At Langdon Academy we believe that we are all mathematicians. We draw upon a range of techniques including using efficient mental methods as well as written calculation strategies to help us solving problems and complete investigations. We value talking about maths and explaining our thinking both orally and inwriting (journaling).
Our children become mathematicians by building on a sound conceptual knowledge of place value, children develop fluent recall of number bonds in Key Stage 1 and rapid recall of times tables up to 12 by the end of Year 4. To achieve fluency, children complete mental maths activities frequently and we use Mathletics (our online homework tool) which challenges the children to master number bonds, multiplication facts, associated division facts and it gives the opportunities to apply this knowledge to solve problems in different contexts. Our children leave the primary phase as resilient problem solvers with the ability to explain their reasoning.
To access mathletics please clink on this link: MATHLETICS LOGIN
Children are given rich experiences using practical resources to give concrete representations of mathematical concepts. We then focus on the use of varied visual representations such as the bar and whole/part models. This helps us to support children to move to an abstract understanding embedding depth in conceptual understanding as well as procedural fluency. Our learning-teaching approach is step-by-step and spirals upwards towards ‘mastery’ where the focus is on creating as many relationships and links between skills and concepts – promoting greater depth of understanding.
We follow the National Curriculum for maths as this ensures we provide the children with everything they need to succeed. We then go above and beyond this where possible to ensure our children are always pushing themselves. Children are given ample time to spend exploring new topics, reinforcing it with ample practice. Children are encouraged to work collaboratively and take risks in a safe yet challenging learning environment. Language skills are developed through class discussion and use of explanation whilst journaling.