Immaculate Heart Of Mary

At Immaculate Heart of Mary we embrace and ensure a rich and engaging Maths provision, developed on the basis of the National Curriculum 2014.
We agree with the National Curriculum statement 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”.
The intention of our curriculum and approach is to enable all children to achieve confidence and competence – ‘mastery’ – in mathematics through an appreciation of the joy, beauty, power and wonder of mathematics in their journey towards becoming adventurous, accomplished and
considerate mathematicians.

The following principles characterise our approach to teaching Maths.

 We are clear in our expectation that all pupils are capable of achieving high standards in mathematics. The large majority of pupils progress through the curriculum content at the same pace, grouping is often mixed ability and differentiation is achieved by questioning, emphasising deep knowledge and through individual support and intervention.

 To ensure taught ideas are understood deeply and connections are made, we aim to ensure ideas are not passively received but must be worked on by the student: thought about, reasoned with and discussed with others, children are encouraged to speak in full sentences, use stem sentences and to be ready to reason with their peers as to what they believe in relation to a particular question.

 Teaching is underpinned by methodical curriculum design and supported by carefully crafted and coherent ‘small steps’ based lessons and resources to foster deep conceptual and procedural knowledge.

 Representations and models are used in lessons throughout the school to expose the mathematical structure being taught, the end goal being that students can do the maths
without recourse to the representation.

 Variation is a key feature of our curriculum. This is firstly achieved in how the teacher represents the concept being taught, often in more than one way, to draw attention to
critical aspects, and to develop deep and holistic understanding. It is also seen in the sequencing of the episodes and exercises used within a lesson and follow up practice, paying attention to what is kept the same and what changes, to connect the mathematics
and draw attention to mathematical relationships and structure.

 Practice and consolidation play a central role, and for this reason each class has a daily fluency session in addition to their daily Maths lesson.

KS1 and KS2 use the DfE and NCETM approved Maths No Problem resource to structure our curriculum and lessons. This scheme follows the 2014 curriculum and is designed in small carefully sequenced steps. Fundamental skills and knowledge are secured first by focusing on curriculum
content in considerable depth at early stages.

Each lesson follows a similar approach
 Explore Task 
 Guided Practice 
 Independent Practice 
We use the NCETM and NRich and ‘DfE Ready to progress’ resources to support with intervention and for opportunities to deepen understanding. Going Deeper opportunities are woven into every stage of the lesson - not simply an 'add on' challenge at the end of the lesson.

We place high importance on the automatic and
instant recall of key facts (KIRFs) for each year group, using various resources (including TTRockstars, Numbots, Hit the Button etc…) to motivate and support our pupils.

In EYFS we use NCETM resources such as Number Blocks and Mastering Number resources to ensure that all children develop firm mathematical foundations in a way that is engaging, and appropriate for their age. High priority is placed on requisition of number sense through subitising, cardinality, comparison and composition. Emphasis is also on pattern, shape, space and measure and ensuring an understanding of Mathematics in the world around them. Daily short teacher led
sessions and a maths-rich provision environment, coupled with skilled Early Years practice means our children are given every opportunity to develop early success and enthusiasm for the subject.

The successful approach at Immaculate Heart of Mary results in a high-quality and engaging maths education, that provides children with the necessary foundations for later life and an
enthusiasm for the subject.

Attainment in maths is assessed in numerous ways:

*Teachers use precise questioning in class to test conceptual and procedural knowledge, and assess pupils regularly to identify those requiring intervention so that swift feedback
and intervention is made. This intervention is given to individuals and small groups on the same day if possible to enable them to be ready for the next lesson. Peer and Self-
Assessment techniques are valued and play a large part in lessons through partner work.

• Daily Fluency sessions are used alongside low stakes weekly quizzes to assess how well children are attaining the Key Instant Recall Facts to reduce children’s cognitive load in lessons as they progress through the curriculum.

• End of topic reviews from Maths No Problem and twice yearly summative reviews are used alongside DfE Ready to Progress materials are used effectively to ensure understanding before moving on.

• Formal assessments are carried out, tracked and monitored termly, outcomes from these and End of Key Stage Assessments are used to inform future teaching and
Whole School Development.

• The Maths Leaders use “drop-ins”, work scrutiny and evidence trails to monitor and evaluate standards.

• The Maths and Assessment Leaders review standards compared to local, national and other external data annually and use any findings to inform future practice.