Maths
At Saltdean, we believe that Maths is essential for everyday life, not just in school but in the wider world and in most forms of employment. We want our children to become successful mathematicians and we aim to do this by building their fluency and understanding of key mathematical concepts. In the Early Years, this all starts with many practical and physical opportunities to experience maths, including in the outdoor area. You might see children sorting dinosaurs by size or colour, pouring water from different containers, or even using musical instruments to explore patterns. Through these experiences, children begin to develop the language of comparison and reasoning.
As the children move through the school, we use resources from White Rose Maths to teach children the fundamentals of mathematics. Through regular practice, we aim for children to retain key concepts and build on these each year so that they can solve increasingly complex problems. We help the children to see how this learning is applied to real life situations so they will be able to use the things they have learned when they are older.
We promote oracy in our maths lessons by giving children plenty of opportunities to talk to each other, whether this is explaining a method to a problem or explaining a pattern or relationship that they have spotted. We also give children lots of games to play, so that they are engaged in active learning and applying new ideas in a fun way.
Throughout the school, we use the maths mastery approach which aims to give children a deep, long-term, secure and adaptable understanding of the subject. The children are encouraged to develop fluency and reasoning through a concrete pictorial abstract (CPA) approach. In lessons, children use physical resources to ensure a depth of understanding, before representing this using diagrams and, finally, number sentences. We aim for children to have the confidence and mathematical skills to solve unfamiliar problems before moving on to the next stage of their learning - they have mastered the idea when they can apply it in new ways.
NCETM Mastering Number
Children in Reception, Year 1 and Year 2 use the Mastering Number programme in addition to White Rose Maths lessons. Through shorter sessions, children use Rekenreks, number shapes, base ten and other resources to develop and build their number sense and fluency.
The Maths Challenge
In Key stage 2, children take part in a maths challenge. This is weekly times table quiz to build their fluency and develop their understanding. Children are given two minutes to answer the questions, and once they have achieved 100% they are moved on to the next level. During Year 4, children are formally tested on their times tables to ensure that they can quickly recall their times tables up to 12 x 12, including the associated division facts. Children in Years 5 and 6 continue practising their times tables as they are the foundation for many other areas of learning, including fractions and percentages.
Times Table Rockstars
Children in KS2 use Times Table Rockstars to help them acquire fundamental numeracy skills. Research shows that spending just five minutes a day on this has a significant impact on children's fluency and confidence in all areas of maths. To access Times Table Rockstars please follow this link: https://ttrockstars.com/
If you are unsure of your child's username and password please contact their class teacher.
Supporting Maths at Home
Developing an understanding of mathematical concepts when we are young is essential, and children’s early mathematical understanding is strongly associated with their later school achievement.
One quick and easy way to help children is through the White Rose 1-Minute Maths app. In just one minute, children can revise a key concept, building confidence and fluency. This can be downloaded here:
https://whiteroseeducation.com/1-minute-maths
Many parents and carers tell us that the biggest barrier to helping their children with mathematics is their own confidence in the subject, and these fears and worries about maths are negatively associated with their children’s achievement at school.
So, what does the evidence suggest might be the most effective ways of working with children at home to develop their mathematical knowledge and understanding, and how does this vary for children of different ages? We have looked at research from the Education Endowment Foundation for some good ideas.
Click on the links below to find ideas and suggestions for supporting your children at home
