Maths
The Maths department will prepare students to become confident, numerate individuals who are able to deal with all aspects of mathematics in their chosen career and in all aspects of their adult life. Through great quality teaching and high expectations students will be challenged and motivated to achieve their full potential. As well as developing mathematical skills students will also be encouraged to develop transferable skills such as communication, resilience, problem solving and creative thinking.
During key stage 3 students will build on and extend their mathematical knowledge acquired from primary school. In years 7-9, students will follow the Kangaroo Maths scheme of work, gradually building their knowledge of the key principles of number, algebra, ratio & proportion, geometry, probability and statistics. In lessons, new concepts will be broken down into key ‘chunks’ and presented in logical steps, allowing for a deeper understanding of topics and subject mastery.
At the end of the year 9, students will be ready to move onto key stage 4 and continue working towards their GCSEs having developed a strong understanding of the fundamentals of mathematics.
There are three assessments throughout the year. All assessments will have an element of multiple choice questions that will require students to recall facts, formulae and definitions from their knowledge organisers. The test will then comprise of mathematical questions to assess their understanding and application. Students will be given a Question Level Analysis sheet after all assessments informing them of their progress on each question topic. All topics will have links to Hegarty clip numbers enabling students to proactively tackle their personalised areas for improvement.
Students will have the opportunity to enter national competitions run by the United Kingdom Mathematics Trust (UKMT) to compete with young inspired mathematicians from around the country.
We reject the idea that some pupils ‘just can’t do maths’. We believe that through hard work all pupils can improve their
understanding and be successful.
Our aim is to support our pupils to develop a long-term, secure and adaptable understanding of mathematics. This is achieved through developing their fluency, mathematical reasoning and the ability to solve problems in unison.
All students are expected to actively engage and participate in their learning.
Students should be mathematically fluent and are able to communicate effectively both orally and on paper
Students are provided with regular opportunities to develop their knowledge and understanding independently
Classrooms are positive and safe learning environments, where it is encouraged to take risks and build resilience
In order to achieve this, we have introduced a 5-year scheme of learning which builds on KS2; provides coverage of the National Curriculum and GCSE Curriculum; and prepares them for Mathematics Post 16. It is a spiral curriculum that focuses on depth before breadth, sequenced using interleaving that ensures students:
Are presented with consistent methods and key layouts to aid understanding and reduce cognitive load.
Are always equipped with the prerequisite knowledge required to effectively approach new problems.
Are constantly provided with opportunities to recall, retrieval and interweave their knowledge and skills.
It begins by building on key KS2 number topics throughout Year 7 as well as introducing and developing core algebra skills. All students move forward together by being offered scaffolded tasks as well as strengthen and deepen material to deepen understanding rather than moving onto new topics. The scheme of learning moves from the simple to the complex within and across the 5 years.
Following a spiral curriculum enables pupils to master concepts and ideas, revisiting topics to ensure that a greater depth of knowledge is gained. Students who grasp concepts rapidly are challenged through rich and challenging tasks within the same narrow focus before any acceleration through new content is considered. Those who are not sufficiently fluent consolidate their understanding before moving on.
Each lesson begins with a review of previous learning, of varying recency, designed to strengthen recall and develop well- connected mathematical knowledge. Students are regularly assessed through no and low stakes quizzes and feedback is provided promptly to allow effective re-teaching and ensure that every student knows where to improve.
We are unapologetic about the spiral nature of our mathematics curriculum. Students learn the key concepts and processes identified in the national curriculum and then engage with them at a deeper level every year throughout their 5-year journey. Following a spiral curriculum enables students to master concepts and ideas, revisiting topics to ensure that a greater depth of knowledge are gained whilst viewing mathematics as interconnected skills rather than disparate topics . Students who grasp concepts rapidly are challenged through rich and challenging tasks with the same narrow focus before accelerating through new content is considered.
Retrieval practice is a feature of every lessons using Do Now activities to secure the retention of core knowledge. These tasks are designed to strengthen recall and develop well-connected mathematical knowledge and questions are cleverly written to ensure that threshold concepts are interwoven throughout independent practice. All Trust schools use Sparx homework, a retrieval-based platform that individualises tasks for the students ensuring they are always challenged appropriately.
The TWT curriculum covers the National Curriculum and beyond split into five key areas: Number, Algebra, Geometry, Ratio & Proportion and Data Handling. Each of these areas is covered several times over the course of key stage 3 and 4 to ensure that pupils regularly revisit and progressively extend their knowledge in each area simultaneously. This encourages pupils to gain confidence with each topic in incremental steps and the regular data cycles provide opportunities for them to reflect on their learning and set targets for future improvement.