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Mathematics

Our Vision for Mathematics
 

The new National Curriculum states that: “Mathematics is a creative and highly inter-connected discipline that has been developed over centuries, providing the solution to some of history’s most intriguing problems. It is 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 therefore provides a foundation for understanding the world, the ability to reason mathematically, an appreciation of the beauty and power of mathematics, and a sense of enjoyment and curiosity about the subject.”

 

 At Broadwood, it is extremely important to us that all children develop a love of mathematics. Our rich learning environment enables children to flourish, develop confidence and a ‘can do’ attitude. Our mastery approach curriculum is designed to enable children to make connections and apply their mathematics in context, developing transferable skills across all areas of the curriculum. It would be fantastic if all children left Broadwood primary school as confident problem solvers, pattern sniffers and collaborators, demonstrating skills such as resilience, articulation and reasoning. We will never give up on any child and believe all children are mathematicians.

Our key aims

Our curriculum is designed to meet the requirements of:

1) The 2014 curriculum which aims to ensure all pupils:

- Become fluent in the fundamentals of mathematics so that they are efficient in using and selecting the appropriate written algorithms and mental methods, underpinned by mathematical concepts

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

 - Can reason mathematically by following a line of enquiry and develop and present a justification, including in unfamiliar mathematical language.

2) The Early Years framework which aims to ensure all pupils:

- Develop a strong grounding in number so that all children develop the necessary building blocks to excel mathematically.

- Develop positive attitudes and interests in mathematics, look for patterns and relationships, spot connections, ‘have a go’, talk to adults and peers about what they notice and not be afraid to make mistakes

And this is done through three key areas; Number, Patterns and Connections and Spatial Reasoning.

 

Curriculum 
 

Our Maths curriculum enables our children to gain a deep understanding of mathematical concepts through a mastery approach which is tailored to the needs of each cohort to ensure success and challenge for all.  Our core lessons are underpinned by the 5 Big Ideas of Coherence, Representations and Structure, Mathematical Thinking, Fluency and Variation. 

All teachers follow a long term and medium term plan and are encouraged to design lessons using a range of resources, including, but not limited to, the National Centre for Excellence in the Teaching of Mathematics (NCETM) and White Rose Maths. A typical maths lesson provides the opportunity for all children, regardless of their ability, to become confident and capable mathematicians.

Our curriculum has a focus on number to ensure all our children have a secure grasp of place value, arithmetic and times tables. We do this through a daily maths retrieval of up to 8 questions which must include place value, addition and subtraction, multiplication and division and fractions to ensure children are revisiting and consolidating prior learning. We also track basic skills of pupils from year 1-6 including number bonds, counting in steps and times tables to develop fluency in their recall of key facts which is essential for reducing cognitive overload.

Calculation Policy 
 
Our written calculation policy followed by each year group incorporates examples both from the NCETM (National Centre for Excellence in the Teaching of Mathematics) calculation guidance and the White Rose Scheme of Learning. 
Important Documents
Continuous Professional Development 
 
At Broadwood Primary School we are committed to the development of our Teachers and Learning Support Assistants as this is crucial in improving pupil outcomes. We ensure that teaching staff are provided with high quality PD through external training, inset days and weekly staff training. 
Below is just some of the recent and forthcoming Maths CPD accessed by our teaching staff. 
 
We are privileged to be among the first cohort of schools to participate in the Mastering Number project.  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 is that children will leave Key Stage 1 with fluency in calculation and a confidence and flexibility with number.  
Sessions run for 15 minutes and are delivered in addition to our daily maths lesson. 
Celebrating Maths at Broadwood
Times tables are vitally important.  They are a building block to mathematical knowledge and understanding.  If children are fluent in times tables, they will increase speed and accuracy in mental maths as well as understanding other mathematical concepts more easily whilst reducing cognitive load.
 
At Broadwood Primary, we celebrate individual achievements and success and believe this is key in motivating our pupils to achieve to the best of their ability and beyond. 
 
The Times Table Rockstars App is used to encourage and motivate children to learn and embed their times tables and when children reach specific milestones they are awarded in our weekly celebration assembly. 
A.I.M Higher Days 2022
 
A.I.M High days are unique and memorable opportunities for learners to be inspired by professional mathematicians. The sessions are fun, engaging and a fantastic opportunity for children to develop their love for maths. 
 
Broadwood has had the privilege of hosting the A.I.M Higher days for schools in our Trust where children have had the opportunity to collaborate and learn together. 
 
We look forward to hosting more Maths A.I.M higher days this year. 
Changing the Game - Red Start 
 

We are delighted to announce that Broadwood has paired up with the charity RedSTART to deliver the Changing the Game programme to children in 2023.

The programme involves fun and interactive workshops which provide children with a fantastic financial education. We are really excited about what the children will learn and the great life skills it will leave them with.