A happy and healthy place to learn

The Primrose Lane Curriculum

for long term learning

MATHEMATICS

‘Pure mathematics is, in its way, the poetry of logical ideas.’

Albert Einstein

1. Our curriculum intent

Our curriculum has three layers:

Our Early Years setting follows the curriculum as outlined in the latest version of the statutory framework for the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS). In Years 1-6, we are required to cover The National Curriculum. The guiding principles of the EYFS and the aims set out in The National Curriculum (especially sections 3-6) direct the core aims for the curriculum; our curriculum intent complements both of these.

We want Primrose Lane to be a happy and healthy place to learn. This core aim permeates our school and ethos, whether in the classroom or around and about school.

We deliver the content in ways which achieve the following intentions (1-4 feature in the EYFS framework and 5-9, many of which feature in the National Curriculum Purpose of Study for each subject):

1. that children access a broad and balanced curriculum that gives them the broad range of knowledge and skills needed for good progress through school and life
2. quality and consistency in teaching and learning so that every child makes good progress and no child gets left behind
3. a close working partnership between staff and parents/carers
4. every child is included and supported through equality of opportunity and anti-discriminatory practice
5. challenging

Our curriculum is implemented in a way that covers the statutory requirements of the National Curriculum and our own curriculum age-related expectations. Throughout, teachers will search for purposeful, meaningful opportunities to extend and deepen pupils’ learning at the appropriate level for individual children’s needs.

6. enjoyable

We want Primrose Lane to be a happy and healthy place to learn. The more enjoyable a topic is, the more engaged our pupils will be, and the more we will be able to meet the needs of all children in our school community. Visits, visitors, themed weeks and other enriching activities help to make the curriculum enjoyable.

7. relevant

Ofsted sets out a criterion to judge the quality of education: ‘the extent to which schools are equipping pupils with the knowledge and cultural capital they need to succeed in life.’ (School inspection handbook: Handbook for inspecting schools in England under section 5 of the Education Act 2005, November 2019, point 178, p43). The skills and knowledge set out in our age-related expectations for each subject mean our curriculum content is very relevant for our pupils’ present and future lives.

8. inspiring

The National Curriculum sets out ‘to engender an appreciation of human creativity and achievement’ (section 3.1, p6). Teachers introduce pupils to British and world-wide achievements, past and present. Further, we want to promote an appreciation and sense of awe and wonder when learning about the natural world.

9. creative

A characteristic of effective learning is creative thinking – we want our children to develop this from the outset of their learning journey: our children will be creative in their ideas, in their questions, in their solutions. For our teachers, our curriculum has some flexibility built into it so that they can be creative, linking learning with books that inspire, for example.

The National Curriculum – purpose of study for Mathematics

‘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.’

Curriculum Intent

Maths is a really important part of everyday life. The intention of our Maths curriculum is for pupils to:

• make sense of our world
• tackle real life problems
• develop skills which are essential in other areas of the curriculum
• develop skills for life to achieve success in the workplace and economic wellbeing
• enjoy the subject and be curious as to why they learn mathematics

Aims of subject

In addition, and importantly, when teaching maths, we aim to ensure that all pupils:

• become fluent in the fundamentals of mathematics
• demonstrate resilience when tacking increasingly sophisticated mathematical problems
• can reason mathematically
• can solve problems by applying their mathematics to multiple contexts, demonstrating their knowledge of the world in a variety of ways

2. Our curriculum implementation

Early Years

Our Early Years mathematics curriculum follows our whole school ‘teaching for mastery’ approach and is based on the White Rose schemes of learning for Reception. As there is no scheme for Nursery we have devised our own curriculum for the youngest children in school. We prioritise the direct teaching of the whole class, with sufficient time to practise and rehearse important processes and skills. We follow the mastery approach and (Concrete) use of practical resources, then (Pictoral) visual images and representations, before (Abstract) abstract concepts and notation (The CPA Approach). More formal, written recording is introduced, but only when understanding at each stage is secure and automatic.

In preparation for Year 1, we supplement the ELG for number by including some content from the Year 1 national curriculum programme of study – namely the additive composition of number. We aim to deliver a mathematics curriculum that embeds mathematical thinking and talk. During the course of the year, key concepts are revisited and developed further. By the end of Reception, our aim is for children to be fluent in counting, recognising small numbers of items, comparing numbers and solving problems.

Planning for KS1 & 2

The National Curriculum (2014) sets out expectations for each year group in Key Stages 1 and 2. We have created lists of Maths age-related expectations (‘ARE Grids’) which have taken the National Curriculum content and listed these in a format which teachers can use as an overview for the year and for their planning and assessments.

Teachers use the White Rose Maths Schemes of Learning as the basis of their planning whilst using their professional judgement to adapt these to meet the needs of their class, again, using the CPA Approach (as specified within the Early Years Implementation).

Mathematics is an interconnected subject in which pupils need to be able to move fluently between representations of mathematical ideas. The programmes of study are, by necessity, organised into apparently distinct domains, but pupils should make rich connections across mathematical ideas to develop fluency, mathematical reasoning and competence in solving increasingly sophisticated problems. They should also apply their mathematical knowledge to science and other subjects (with teachers providing opportunities to do this across their year group curriculum).

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 should be challenged through being offered rich and sophisticated problems before any acceleration through new content. Therefore, we must be ready and confident to build in challenges and puzzles. Those who are not sufficiently fluent with earlier material should consolidate their understanding, including through additional practice (or intervention), before moving on.

As a result of the COVID lockdown, teaching of Maths became part of our home learning programme. WRMH and Classroom Secrets both put together supported systems to ensure continuity and parental support. From September 2020, we have been using the updated WRMH scheme of learning, which recaps and ensures no key objectives have been missed. Teachers regularly assess their class to decide whether recap ‘small steps’ need to be addressed in prior learning or whether children can increase pace and be further challenged on their depth of knowledge.

Organisation and time

Key Stage 1

In KS1, there is a daily maths lesson of between 45 and 60 minutes for all children in mixed ability classes.

Key Stage 2

In KS2, we have a daily maths lesson of approximately 60 minutes for all children in mixed ability classes.

In addition to the daily maths lessons, teachers may also provide:

• short fluency sessions (5-10 minutes), ideally each day, to practise key calculating skills, counting, times tables (and corresponding division facts) or addition and subtraction facts
• opportunities to respond to feedback (possibly at the start of the next day’s maths lesson, or – even better – during the current lesson)

Cross-curricular

To support cross-curricular learning of mathematical knowledge, skills and understanding, regular maths learning is planned within topic and/or science lessons. We don’t expect full lessons; for example, 15-20 minutes where maths can be seen, used and applied would be appropriate without compromising time spent on foundation subjects (for example: data representing the percentage of mould on bread in a line graph in Science; measuring distances of throws/jumps in PE; conducting fieldwork in Geography using four and six figure grid references; comparing dates in History and calculating the differences between eras; or representing line and symmetry in Art).

3. Our curriculum impact

Assessment in Early Years

At Primrose Lane, ongoing assessment is an integral part of the learning and development processes. Staff observe pupils to identify their level of achievement and interests. These observations are used to shape future planning. Staff also take into account observations shared by parents and/or carers.

Within the first two weeks that a child starts Reception, staff will administer the Reception Baseline Assessment (RBA).

At the end of the EYFS, staff complete the EYFS profile for each child. Pupils are assessed against the 17 early learning goals, indicating whether they are:

• meeting expected levels of development
• not yet reaching expected levels (‘emerging’).

The profile reflects ongoing observations, and discussions with parents/carers. The results of the profile are shared with the child’s family.

The profile is moderated internally (referring to the Development Matters guidance) and in partnership with other local schools, to ensure consistent assessment judgements. EYFS profile data is submitted to the local authority.

Pupil achievement and progress in KS1 and KS2

We evaluate the impact of our curriculum in several ways.

We measure pupil achievement (the acquisition of knowledge and skills) and progress (knowing more, remembering more) using a number of strategies, including:

• in-year (including use of WRMH end of block/unit tests; Testbase assessments; timestables tests; arithmetic tests) and end of year assessments (KS2 NFER assessments) [including end of Key Stage 1/2 assessments]
• teacher assessments, supported by moderation in school and externally with other schools and with the local authority
• on-going teacher assessment based on questioning, observations and pupil outcomes (which includes work in books)
• pupils’ acquisition of vocabulary and knowledge through learning scrutiny and learning conversations.

Monitoring

Monitoring of planning and lesson observations, alongside scrutiny of progress in books and learning conversations with children, ensure that all children are provided with opportunities to achieve and that they are successful in achieving what is expected at their stage of learning.

If we feel a child has not met a small step objective, there are a number of options available to the teacher: same day intervention is vital to quickly resolve misconceptions and for some children pre-learning is offered; we have ‘Plus 1’ and ‘Power of 2’ as interventions that close gaps and ensure fluency across ‘sticky knowledge’; and teachers are encouraged to ensure concepts have been proven and mastered before moving the children on to the next step.

Whole school areas for development are identified as a result of data analysis. The data analysis enables professional development to be implemented to ‘close the gap’ in these curriculum areas for all children in all year groups.

Pupil attitudes

We measure pupil attitudes using a number of strategies, including:

• feedback during learning conversations and in pupil and parent/carer surveys
• attitudes and behaviour in lessons across the curriculum
• the quality of the work they produce, including taking pride in presentation
• attendance and punctuality.
• We want all children to leave our school as confident mathematicians, achieving to the best of their ability and ready to face mathematical challenges in the wider world.

Early Learning Goal Descriptors – Mathematics

ELG: Number

Children at the expected level of development will:

• Have a deep understanding of number to 10, including the composition of each number;
• Subitise (recognise quantities without counting) up to 5;
• Automatically recall (without reference to rhymes, counting or other aids) number bonds up to 5 (including subtraction facts) and some number bonds to 10, including double facts.

Supplemented with the Y1 expectations for Number – addition and subtraction:

Pupils should be taught to:

• read, write and interpret mathematical statements involving addition (+), subtraction (–) and equals (=) signs
• represent and use number bonds and related subtraction facts within 20
• add and subtract one-digit and two-digit numbers to 20, including zero
• solve one-step problems that involve addition and subtraction, using concrete objects and pictorial representations, and missing number problems such as 7 + o = 9.

ELG: Numerical Patterns

Children at the expected level of development will:

• Verbally count beyond 20, recognising the pattern of the counting system;
• Compare quantities up to 10 in different contexts, recognising when one quantity is greater than, less than or the same as the other quantity;
• Explore and represent patterns within numbers up to 10, including evens and odds, double facts and how quantities can be distributed equally.

These are the Mathematics National Curriculum Objectives that teachers use to monitor and assess children in their respective year groups.

• Appendices Assessment Monitoring Primrose Lane Maths Curriculum Nov 2021.docx

• Primrose Lane Primary School Calculation Policy