Why we teach Maths
We want all of our children to be interested and have a positive attitude towards maths. We want to encourage confidence and fluency with numbers and to develop resilience when attempting to solve problems. By the time children leave Cliffdale they will have had the opportunity to develop functional mathematical skills so they can count confidently, demonstrate a deep understanding of numbers and the relationships and patterns within those numbers and use maths in everyday tasks.
We will provide relevant and motivating tasks that will stimulate interest and enthusiasm. Our tasks will be challenging but manageable and will be relevant to the children’s lives and ongoing assessments will be used to plan our next steps.
It is our intent that all children, regardless of their starting point, will work towards their EHCP achievement targets.
How we teach Maths
All children have access to regular maths teaching, through discrete maths sessions and songs or games throughout the school day, as well as teaching individualised maths key skills.
For maths, our long-term planning follows the Early Years statutory Framework and the National Curriculum. These inform our long-term map which is then broken down still further to create a sequence of learning that is appropriate to each child. Planning and daily lessons are adapted to the pupil’s own interests and styles of learning supported by their EHCP targets.
We follow a maths mastery approach tailored to Cliffdale and the needs of our pupils. Maths mastery aims to break down complex ideas into smaller manageable steps of learning that are then practised in different ways using a range of resources and problem-solving methods to deepen understanding. In Cliffdale we aim to:
- Embrace and celebrate really small steps of progress
- Deepen and embed understanding e.g. by not using large numbers too fast
- Generalise everything before moving on
- Recognise that maths happens everywhere
We have a strong emphasis on pupil engagement and motivation and take full advantage of all opportunities for outdoor learning and real-life experiences. Maths in Cliffdale uses a multi-sensory approach using practical activities/stories/songs and link these to concrete skills.
Assessment will be through practical tasks and will be recorded regularly on Reports/ Evidence for Learning observations and linked to their key skill targets/ annual reviews and EHCPs. Where appropriate pupils will be made aware of their targets and will be given opportunities to work independently to demonstrate mastery of the maths concepts and skills.
Maths achievements will be celebrated regularly and linked to our Cliffdale values of independence, communication, engagement, resilience and building relationships.
There will be opportunities to investigate, explore, generalise and problem solve:
- Sensory experiences
- Posting, sorting, 1:1 matching
- Left to right movements
- Language of maths
- Number
- Time including now/next, what happens on different days as well as clock times, anticipation
- Capacity/measurement/weight
- Using money
What difference does this make to the children
- Objectives will be challenging yet achievable. This will promote resilience, self-esteem and enable all pupils have opportunities to achieve success.
- Pupils’ own interests and strengths, ways of learning and remembering things will be focussed on.
- Children will be enabled to use maths in everyday life and learning in other subjects. They will be supported to develop the resilience to solve problems.
- Our children will be encouraged to generalise these skills in other areas e.g. trips outside school, at home etc.
