In Maths, we learn how numbers work together, spotting patterns, solving problems and thinking through all the options. This makes us Mathematicians. 

Intent

At Riddings Infant and Nursery School, we believe that EVERYONE can do Maths.

We want all our children to be confident mathematicians who love to tackle a problem and show determination when things get tricky. Mistakes are our favourite thing in Maths lessons because we know we can learn so much from our mistakes.

As a school we value talk in Maths lessons. We believe all ideas are helpful and every child should feel comfortable to articulate their mathematical thinking. We hope to equip our children with accurate vocabulary and clear sentence structures to support them as they explain mathematical concepts.

Our curriculum is designed to ensure children leave us with a solid foundation for understanding number, reasoning, thinking logically and problem solving with resilience so that they are fully prepared for the future. We want our children to understand the importance of Maths in their daily lives so we strive to offer opportunities to apply their skills across the curriculum and in real life situations. 

We intend for all children at Riddings Infants and Nursery develop an enjoyment of Maths and high level of competence that will set them up for a positive future in education and beyond.  

Implementation

At Riddings we deliver the Maths National Curriculum through a Mastery teaching approach. This means we give our children time to become fluent in basic number facts, give plenty of opportunities to be hands on with manipulatives, use a variety of different representations and models, and embed problem solving and reasoning skills to master the curriculum.

We do not follow one particular scheme but have created a bespoke curriculum for our children by drawing on best practice from a range of resources including White Rose Education, the NCETM, and NRICH. Please click here to see our Long Term Overviews for Maths which show the coverage of the National Curriculum elements across the year. 

All our Maths lessons require our children to be active learners and explorers. They all contain opportunities for children to talk about Maths, use manipulatives and resources as needed, and tackle something that will challenge them no matter what their prior attainment.

We "Strive for Five" in lessons, which means if the children can answer five questions or solve five problems then we know they have understood the concept and its time for a challenge. Challenges are a key part of our Maths lessons. The teachers craft them to include a range of skills, models, and strategies. The children all talk very positively about challenges.

"Sometimes challenges are a bit tricky but it feels so good when you finally get it." - Year 2 pupil.

"I love challenges. Give me any challenge - I can do it" - Reception pupil

In order to support all children to keep up with the curriculum we run daily interventions. Teachers uses formative assessment each lesson to identify any children needing additional support or further challenge. These children will work with an adult that afternoon to ensure they are ready to continue the learning with their peers the next day. 

We believe fluency with number facts supports children to be able to tackle reasoning and problem solving more competently. Therefore, we have additional fluency sessions daily following our Number Facts Fluency Progression document. 

Impact

Attainment in Maths is measured using statutory assessments such as the end of EYFS and Key Stage 1 frameworks. Additionally, we track our own Maths attainment through fluency assessments, White Rose assessments (where appropriate) and ongoing teacher assessments. With the support of our local Maths Hub, we are accessing high quality CPD and on an ongoing journey to embed the Mastery teaching approach to give all our children the highest quality Maths education. We have a 3 year plan for the continual improvement of Maths teaching and learning, and we are confident our outcomes will continue on their current upward trajectory. 

We believe, to be a good mathematician you need a spectrum of different skills and attitudes. Therefore we do not just assess our children's knowledge. We also assess their fluency, skills, flexibility, resilience, communication, reasoning, and confidence. 

It is our firm belief that ALL children can do Maths and we want every child in Riddings Infants and Nursery School to confident and know that mistakes are marvellous. We work hard to ensure that by the time children leave us in Year 2 they have developed a positive growth mindset and we have eradicated the phrase "I'm not very good at Maths."