Mrs Kirsten Metcalf and Mrs Louise Swindlehurst are Subject Leaders for Maths

Core Values - Faith and Trust (In one’s abilities), Forgiveness.

MATHEMATICS at St Martin and St Mary C of E Primary School

At St. Martin and St. Mary C of E Primary School we believe that Mathematics teaches children how to make sense of the world around them through developing their ability to use number, calculate, reason and solve problems.  Children are encouraged to understand relationships and patterns in both number and space in their everyday lives. Our Mathematics curriculum provides breadth and balance and is relevant to suit the needs of all children in the modern world.  It is flexible; with the intent to motivate all pupils and encourage success at all levels.

The national curriculum for mathematics aims to ensure that all pupils:

• become fluent in the fundamentals of mathematics, including through varied and frequent practice with increasingly complex problems over time, so that pupils develop conceptual understanding and the ability to recall and apply knowledge rapidly and accurately.
• reason mathematically by following a line of enquiry, conjecturing relationships and generalisations, and developing an argument, justification or proof using mathematical language.
• can solve problems by applying their mathematics to a variety of routine and non-routine problems with increasing sophistication, including breaking down problems into a series of simpler steps and persevering in seeking solutions.

In addition to this, at St. Martin and St. Mary C of E Primary School we aim to:

• Promote a confident, positive attitude towards the learning and use of Mathematics making it an enjoyable experience.
• Promote confidence and competence with numbers and the number system.
• Encourage pupils by promoting true belief in every child that they can all, with hard work, be strong mathematicians, through promoting a Growth Mindset.
• Promote the ability to solve problems through connecting ideas, decision-making and applying their mathematical skills in a range of contexts, both practical and investigative.  This also includes other subjects such as Science, Geography and Art/Design Technology.
• Promote mathematical reasoning by following a line of enquiry, developing an argument and making justifications using mathematical language.
• Promote a practical understanding of the ways in which information is gathered, presented and used.
• Promote the exploration of features of shape and space and develop measuring skills in a range of contexts.
• Understand the importance of Mathematics in everyday use, especially in relation to essential life skills, such as telling the time and understanding money.

Through all of these aims we aim to ensure that all children become masters of mathematics, who can use and manipulate principles learned in Maths lessons in their everyday lives, thus showing a deeper and broader understanding of the subject.  We will ensure that Maths is a “tool for life and immeasurably more valuable than the short term ability to answer questions in tests or exams.” (NCETM)