BEAFORD COMMUNITY PRIMARY & NURSERY ACADEMY

Vision for Mathematics

 

 

'Without mathematics, there’s nothing you can do. Everything around you is mathematics. Everything around you is numbers.'  

Shakuntala Devi, Indian writer and mental calculator

‘Mathematics is a tool for success, and the ability to solve problems is the foundation for lifelong learning.’

Dr. Etta Zuber Falconer, African-American mathematician

‘It’s not that I’m so smart, it’s just that I stay with problems longer.’

Albert Einstein                                                                                                                                                         

Vision

We strive to enable fascination and excitement to discover mathematical concepts and to broaden children’s knowledge and understanding of how mathematics is used in the wider world.

Intent

At Beaford Primary School, our maths curriculum is designed to inspire a love of learning and foster a deep understanding of mathematical concepts for all pupils. Using the White Rose Maths framework, we ensure a structured, sequenced progression of learning that enables children to build on prior knowledge and develop secure mathematical foundations.

We are committed to embedding fluency at the heart of our teaching. Children are encouraged to develop quick and efficient recall of facts and methods through regular practice, enabling them to solve problems with confidence and flexibility.

Through the Mastering Number programme, we place a strong emphasis on developing number sense in the early years and Key Stage 1, ensuring that every child builds firm foundations in number fluency. By focusing on subitising, counting, and number bonds, we support children in developing a deep conceptual understanding of number and the relationships between numbers.

Our approach ensures that pupils not only become fluent in basic skills but are also able to reason mathematically, solve problems, and think logically. We use varied representations, mathematical discussion, and challenge to help children develop their ability to apply their knowledge in a range of contexts. This approach enables all learners, regardless of starting points, to achieve and thrive in mathematics.

Ultimately, our aim is for children to leave Beaford Primary with the confidence, skills, and love of mathematics to succeed in the next stage of their learning journey and in life.

Implementation

We follow the mastery approach to mathematics to guide all children towards a deep understanding of the maths they are learning.  Each unit of study is given time for children to explore thoroughly and build on previous areas.  The order of units is shown below (with the exception of Year 6, whose progression through the units is quicker to work towards SATs):

	Autumn 1	Autumn 2	Spring 1	Spring 2	Summer
Unit focus	Number and place value	Addition and subtraction	Multiplication and division	Fractions	Measure, Geometry and Statistics

Lessons are designed through ‘chunks’ or small steps to ensure that they are able to build on and apply learned skills.  Children’s reasoning is scaffolded through the use of talk frames and further developed through probing questioning.  Problem-solving is at the heart of the children’s maths learning, giving them the opportunity to apply the tools and skills they have learned.  Misconceptions are used as part of the lesson design to promote reasoned discussion. Careful use of manipulatives and varied images help children to gain a deep understanding of mathematical concepts.  White Rose planning resources are used to support teachers’ planning.

The majority of children will move through the learning at the same pace, with some being supported through additional resources (manipulatives and images) or guided by an adult, and some demonstrating a deeper understanding through looking at the maths in a different way through completion of a Dive Deeper task.  Those who are not sufficiently fluent have additional practice through targeted interventions to prevent gaps from widening or from pre-teaching.  Children who are working well behind ARE are provided with more tailored teaching from a previous year’s curriculum. 

Times tables facts are learnt through making connections between facts and are rehearsed through targeted practice, for example games, songs and Times Tables Rock Stars. 

Shorter fluency sessions, separate from the main maths lesson, support the development of quick and efficient recall of facts and methods. In Reception and Key Stage 1, Mastering Number supports fluency. In Lower Key Stage 2, fluency sessions focus predominantly on times tables practice and in Upper Key Stage 2 fluency will build on applying known facts to solve problems efficiently.

Impact

Assessment in maths is regular and ongoing.  Teachers use this assessment to influence their planning and interventions and ensure they are providing a mathematics curriculum that will allow each child to progress. Feedback is given to the children through live marking and next-step tasks to ensure they are meeting the specific learning objective.  Each term, children complete a summative assessment. The teaching of maths is also monitored through book scrutinies, learning walks and lesson observations. All assessments are then used to determine children’s progress and attainment and to support standards in maths being in line with national expectations.

 

Please see the attached documents below for our Maths Schemes of Learning