Maths
At Meadowhead Infants and Nursery, our aim is for every child to enjoy mathematics and develop a secure, deep understanding of fundamental mathematical concepts and procedures. We want our children to recognise the mathematics that surrounds them every day, develop curiosity and fascination about numbers, patterns and problem-solving, and build the confidence and skills they need to use mathematics throughout their lives.
We are a Maths Mastery School and our ambitious curriculum underpinned by the CPA (Concrete, Pictorial and Abstract) approach, enabling children to explore mathematical ideas in a range of ways and develop a deeper understanding of the concepts they are learning.
Through adaptive teaching, we respond to the needs of all our children, ensuring that every learner is supported, challenged and encouraged to meet the learning intentions. Our ‘challenge for all’ approach promotes high expectations, allowing every child to make progress and reach their full mathematical potential.
We aim to inspire confident, enthusiastic and resilient mathematicians who enjoy exploring, reasoning and making connections.
At Meadowhead Community Infants, we are all mathematicians!
Our Mastery Maths Aims
Our Mastery Maths approach aims to:
- Develop a positive attitude towards mathematics, ensuring that all children experience success, enjoyment and a sense of achievement through a mastery approach.
- Ensure the curriculum is carefully and coherently planned, with a detailed sequence of essential knowledge and skills that supports sustained progression over time.
- Provide a wide variety of meaningful mathematical opportunities, including opportunities linked to real-life contexts, enabling children to make relevant connections and understand the purpose of mathematics.
- Develop confident mathematicians who are willing to take risks, embrace challenge, learn from mistakes and persevere when faced with difficulties.
- Develop mathematical fluency and communication, enabling children to express their ideas clearly and confidently, using accurate mathematical language and vocabulary. Stem sentences will be used to support children in developing precise mathematical explanations and reasoning.
- Prioritise assessment for learning, building on children's prior knowledge and understanding. Teachers will use assessment information to identify misconceptions, provide pre-teaching where appropriate and adapt teaching responsively as learning takes place.
- Use regular learning checks to assess understanding and inform the direction and pace of teaching, ensuring that lessons are responsive to the needs of all learners.
- Identify and address gaps in learning quickly, with appropriate intervention provided as soon as possible and, where appropriate, before the start of the next lesson, so that children are able to keep up with the planned sequence of learning.
At Meadowhead Infants, we use White Rose as our framework for teaching mathematics in Years 1 and 2, supplemented and adapted using resources such as NCETM, Oak Academy and the Ready to Progress Criteria.
EYFS
Mathematics in our Nursery and Reception classes is taught through a wide range of practical, hands-on experiences, both indoors and outdoors. Our EYFS team creates a rich learning environment where children can explore number, shape, space and measure through purposeful play and continuous provision. Adults model the use of resources and introduce appropriate mathematical language, helping children to develop their understanding and confidence in maths.
In Reception, we are embedding Mastering Number, supported by White Rose Maths Hub. This year, we are also piloting the updated Mastery Number Scheme through the Maths Hub.
In Nursery we use Master the Curriculum providing a structured, step-by-step approach to build early mathematical foundations through small, manageable steps.
Fluency
At Meadowhead Infants, we use Mastering Number to develop children’s number sense, fluency and confidence. This daily, short session helps children develop a deep understanding of number through subitising, exploring how numbers are composed and decomposed, comparing quantities and recognising relationships between numbers. These strong foundations support children to become fluent with number facts and calculate efficiently and accurately.