Mathematics

Intent

Pupils receive a high-quality mathematical education which equips them with tools that they can use in everyday life to help them understand the world. We aim to build a culture of curiosity and enjoyment around the subject, as children are challenged to become more fluent and confident in mathematics through a Teaching for Mastery approach.

Implementation: Teaching for Mastery (TfM)

The National Centre of Excellence for Teaching Mathematics (NCETM) breaks down the TfM approach into Five Big Ideas: coherence, representation and structure, fluency, mathematical thinking and variation. Teachers plan for children to experience these ideas in lessons through teacher-student and student-student interactions to develop a deep mathematical understanding.

At Mitchell Brook, teachers advance children’s mathematical understanding through systematic direct teaching of appropriate learning objectives where children aim to master mathematical skills, knowledge and a quick recall of basic facts. Children are taught to be confident using a range of efficient mental and written calculation strategies for all four operations. They are encouraged to use Maths as an effective tool in a wide range of problem solving activities within school. We work to grow positive attitudes towards Maths in which all children can be successful, as they develop an ability to express themselves fluently using correct mathematical language and vocabulary.  

EYFS | Year 1 | Year 2 | Year 3 | Year 4 | Year 5 | Year 6

How can you help at home?

National Numeracy have a wide array of research and resources to support families with developing maths at home, with a focus on the following three key takeaways: 

As a key area of TfM, developing fluency of number facts is an important part of each child’s experience of learning mathematics. To support this at home, we have subscribed to Numbots and Times Tables Rock Stars (TTRS) and each child has an individual log in. For more information on these platforms, please see the Home Practice page.

Numbots

This platform equips each pupil with the set of core maths skills they require:

• Subitising – instantly recognising the number of objects in a small group without counting;
• Number bonds;
• Subtraction.

Times Tables Rock Stars (TTRS)

This platform gives children the opportunity to learn their multiplication and division facts so they are able to recall them at speed in preparation for the Multiplication Tables Check (MTC) in Year 4. This is extremely helpful for Year 5 and 6 to continue improving their speed of recall, which will make learning more complex concepts much easier!