Maths at St Mary's Fields Primary School

Our maths curriculum is focused on supporting all our children with becoming confident and enthusiastic mathematicians. We are committed to ensuring that they leave primary school being able to use their maths skills and knowledge in a range of real-life situations. We also want them to be well-prepared for secondary school.

The way that maths is taught in schools has changed a great deal in recent years. Many schools, including St Mary's Fields, now use a mastery approach to teaching maths. This simply means that our approach is focused on helping the children to develop a deep understanding of what they are learning in maths. In the past, children were taught methods without being given the opportunity to understand how or why these methods work. Research has shown that this is not a helpful way of ensuring that children become good mathematicians.

As part of our mastery curriculum, the children are encouraged to explore problems using different equipment to help them to understand the methods they are learning fully. The problems that they explore are designed to help them see the many ways in which maths is important to wider life and other curriculum areas. There is also a strong focus on helping the children to learn and use the vocabulary they need to explain their mathematical thinking. Teachers use a range of high-quality resources during lessons, including books from the Power Maths series. These books were written by experts in primary maths to support children with developing a deep and thorough understanding of their learning.

Further information about the intent and implementation of our maths curriculum can be found in the documents below. Please refer to the calculation policies and progression map for an overview of how skills and knowledge in maths are developed across each year group.

How can I help my child with their maths learning at home?
 

To be successful in maths, it is important that the children have opportunities to practise their skills outside of school. We have therefore created a guide written by parents for parents with suggestions of quick and easy ways to get your child practising maths in the real world. A link to this guide can be found below.

Additionally, following the positive response we received from parents in our maths survey in March 2021, we will continue to use White Rose Maths videos on Google Classroom as part of our homework and remote learning provision. 93% of the parents who responded to the survey said that these videos (which explain the methods and approaches we use in school) were helpful to parents when supporting their child's maths learning at home. Each video is accompanied by a worksheet that allow the children to practise and strengthen their maths learning.

In Key Stage 1, we encourage families to access Numbots regularly to help children learn number bond facts. Key Stage 2, we expect the children to practise their times tables regularly using Times Tables Rockstars. Children in Year 4 must take a national assessment during the summer term to check that they are able to recall all facts up to 12 x 12 in under 5 seconds. This is because fluent knowledge of the times tables is essential to their future success in maths. We therefore advise that the children spend at least 15 minutes a week practising their times tables - 2 or 3 minutes each day is ideal. Please support them with this. If your child needs their login details for Numbots or Times Tables Rockstars, please contact their class teacher.

Please also speak to your child's class teacher should you need more specific advice or support with your child's home learning.