Maths
Welcome to our maths curriculum page, here you will get a feel for maths at Hotspur from why and how we implement our maths curriculum to how we teach arithmetic in our calculation policy. You can find out about a day in the life of maths at Hotspur or explore links to websites that can support your children in their learning of maths.
At Hotspur we take a mastery approach to maths which means all our children progress through the learning together, we use concrete and visual resources and break down the learning into smaller steps to support and scaffold the learning and when children are secure with concepts they will have the opportunity to explore these in greater depth. We want all our children to enjoy maths and see themselves as mathematicians, not only making connections and applying skills within maths but also across the curriculum. From plotting coordinates in geography to rounding to the nearest decade in history, from measuring in design technology and art to collecting and representing data in science, we want our children to understand how widely maths is used and form a solid foundation to use their mathematical skills and knowledge in real life.
Below you will find additional documents which support our maths curriculum.
Across KS2 we use Times Tables Rockstars to support your child's recall of the multiplication facts, Each child has their own login so can practise at home. If you have any problems please ask your child's class teacher or take a look at the Parent/Carer Guide above.
White Rose have developed a number of resources to support your child's learning of maths at home. They have a One Minute Maths App to help develop fluency in number facts and a range of free workbooks.
https://whiterosemaths.com/1-minute-maths
https://whiterosemaths.com/parent-resources
If you would like to explore more mathematical problems and investigations with your child the Nrich have a range of ideas to explore.
https://nrich.maths.org/parents
A DAY IN THE LIFE OF MATHS AT HOTSPUR
Maths Lessons
During a maths lesson at Hotspur all the children are supported to access the curriculum through the mastery approach. All children will go on journey through their learning which has been carefully broken down into smaller steps: During this journey in a lesson children will experience some or all of the following:
- Recapping previous learning at the start of every lesson it might be yesterday’s work, last week’s work (reviewing homework), last year’s work.
- Time to think mathematically
- Be exposed to mathematical vocabulary
- Use mathematical talk to have discussions to deepen understanding
- Make mistakes and share misconceptions
- Scaffolds to support learning (Concrete, Pictorial and Abstract)
- Opportunity to practise, to reason and problem solve
- Hear stem sentences modelled and rehearsed orally in a similar style Read Write Inc (RWI) – My Turn Your Turn
- See the teacher explicitly model their own thought process, how they may break down a problem or select a strategy
- A working wall used during the lesson
- I do, we do, you do approach
- Ping pong style lessons, back and forward between teacher talk and class discussion.
Outside the main maths lesson you will find a lot more maths across school:
- Early work - Fluency practise in times tables or arithmetic., Number Talks activities
- Fundamental Lessons in KS2 – these may have a timestables focus which could be delivered through our Rainbow tables, using Timestables Rockstars or explicit teaching of a times table. Big Maths lesson which includes regular practise of arithmetic skills. Problem solving and seasoning activities and mathematical investigations.
- Mastering Number Lessons in KS1 (the phonics of Maths) – the children build on the EYFS curriculum and use the Rekenreks to continue to develop good number sense so children develop fluency in calculation and flexibility with number. EYFS continuous provision also provides opportunity for incidental learning maths.
- Mastering Number Lessons in Year 4 and Year 5 (focusing on multiplicative reasoning) - the children build on the additive reasoning looked at in KS1 and begin to develop their understanding of multiplication.
- Maths across the curriculum – from using numberlines and rounding decades and centuries in history to creating graphs in science to reading coordinates in geography to carefully measuring DT. Maths is delivered in all areas of our curriculum.
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Our children will even be exposed to maths during lunchtimes – once a week they find a puzzle displayed in the lunch hall to think about and discuss with friends.
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Maths Enrichment - Maths will be explored in different during STEAM week, as well as themed event such as Shape Week or Maths through Reading Books.
