Maths

Intent

At Broadway Infant School we strive to make maths engaging and interesting for all children so they develop a curiosity for the subject. We strive for all children to have a solid working knowledge of maths, to develop clear number sense and to be able to use manipulatives confidently and appropriately to support their learning. We also aim for our children to be confident in their ability to use maths in problem solving and reasoning.  We also aim for our parents to be involved in and informed about their children’s learning so they can feel confident to support them at home. Children will be prepared for the next stage in their education by giving them the skills, knowledge and attitude to help them succeed.

 Implementation

Our curriculum is delivered through a topic led approach aimed at inspiring all children to be excited and inquisitive as well as to develop a love of learning. It gives opportunities, where possible, to use maths across the curriculum which give purpose for learning and time to practise mathematical skills. 

We use aspects of various schemes in our planning and teaching of Maths to best suit our children and school community. Our Reception classes refer to the EYFS statutory framework and Key Stage 1 refer to the National Curriculum. We teach mini blocks and revisit and assess these areas of learning regularly throughout the year.   This allows teachers to use regular formative assessment that is referred to in Target Tracker to recognise and address gaps in learning to better inform their planning. We take a number sense approach to teaching number. Children take part in daily Number Talks or Maths starters. They are encouraged to talk about what they see and teachers use their knowledge of each child to ask questions that deepen their understanding of number. It allows for all children, regardless of their attainment, to reason and provide justifications about number and numerical patterns and rehearse mathematical vocabulary.  This in turn, helps children to become fluent in the fundamentals of mathematics, to reason mathematically in a range of situations and to develop skills in problem solving.  Teachers are very competent in their ability to use questioning techniques and explain mathematical vocabulary to move children on in their learning as well as identifying children who are in need of support. Maths lessons have no ceiling for learning and support is given in class to those specific children who need it and highlights when interventions may be required. Maths Working Walls in each classroom are added to during the week so the children can refer to strategies and vocabulary being taught. Each mini block offers all children opportunities to reason about mathematics and thus opportunities to develop greater depth in their mathematical knowledge and skills. Intervention groups targets those children who need extra support to develop their number sense and their understanding of mathematical concepts.

Practise and consolidation plays a central role in developing mathematical fluency. Mental mathematics in particular is a key skill children need to develop to be fluent in the fundamentals of mathematics.  We use mental maths daily during our Number Talks/maths starters, during register, daily calendar talks and transition times.  This highlights to the children the importance of maths to their everyday lives.

Children at Broadway Infant School are provided with a variety of different resources to enable them to access their mathematic learning. Fives and/or Tens Frames and counters, loose parts, number tracks, Numicon and Base 10/Dienes are vital resources used at our school. They can be found in areas of provision for children to access independently and are available in every classroom throughout school. When accessing continuous provision, resources that support mathematical thinking can be seen across most areas.

At Broadway Infant School we recognise the importance of parents’ involvement in their children’s learning. Information is given to families new to Broadway and during parents’ evenings on the strategies and methods used in school and how to help their children at home. Information for parents is also on our website.  Parents are invited to take part in Stay and Play sessions (EYFS) and Stay and Count sessions (KS1) throughout the year. These include: time, money, subitising, calendars and shape and measurement. KS1 children are assessed r against maths targets in number.  The maths targets are in children’s homework books so parents can support their child’s mathematical learning at home and can see the progression of number skills.  

At Broadway Infants we have recognised a need to develop our pupils’ vocabulary which we view as a fundamental requirement for learn across all subjects.

Impact

The children at Broadway Infant School demonstrate high levels of curiosity and engagement in Maths, develop a solid sense of number, become fluent in the fundamentals in maths and are confident in their mental maths abilities. Our children can discuss maths using the appropriate vocabulary, showing a deeper understanding of the subject and the ability to reason about mathematics. They see the value of mathematics in their daily lives and appreciate how maths is used across many subject areas. Our parents are more confident to support their children at home and feel comfortable asking for help when supporting their children’s learning.

Curriculum Maps

Year 1: