Maths

Maths is the science that deals with the logic of number, quantity, shape and arrangement. Maths is all around us, in everything we do. It helps us make sense of many of the puzzles and great questions in life – in past, present and future. It is the building block for everything in our daily lives, including mobile devices, architecture, art, money, engineering, and even sports. We want all pupils at Cottons Farm Primary Academy to experience the enjoyment of mathematics and develop a sense of curiosity about the subject.

Intent

At CFPA our intent is for all pupils to:

+ Become fluent in the fundamentals of mathematics so that they develop conceptual understanding and the ability to recall and apply knowledge rapidly and accurately.

+ Solve problems by applying their mathematics to a variety of problems with increasing sophistication, including in unfamiliar contexts and to model real-life scenarios.

+ Reason mathematically by following a line of enquiry and develop and present a justification, argument or proof using mathematical language.

+ Have an appreciation of number and number operations, which enables mental calculations and written procedures to be performed efficiently, fluently and accurately.

+Have a range of skills for learning and for life beyond school.

 

Our Aims in the teaching of Maths at Cottons Farm are to:

Ensure progression in depth and content through well thought out lessons where every minute is learning driven. Intelligent sequencing

Ensure retention of key knowledge through regular retrieval practice. Interrupt forgetting

Ensure appropriate scaffold and challenge at every stage of the Maths learning journey. Teach up & Keep up

To dispel negative perceptions around Maths, (Maths anxiety) and instill a belief in growth mindset in all our students. Make Maths Magical

Implementation

-For Maths, our long term planning follows the National Curriculum 2014 and the sequence of learning is taken from CanDoMaths which provides a road map for each year group. Short term planning is supported by the use of the CanDoMaths materials and our school calculation policy.

Lessons are designed using a concrete, pictorial and abstract approach providing pupils with the scaffolding required to access the learning at all levels. They are designed to engage pupils and draw upon the Golden Threads of our curriculum. The Golden Threads are:

  • Oracy
  • Vocabulary
  • Cultural Capital
  • Reading for Pleasure.

These threads are realised in Maths in the following way.

Oracy.png

Questioning is a key part of the teaching in Maths.  Teachers use the following question stems

-Convince me

-Show me

-Always/Sometimes/Never

In addition, there are generalised sentences and sentence stems that pupils are expected to use during units.

Vocabulary.png

At the beginning of each unit, pupils are exposed to the vocabulary that they will be using in the unit.  Most of the vocabulary is tier 3 (subject specific) but tier 2 vocabulary is also used in a range of questions and discussions (justify, explain, convince…)

Cultural capital.jpg

Maths is a key skill needed to be an active citizen of the world.  Our curriculum builds towards an end point that ensures that pupils leave equipped with the calculation skills (and other Maths knowledge) to be successful in secondary school and beyond.

Reading for pleasure.png

Although one of our main curriculum drivers, reading for pleasure does not feature as heavily in Maths.  Pupils do need to be able to read to access Maths questions and Reading for Pleasure helps improve their reading and therefore benefits them in their Maths learning!

 

Lesson Structure

Each lesson is designed to follow a structure which enables children to master mathematical skills.

Teach it – during this part of the lesson teachers model to pupils how to be successful with the intended learning.

Practise it – acts as a bridge between teaching it and doing it, enabling pupils to develop the skill they are learning with the support of adults, peers and scaffolds.

Do it – opportunity to challenge procedural fluency and demonstrate the intended outcome of the lesson at a basic level. Questions during this part of the lesson should get progressively harder and attention is also paid to variation theory. This stresses making small, deliberate changes to how a question is presented in order to test procedural fluency.

Twist it – challenges pupils understanding by exposing them to and making them explain misconceptions. Pupils should be taught over time to correct the misconception, explain the error made and explain how to correct it/avoid making the same error again.

Solve it – challenges pupils thinking my presenting them with problems to solve.

During the different stages of the lesson teachers use AfL strategies to identify children who require further challenge through the stages of the lesson as well as those who need further support.

Developing and embedding skills and knowledge

We provide pupils with access to a number of apps and websites that enable them to regularly practice skills and retrieval of number facts to ensure these are embedded and fluent. 

Impact

A mathematical concept or skill has been mastered when a child can show it in multiple ways, using the mathematical language to explain their ideas, and can independently apply the concept to new problems in unfamiliar situations.

- Children demonstrate quick recall of facts and procedures. This includes the recollection of the times tables.

- The flexibility and fluidity to move between different contexts and representations of mathematics.

- The ability to recognise relationships and make connections in mathematics.

- Children show confidence in Believing that they will achieve.

- Children show a high level of pride in the presentation and understanding of the work

  • Children are keen to progress beyond the earlier stages of lessons and sink their teeth into mathematical problems and challenges.

Our maths overview can be seen below on the Academy's long-term curriculum plan.  

Sheridan Street, Sinfin, Derby, Derbyshire DE24 9HG

Mrs K Patmore - Principal

01332 771370 - Cottons Farm Academy

info@cottonsfarm.theharmonytrust.org

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