At The Stoke Poges School we take great care in the teaching of mathematics from EYFS through to Year 6 and preparing children for every stage of their learning.  Our emphasis is on problem solving and investigating maths through everyday situations.  We strive towards shaping assured, happy and resilient mathematicians who relish the challenge of maths.

Maths 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.

National Curriculum Aims

The national curriculum for mathematics aims to ensure that all pupils:

• Become fluent in the fundamentals of mathematics, including the varied and regular practice of increasingly complex problems over time.
• Reason mathematically by following a line of enquiry, understanding relationships and generalisation, and developing an argument, justification or proof using mathematical language
• Can solve problems by applying their mathematics to a variety of problems with increasing confidence, including breaking down problems into a series of simpler steps and persevering in seeking solutions.

Mathematics is an interconnected subject in which pupils need to be able to move fluently between mathematical ideas.  The programmes of study are, by necessity, organised into distinct areas, but pupils will make connections across mathematical ideas to develop fluency, mathematical reasoning and competence in solving increasingly sophisticated problems.  They will also apply their mathematical knowledge to science and other subjects.

What are we aiming for?

Our Maths curriculum aims to:

• Equip all children with the basic numeracy skills necessary for life
• Ensure that children become fluent in the fundamentals of maths
• Develop in all children a positive attitude towards mathematics and a belief that all children ‘can do’ maths
• Provide opportunities for all children within the school to develop their full potential in mathematics
• Develop in children the correct use and understanding of appropriate mathematical vocabulary
• Provide opportunities for children to use mathematical skills across the curriculum, in particular science and design and technology
• Foster a love for maths

How do we achieve this?

The expectation is that the majority of pupils will move through the programmes of study at broadly the same time.  However, decisions about when to progress will always be based on the security of pupils’ understanding and their readiness to progress to the next stage.  Pupils who grasp concepts rapidly will be challenged through being offered increasingly complex problems before any acceleration through new content.  Those who are not sufficiently fluent with earlier material will consolidate their understanding, including additional practise, before moving on. 

We use a small-step approach and draw on research and pedagogy from the National Centre of Excellence in Mathematics (NCETM) and White Rose Schemes of work.

Our spiral curriculum has been carefully designed to ensure that the practice used is intelligent practice that both reinforces pupils’ procedural fluency and develops their conceptual understanding.  We aim to spark curiosity and excitement about maths, as well as nurture confidence in mathematical concepts.

Extra maths fluency sessions outside of regular curriculum lessons helps reinforce key mathematical concepts through regular, focused practise. These sessions boost students' confidence in basic skills such as mental arithmetic, number sense, and problem-solving, which are stepping-stones for more complex maths topics. By dedicating a short time of the day to fluency, children can develop speed, accuracy, and a deeper understanding of numbers, supporting their overall progress in maths. To facilitate this, Reception, Year 1 and Year 2 follow the NCETM’s Mastering Number Programme. In Key Stage 2, half-termly Key Instant Recall Facts (KIRFs) are identified and practised.

Challenge is provided through daily lessons and additional opportunities across the curriculum are provided such as projects and inter-school competitions.

Mathematics in the Early Years

During the EYFS the essential building blocks of mathematics are established.  There are regular opportunities for children to carry out activities across all areas of learning.  Children will develop a secure knowledge base, vocabulary and develop a positive, ‘have a go’ attitude to maths.  By the end of the EYFS, children should be able to:

• Count objects, actions and sounds
• Subitise – recognise quantities without counting up to 5
• Link the number symbol with its cardinal number value
• Count beyond 20
• Compare numbers
• Explore and represent patterns within numbers up to 10, including evens and odds, double facts and how quantities can be evenly distributed
• Understand the one more than / one less than relationship between consecutive numbers
• Explore the composition of numbers to 10
• Recall number bonds for numbers 0-5 and some to 10
• Investigate shapes
• Continue, copy and create repeating patterns

Assessment

In mathematics, assessment is continuous.  From the beginning of every lesson, teachers and teacher assistants will be assessing what their pupils are, or are not understanding and use this to scaffold each segment of the lesson.  Interventions will be both planned for and ‘live’, meaning that misconceptions are dealt with immediately and high attaining pupils are challenged appropriately.

Pre and post teaching in each maths unit ensures that all children can achieve and are prepared for the following lesson.

Impact

As a result, learners will:

• Know more, remember more and understand more about mathematics
• Demonstrate a rapid recall of facts and procedures, including key facts and multiplication tables
• Show confidence in their ability to achieve in mathematics
• Have the flexibility and fluidity to move between different contexts and representations of maths
• Develop the ability to recognise relationships and make connections in maths lessons, deepening and consolidating their understanding of key concepts
• Show mastery of mathematical concepts or skills and can show it in multiple ways, using mathematical language to explain their ideas
• Understand the importance of and differences between their reasoning and problem-solving skills