Mathematics
Mathematics at Nelson Mandela Primary School
Intention
Our Mathematicians:
At Nelson Mandela Primary School, we aim to develop confident and resilient mathematicians who:
- are driven by their curiosity and enjoyment of Mathematics;
- acquire the necessary building blocks to excel mathematically;
- understand and apply concepts and representations fluently and creatively;
- can articulate competent reasoning and problem-solving skills;
- explore and engage with the subject’s rich inter-connectivity and possibility;
- employ their knowledge and skills in cross-curricular contexts, linking to subjects including Science, Geography, History, Computing, PSHE, Art and DT;
- appreciate its importance to everyday life and develop their financial literacy;
Our Curriculum:
Whole School Curriculum
The teaching and learning of our curriculum is structured using the White Rose Maths yearly overviews. Further details of each year groups objective can be found on our school web site.
Children in EYFS are provided with frequent and varied opportunities to build, apply and develop the necessary building blocks to excel mathematically.
Children should be able to count confidently, develop a deep understanding of the numbers, the relationships between them and the patterns within those numbers. This allows our children to develop a secure base of knowledge and vocabulary from which mastery of mathematics is built.
SEND Curriculum
Our provision for pupils with SEND starts with the identification of their mathematical needs upon arrival, usually although not exclusively, in EYFS. It is important to note that not all pupils with SEND will necessarily struggle with their mathematical learning. If a child is identified as working significantly below their peers at any stage, they will be identified as SEND for maths. Those who are identified as doing so, then follow the Maths SEND Continuum provided by Birmingham’s Access to Education Services. It provides them with a more streamlined curriculum consisting of the key statutory objectives for pupils to work through and be assessed against. If and when pupils reach and are assessed as working successfully on the objectives for their year group, they will then move to working alongside their peers on our school’s full curriculum.
Calculation Policy
We follow the calculation policies that have been devised by White Rose Maths and are set-out using the Concrete-Pictorial-Abstract (CPA) model. They aim to ensure that the development of pupils’ knowledge and understanding of the four number operations, from Y1 through to Y6, is broken down into a series of small steps to ensure that pupils thoroughly understand the structures of the four operations and how to use and apply them. Moreover, because each step is detailed and rich in representations, links and sequence, they also ensure that they addresses the needs and progress of every pupil, from our higher attainers through to our pupils with SEND.
WRM Addition and subtraction calculation policy
Multiplication and division calculation policy
Our Teaching:
Our teaching of Mathematics aims to cultivate the above mathematicians and implement the above curriculum whilst fulfilling the three aims of the Primary Mathematics NC (2014) for pupils:
- to 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;
- to reason mathematically by following a line of enquiry, conjecturing relationships and generalisations, and developing an argument, justification or proof using mathematical language;
- to solve problems by applying their mathematics to a variety of routine and non-routine problems with increasing sophistication, including breaking down problems into a series of simpler steps and persevering in seeking solutions.
Our Assessment:
Our assessment of pupils’ learning of Mathematics consists of both formative and summative assessment, and is used to inform and improve the teaching and learning of Mathematics at our school in order to ensure that all pupils have the necessary knowledge, skills and understanding that they need to become confident and resilient Mathematicians, who make, if not exceed, their expected progress.
Objectives: These are taught daily and follow the White Rose steps.
Units: The units last for a number of weeks, as set out by the termly plan. Each unit of work concludes with a short end of unit assessment (WRMH) to assess pupils’ learning of that strand of Mathematics so far. Any gaps identified at this point are fed into future sessions.
Termly: At the end of each term, pupils complete an end of term assessment (WRMH) to assess their cumulative learning of a few strands of Mathematics thus far.
Annual: At the end of the year, pupils complete end of year tests to assess the long-term memory of their cumulative learning of all strands of Mathematics to date.
White Rose Maths parent resources (Video breakdown of what your child will be taught)
Reviewed: FEB 2023
By: K.JONES (Current Maths Subject Lead)
