Maths at Trimley St Mary
Arithmetic and calculation skills are vital parts of a mathematics , but it is far more than that. It is a creative and highly inter-connected subject that has been developed over centuries. The skills children will learn are essential to everyday life, and absolutely necessary for financial literacy and most forms of employment.
Here at Trimley St Mary Primary school children will develop secure conceptual understanding of the subject by following a “Concrete, pictorial and abstract” approach. This means they will be introduced to new ideas through the use of concrete materials (for example Numicon, base ten equipment and place value counters) and will then develop their understanding through the use of pictorial images (such as bar models) before solving problems. Using resources such as timestable rockstars, we make learning timestables fun. In lessons we help children to develop the ability to recall and apply their knowledge rapidly and accurately, encouraging them to make connections between different aspects of the subject.
We want our pupils to develop the ability to reason mathematically and to be confident when using mathematical language to explain their thinking. Most importantly we want children to enjoy their lessons while they develop an appreciation of the beauty and power of mathematics and the ability to make connections.
Our maths policy will give you some ideas about how we teach maths. Please see link below.
Key concepts are:
Concrete refers to the use of manipulatives, objects which represent mathematical concepts and can be physically picked up (such as base ten equipment, Numicon, bead strings, etc.)
Pictorial, as the name suggests, is the use of carefully selected pictures, diagrams, etc to represent concepts.
Abstract is the stage when, having developed a secure conceptual understanding, children are ready to use 'just' numbers and symbols.
We aim to ensure that every child can make progress and will use a variety of methods so that every child’s need are met while fostering an enjoyment of maths.
Mr Murray