects and pictures are used to help children demonstrate, visualise and explain abstract ideas, alongside numbers and symbols.

Throughout HCPS you will see these three methods being used:

Concrete – children have the opportunity to use concrete objects and manipulatives to help them understand and explain what they are doing.

Pictorial – children then build on this concrete approach by using these pictorial representations, which can then be used to reason and solve problems.

Abstract – with the foundations firmly laid by using the concrete and pictorial methods the children can move onto an abstract approach using numbers and key concepts with confidence.

To further supplement the curriculum, we use daily Big Maths sessions to revisit key curriculum concepts. This allows for greater connectivity between different areas of Maths and helps children to further develop efficient and effective recall. Times Table Rockstars is used in addition to this, to promote an enjoyment and speedy recall of multiplication facts in readiness for the MTC test to be taken in Year 4. Years 3 and 4 also have daily times table sessions to support the aim of all children having rapid recall of their times tables (up to 12x12) by the end of Year 4. After school tuition groups were also used, with the aid of the Covid-19 catch-up funding, throughout the school to supplement the curriculum.

We look for opportunities for children to use their mathematical skills across the wider curriculum. This can occur in a variety of ways and in a number of subjects, but there are chances for children to show they have fully understood a concept by using it in a different context.

Vigorous monitoring means that children, who need extra support with their learning, receive high quality intervention time with a teacher or teaching assistant.

Good practice is always shared between staff and all CPD is used to inform teaching and learning across school. CPD has been exceptionally high on our agenda over the past few years. The staff market place initiative allows CPD to be conducted within school to further share good practice. Whole school staff meetings have been used to deliver high quality training (both by the Maths lead and support lead, and external staff members) and regular Maths planning meetings are held in school to discuss issues and share ideas.

Our OTrack monitoring is reviewed and our termly Pupil Progress Meetings ensure that children are targeted for further support. Non-negotiables were used from March 2021 to assess children’s understanding of the key learning in each year in response to Covid-19.

Parents are informed and encouraged to be involved in our school Mathematics implementation through Maths weekly homework, Times Table Rockstars challenges, Let’s Learn Mornings, Family Learning Morning, workshops, parent’s evenings and yearly reports.

Impact

Here at HCPS we have fostered an environment where Maths is fun and it is OK to be ‘wrong’ because the journey to finding an answer is most important. The impact of our Mathematics curriculum is that children understand the relevance of what they are learning in relation to real world concepts. Children are increasingly becoming more and more: fluent in the fundamentals of mathematics; able to reason mathematically (verbally and articulately, pictorially and in written form) by following a line of enquiry, conjecturing relationships and generalisations; and are able to solve problems by applying their mathematics to a variety of routine and non-routine problems with increasing sophistication.

Our Maths books are packed with a range of activities showing evidence of fluency, independent reasoning and collaborative problem solving. Children’s understanding is broadened via ‘deep dive bubbles’ which allow children to reason and solve problems. All feedback and intervention evidence the support given to children so that they are able to strive to be the best mathematicians they can be and ensuring a greater proportion of children are on track. The gaps in learning after Covid-19 were highlighted and non-negotiables for each year group were created based on ‘the basics’ and are being used throughout lessons and within interventions.

Children explore and choose the equipment they need to help them to learn along with the strategies they think are best suited to each problem. Our school standards are high, leaders monitor the effectiveness of teaching frequently through:

lesson observations and timely feedback;
learning walks and pupil voice;
planning scrutiny followed by support where appropriate;
frequent book scrutiny (both internally and externally);
termly data analysis – data is collected and used to inform Pupil Progress Meetings (all teachers contribute ensuring data is analysed and targets are made to inform potential interventions/extension sessions) – this data is subsequently reported to the SLT for information;
moderation within both year groups and across the whole school helps to ensure standards are consistent and that teachers understand both prior and subsequent progression of each mathematical concept; and
transition opportunities for our KS2 children, as well as staff, to engage without feeder school(s).
Summative assessment takes place at the end of each unit. Formative assessment takes place on a daily basis and teachers adjust planning accordingly to meet the needs of their class.
Regular meetings with Maths planners to ensure consistency throughout school and that planning matches the children’s needs.

The National Curriculum Mathematics test is completed in Year 6, internal end of Key Stage assessments are also completed in Year 2 and the Multiplication Test Check (MTC) is completed in Year 4. Assessment data in Maths is reviewed throughout the year to inform teaching and learning and to also ensure that provision remains well-informed to enable optimum progress and achievement. End of year data is used to measure the extent to which attainment gaps for individuals and identified groups of learners are being closed. This data is used to inform whole school and subject development priorities for the next school year.