Maths | St Oswalds Catholic Primary School

Curriculum Overview and Policy

Download: Whole School – Curriculum Overview 2023-2024 [PDF]

Download: Nursery – Maths Overview 2024-2025 [PDF]
Download: Reception – Maths Overview 2024-2025 [PDF]
Download: Year 1 – Maths Overview 2024-2025 [PDF]
Download: Year 2 – Maths Overview 2024-2025 [PDF]
Download: Year 3 – Maths Overview 2024-2025 [PDF]
Download: Year 4 – Maths Overview 2024-2025 [PDF]
Download: Year 5 – Maths Overview 2024-2025 [PDF]
Download: Year 6 – Maths Overview 2024-2025 [PDF]

Download: Maths – Vocabulary Progression 2023-2024 [PDF]

Download: Maths Policy 2024-2025 [PDF]
Download: Calculation Policy 2024-2025 [PDF]
Download: Bar Modelling Policy 2024-2025 [PDF]

Maths – Curriculum Drivers

Language – In our Maths curriculum, children engage in purposeful discussions, articulating their reasoning and justifying their answers. Our lessons encourage dialogue, collaboration and the exploration of different problem-solving strategies. By using mathematical vocabulary, stem sentences and explaining their thinking, children develop confidence in expressing themselves, honing their communication skills and fostering a strong foundation for lifelong learning. (Faith in Our Voice)

Diversity and Inclusion – We believe that mathematics is a universal language that transcends boundaries. We incorporate diverse contexts, real-world applications and culturally relevant examples into our lessons. Our Maths curriculum supports the diverse learning needs of all pupils, ensuring that pupils, independent of their needs, have equal opportunities to access and engage with their mathematical learning. Everyone can do Maths – we do not put a limit on learning. (Faith in Others)

Resilience – We have high expectations within our maths curriculum focusing on the mastery approach to teaching mathematics. Children develop fluency within a learning concept and then apply their knowledge to reasoning and problem-solving tasks to support their resilience when facing new challenges. We encourage all our children that they can and will achieve and succeed in maths. They solve problems and do not give up. Pupils understand that some maths can be challenging but a positive mindset enables them to persevere. (Faith in Ourselves)

Enrichment – Maths is meaningful and purposeful. Children develop skills in maths to equip them with real-life opportunities, linked to maths in the real world. Maths is explored through other elements of school life, including STEM Week, Money Week, Enterprise, Careers, Maths Party Day, NSPCC Number Day. We want to give children opportunities and experiences to raise aspirations and open their eyes to the variety of careers they might pursue when they grow up. (Faith in our Journey)

Mathematics – Intent

At St Oswald’s Catholic Primary school, our maths curriculum is aligned with our mission statement; ‘Together with Jesus, we will Learn and Grow in Faith’ thus ensuring that ALL pupils have access to a broad, balanced, supportive, sequenced and ambitious curriculum which provides them with the knowledge, skills and experiences they need to succeed in life.

Mathematics is a universal language, essential to everyday life, critical to science, technology and engineering, and necessary for financial literacy and most forms of employment. A high-quality mathematics education provides a foundation for understanding the world and provides important tools to further study and the world of work. Therefore, mathematics forms an important part of St. Oswald’s broad and balanced curriculum where we endeavour to ensure that all children succeed, by developing their ability to calculate, reason, solve problems and express opinions using mathematical language. We want pupils to develop self-confidence in their ability and have an enjoyment and enthusiasm for maths that will encourage economic wellbeing and empower them in future life.

At St. Oswald’s, our curriculum is formed from the objectives set out in the Programmes of Study from the National Curriculum for Mathematics (2014), the DFE Teaching Mathematics in the Primary School (2020), the White Rose Maths Hub scheme and the EYFS Statutory Framework alongside Development Matters, in order to structure our curriculum, ensure consistency across the phases and to support staff subject knowledge. An outline of the progression of knowledge and skills can be seen in our whole school overview and year group overviews from EYFS to Year 6.

All children are entitled to access all aspects of the curriculum, enabling them to achieve confidence, competence and success. We understand the importance of developing cultural capital for all those within our school family. We endeavour to provide positive opportunities and experiences to pupils that they might not otherwise have had. Our aim is for the curriculum to be ambitious for all pupils, maximising the outcomes for every child so that they know more, remember more and understand more. The fundamental idea is that all children develop a deep understanding of the mathematics they are learning and achieve mastery in the key concepts appropriate for their age group. This is central to the planning and provision of mathematics at St. Oswald’s, in order that pupils make genuine progress and avoid gaps in their understanding that provide barriers to learning as they move through education. Learning is carefully sequenced and progressive, considering what has been taught before and what knowledge and skills are needed for the next stage of our children’s mathematical development.

Three key aims rest at the heart of our mathematics curriculum:

1. For children to be fluent in the fundamentals of mathematics
2. For children to reason mathematically
3. For children to solve routine and non-routine problems with increasing confidence

The aim is for our curriculum to guarantee long term learning and in St. Oswald’s we recognise the importance of acquiring foundational knowledge thoroughly, to reduce the need for it to be relearned and reduce the chance of it being forgotten. Children need to have a secure understanding of the basic principles in order to deepen their knowledge of the maths curriculum further and key knowledge and skills are revisited regularly and through cross-curricular links, allowing repetition to embed learning and the automatic recall of key concepts. We believe that unlocking mathematical fluency is an essential life skill for all learners and is a pre-requisite to being able to reason and solve problems mathematically.

Our Mathematics curriculum intends to maximise the development of every child’s ability and academic achievement by delivering daily lessons that are creative and engaging, using the concrete, pictorial and abstract approach. The expectation is that the majority of pupils will move through the Programmes of Study at broadly the same pace. However, decisions about when to progress should always be based on the security of pupils’ understanding and their readiness to progress to the next stage. Pupils who grasp concepts rapidly will be challenged through being offered rich mastery and sophisticated problems. Those who are not sufficiently fluent with earlier material should consolidate their understanding, including through additional practice before moving on.

Our approach aims to provide all children with full access to the curriculum, enabling them to develop independence, confidence and competence – ‘mastery’ in mathematics in order to be independent mathematicians who are well equipped to apply their learning to the wider world.

Mathematics – Implementation

At St. Oswald’s Catholic Primary, our approach to the teaching of mathematics develops children’s ability to work both independently and collaboratively. Every class from Year 1 to Year 6 follows the White Rose Maths Scheme which is based on the objectives outlined in the National Curriculum and the DFE ‘Teaching Mathematics in the Primary School’ guidance. In EYFS, Reception follow the NCETM Mastering Number scheme of work which continues into KS1. Nursery incorporates startegies from the mastery approach to ensure a continuity and progression of skills. Lessons are personalised to address the individual needs and requirements for a class.

At St. Oswald’s Catholic Primary, there is a consistent approach to planning, which is undertaken at three levels:

Long Term Planning – is detailed in the programmes of study in the National Curriculum (2014) for Mathematics. These are set out for KS1 and KS2, as end of year key objectives to be taught in each year group. In Nursery and Reception, we follow guidance from ‘Development Matters’ to meet the Early Learning Goals outlined in the revised Statutory Framework for EYFS.

Medium Term Planning – details the main teaching objectives for each term, ensuring that they are progressive and there is an appropriate balance and distribution of work across each term. Termly plans produced by White Rose Maths (‘Small Steps’) are documentations used to support this planning process

Short Term Planning – where lessons are collaboratively planned in year groups. Teachers are specifically asked to consider: learning objectives, basic skills, key questions, representations and resources, stem sentences and mathematical vocabulary and role of adult support. They are advised to refer to mastery resources such as White Rose, Third Space Learning, NCETM resources, Classroom Secrets for examples of tasks and scaffolding for learners who need support to grasp concepts.

Curriculum Design: Teaching for Mastery principles

We believe that the vast majority of children can succeed in learning mathematics in line with national expectations:

It is achievable for all. We have high expectations and encourage a positive ‘can do’ mindset towards mathematics in all pupils, creating learning experiences which develop children’s resilience in the face of a challenge and carefully scaffolding learning so everyone can make progress
The whole class is taught mathematics together, with the expectation that every child will master the key concept, whilst some will work more deeply on challenging tasks
Deep and sustainable learning – lessons are designed with careful small steps, questions and tasks in place
The ability to build on something that has already been sufficiently mastered – pupils’ learning of concepts is seen as a continuum across the school
Conceptual and Procedural Fluency – teachers move mathematics from one context to another, using objects, pictorial representations, equations and word problems. There are high expectations for pupils to learn times tables and key number facts and have a true sense of number. They are encouraged to think whether their method is appropriate, reliable and efficient.
Differentiation is in the form of the amount of time that pupils will spend using concrete resources or pictorial representations to grasp concepts. It will be seen through targeted questioning and the feedback and scaffolding individual pupils receive in class as they work through problems.
Challenge through greater depth – teachers set tasks to deepen knowledge and improve reasoning skills within the objectives of their year group.
The ability to reason about a concept and make connections – pupils are encouraged to make connections and spot patterns between different concepts
Precise mathematical language, often used in ‘stem sentences’, is used by teachers so that mathematical ideas are conveyed and repeated with clarity and precision
Sufficient time is spent on key concepts, to ensure that learning is well developed and deeply embedded before moving on
Problem Solving is central to apply their understanding

Lesson Design

In addition, all classes in KS1 will deliver an interactive mastering number session of approximately 15 minutes long. KS2 will deliver interactive daily Basic Skill sessions of approximately 15 minutes long. These sessions will focus on fluency practice and reinforcing prior learning and key objectives which have already been taught. ‘Fluent in Five’ is delivered in daily morning starter sessions, to help children develop and maintain fluency in both written and mental calculations.
Lessons are sharply focused with one new objective introduced at a time.
Difficult points and potential misconceptions are identified in advance and strategies to address them planned. Key questions are planned, to challenge thinking and develop learning for all pupils.
Teaching sequences will involve review of prior learning, teacher input and teacher-led discussion interspersed with short tasks involving pupil-to-pupil discussion, independent work and challenges. Independent practice includes fluency practice, reasoning, problem solving and higher-order thinking activities.
The use of high-quality mastery materials and tasks to support learning and to provide access to the mathematics is integrated into lessons.
A variety of resources are used to aid children’s learning and to build knowledge and competency:
– Concrete – using concrete manipulatives to help understanding,
– Pictorial – building upon concrete through pictorial representations which can be used to reason and solve problems
– Abstract – using the previous foundations to develop an abstract approach of using numbers and concepts with confidence.

These resources are accessible for all pupils and children are encouraged to independently use these as they need.
Contexts and representations are carefully chosen to develop reasoning skills and to help pupils link concrete ideas to abstract mathematical concepts.
Formative assessment is carried out throughout the lesson; the teacher regularly checks pupils’ knowledge and understanding and adjusts the lesson accordingly. Daily ‘keep-up’ interventions take place as often as they can, post maths lesson. These interventions allow the teacher or teaching assistant to address learners’ misconceptions that same day and plug specific gaps that have been identified during the lesson.
Teachers discuss their mathematics teaching regularly in year group planning meetings, sharing teaching ideas and classroom experiences in detail and working together to improve their practice.

In the Foundation Stage, children are given the opportunity to develop their understanding of counting, number and numerical patterns through a combination of short, formal teaching sessions followed by adult led group tasks, alongside opportunities to further explore independently throughout continuous provision.

In mathematics it is crucial to incorporate precise mathematical language into every lesson. Through weekly planning, teachers plan the key vocabulary to be learnt to ensure a secure understanding throughout the topic. Key vocabulary is also implemented through stem sentences to effectively structure learning and understanding. Vocabulary and stem sentences are discussed at the beginning of the lesson and repeated throughout, and are used when recapping prior learning from previous topics. Teachers will use and display these during teaching and on Maths working walls to encourage children to use the mathematical language accurately. The working walls consolidate and reinforce children’s knowledge and aid their learning further. These are updated regularly to adhere to the current topic and are consistent across the whole school. The working walls also display the learning objective, examples of work, reasoning and problem-solving questions and a numeracy for life challenges which provides examples of how the topic can be applied to real life.

Assessment and monitoring in Maths

Formative assessment for learning occurs throughout the maths lesson, enabling teachers to adjust their teaching/input to address the needs of the children. Teacher’s assess children daily through:

Marking
Analysing errors and picking up on misconceptions
Asking questions
Facilitating and listening to discussions
Observations

These ongoing assessments inform future planning and teaching. Lessons are adapted readily and short-term planning evaluated in light of these assessments. These evaluations help inform teacher’s assessments of children against age related expectations.

Using the White Rose ‘block’ quizzes, pupils are assessed before and after topics taught. These quizzes help inform planning, teaching, interventions, guided support and assessment of pupils. Regular moderation sessions are held within and across year groups. Staff also attend LA meetings and work with LA consultants and colleagues from schools within our network, to ensure accuracy in assessments. Teachers talk through the progress of their pupils at termly tracking progress meetings: this ensures targeted support can be given to those who need it.

In all year groups, children who need support are identified for Intervention. These are planned by teachers with SMART targets and delivered by teachers and TA’s. Each intervention has an eight-week cycle, and the impact is reviewed and evaluated by the class teacher and Intervention Leads.

Mastery of Number

This project aims to secure firm foundations in the development of good number sense for all children from Reception through to Year 1 and Year 2. The aim over time is that children will leave KS1 with fluency in calculation and a confidence and flexibility with number. Attention will be given to key knowledge and understanding needed in Reception classes, and progression through KS1 to support success in the future.

Mathematics – Impact

The impact of our mathematics curriculum in St. Oswald’s Catholic Primary School is that children know that maths is a vital skill that they will rely on in many areas of their daily life. Children have a positive view of maths due to learning in an environment where maths is promoted as being an exciting and enjoyable subject in which they can investigate and ask questions; they know that it is reasonable to make mistakes because this can strengthen their learning through the journey to finding an answer. Children are confident to ‘have a go’ and have a ‘can do’ attitude towards maths, choosing equipment they need to help them to learn, along with the strategies they think are best suited to each problem. Children of all abilities will be able to succeed in maths lessons because work is appropriately scaffolded.

Children at St. Oswald’s make connections and apply mathematical knowledge both within lessons and across the curriculum. They are able to demonstrate mathematical skills and knowledge in multiple ways, using mathematical language to explain ideas. From EYFS to Y6, children use stem sentences to frame their explanations, increasing their understanding and their ability to explain and reason.

At the end of each year we expect the children to have achieved Age Related Expectations (ARE) for their year group. Some children will have progressed further and achieved greater depth (GD). Children who have gaps in their knowledge receive appropriate support and intervention.

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 improve standards.

Throughout the year, the impact of our Maths curriculum is measured through the monitoring and evaluation cycle in school and this consists of:

Pupil voice where children are given the opportunity to share the knowledge and skills they have acquired as well as sharing their thoughts and feelings about the subject
Planning and book monitoring to ensure a wide range of topics are covered and skills are being effectively taught
Learning walks to ensure high quality first teaching is evident in classrooms, to monitor the progression of skills throughout school and that maths learning environments support teaching and learning
Moderation of maths occurs between year groups and phases and external moderation takes place providing robust judgements of standards.
Assessment data is inputted to the school’s curriculum tracker twice a year, is analysed and feeds into Pupil Progress meetings. Tracking pupil’s progress informs planning and interventions needed
Whole school data is analysed twice a year, including specific groups of children. This analysis informs the maths action plan and ways forward.
Monitoring is also used to identify gaps in the curriculum that need to be addressed across the school, or within individual year groups.
Monitoring is an ongoing cycle which is used to provide the best Maths curriculum for our children and to ensure it is inclusive to all.

Downloads

Download: EYFS Development Matters Maths [PDF]
Download: Times Table Challenge [PDF]
Download: Primary National Curriculum – Mathematics [PDF]

Key Learning in Maths

Download: Year 1 – Key Learning in Mathematics [PDF]
Download: Year 2 – Key Learning in Mathematics [PDF]
Download: Year 3 – Key Learning in Mathematics [PDF]
Download: Year 4 – Key Learning in Mathematics [PDF]
Download: Year 5 – Key Learning in Mathematics [PDF]
Download: Year 6 – Key Learning in Mathematics [PDF]

Sample SATs Papers

Times Tables

Download: School Multiplication Challenge [PDF]
Download: KS1 – St Oswald’s Tables Challenge [PDF]
Download: KS1 – Back Sheet [PDF]
Download: KS2 – St Oswald’s Tables Challenge [PDF]
Download: KS2 – Back Sheet [PDF]
Download: Times Tables Pack Parent Guide [PDF]
Download: Year 1 – Ultimate Times Tables Tests [PDF]
Download: Year 2 – Ultimate Times Tables Tests [PDF]
Download: Year 3 – Ultimate Times Tables Tests [PDF]
Download: Year 4 – Ultimate Times Tables Tests [PDF]
Download: Year 5 – Ultimate Times Tables Tests [PDF]
Download: Year 6 – Ultimate Times Tables Tests [PDF]

Additional Resources

BBC has a selection of videos explaining maths concepts:
External Link: http://www.bbc.co.uk/education/

Nrich has a range of maths games, problems and articles on all areas of maths. Parents of Key Stage 1 children should select ‘stage 1’ and parents of Key Stage 2 children should select ‘stage 2’:
External Link: http://nrich.maths.org/

Maths 4 Mums and Dads explains some of the milestones children make between the ages of 3 and 11 years old:
External Link: http://www.maths4mumsanddads.co.uk/

Oxford Owl includes a range of activities, top tips and eBooks to help your child with their maths at home:
External Link: http://www.oxfordowl.co.uk/maths-owl/

A Maths Dictionary for Kids is a great online maths dictionary, which contains hundreds of definitions, as well as animations and activities to help bring maths words to life:
External Link: http://www.amathsdictionaryforkids.com/

Useful Maths Websites for Children

External Link: http://www.crickweb.co.uk/ks1numeracy
External Link: http://www.crickweb.co.uk/ks2numeracy
External Link: http://www.mathsisfun.com/games/
External Link: http://www.ictgames.com/resources
External Link: http://mathszone.co.uk/
Another collection of games and activities across the full range of curriculum content, mostly appropriate to our

KS2 pupils:

External Link: http://www.topmarks.co.uk/maths-games
Fun games for children of all ages
External Link: http://mathsframe.co.uk/resources/
More free games to play on a variety of maths topics. If you browse this site, you will also find that it lists all the objectives for the new curriculum and suggests games that will help children achieve that objective.

Parent and Carer’s Information – Multiplication Check

This Multiplication Check has been statutory since June 2020 for children in Year 4. Please find more information on the document below.

Download: Information for Parents and Carers – Multiplication Tables Check [PDF]

Calculation Workshops

Many thanks to all the parents, carers and families who attended the KS1 and KS2 Calculation Workshops. I have attached the session materials for anyone who was unable to attend. I will be running more workshops next term, so please do look out for these.

Download: KS1 Calculation Workshop [PDF]
Download: KS2 Calculation Workshop [PDF]

Download: Maths Workshop for Parents – EYFS [PDF]

Mrs McBrien
Maths Lead