Holmleigh Primary School

Maths

Intent

The 2014 National Curriculum for Mathematics aims to ensure that all children:

become fluent in the fundamentals of mathematics,
are able to reason mathematically ,
can solve problems by applying their mathematics to a variety of routine and non-routine problems

“Mathematics is a creative and highly interconnected subject in which pupils need to be able to move fluently between representations of mathematical ideas.” (National Curriculum 2014)

At Holmleigh Primary School, we are committed to ensuring that all our pupils are able to make rich connections across mathematical ideas to develop fluency, mathematical reasoning and competence in solving increasingly sophisticated problems. We are committed to encouraging our pupils to apply their mathematical knowledge and skills confidently in science, other subjects and in other areas of their lives in a range of different contexts. We believe that all children are mathematicians and we want our pupils to enjoy mathematics, to be confident mathematicians, experience success in the subject, to show curiosity and an appreciation of the beauty and power of mathematics.

Implementation

To ensure consistency and progression, the curriculum is methodically designed and supported by carefully crafted lessons and resources to foster deep conceptual and procedural knowledge. Teachers use the National Curriculum objectives, learning overviews from Primary Advantage maths programme and NCETM’s Mastery Assessment materials as a starting point in order to develop a coherent and comprehensive conceptual pathway through the mathematics. The objectives have been grouped together into units lasting between 2 and 4 weeks. Each unit focuses on a small number of key objectives and teaching, staff then develop these objectives and plan lessons which develop the fluency of these objectives, pupils’ ability to reason about these concepts and the opportunity to deepen their understanding through engaging in rich problem solving tasks to apply their learning. We focus on topics, such as place value or addition, for a longer period of time to enable pupils to gain a deeper understanding of the mathematical concepts.

Our Maths curriculum is in line with the content and principles underpinning the 2014 National Curriculum for Mathematics:

Teachers reinforce an expectation that all children are capable of achieving high standards in Mathematics.
The large majority of children progress through the curriculum content at the same pace.
Differentiation is achieved by emphasising deep knowledge and through individual support and intervention
Teaching is underpinned by methodical curriculum design and supported by carefully crafted lessons and resources to foster deep conceptual and procedural knowledge.
Practice and consolidation play a central role. Carefully designed variation within this builds fluency and understanding of underlying mathematical concepts.
Teachers use precise questioning in class to test conceptual and procedural knowledge and assess children regularly to identify those requiring intervention, so that all children keep up.

Impact

Holmleigh Primary School has a supportive ethos and our approaches support the children in developing their collaborative and independent skills, as well as empathy and the need to recognise the achievement of others. Our children experience challenge and success in maths and develop resilience and a growth mindset. Regular and ongoing assessment informs teaching, as well as intervention, to support and enable the success of each child. These factors ensure that we are able to maintain high standards, with achievement at the end of KS2 well above the national average and a high proportion of children demonstrating greater depth, at the end of each phase.

For further information on our Maths curriculum and how we cover the National Curriculum objectives, please see the documents below: