Maths
Statement of Intent
At Parkside Primary, we have adopted a mastery approach in order to deliver the three aims of the National Curriculum, fluency, reasoning and problem solving. Underpinning this pedagogy is a belief that all children can achieve in maths. We believe in promoting sustained and deepening understanding by employing a variety of mastery strategies, with teaching for conceptual understanding at the heart of everything we do. Our approach aims to provide all children with full access to the curriculum, enabling them to develop independence, confidence and competence – ‘mastery’ in mathematics in order to be independent mathematicians who are well equipped to apply their learning to the wider world.
Aims
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 nonroutine problems with increasing sophistication, including breaking down problems into
a series of simpler steps and persevering in seeking solutions.
Teaching for Mastery aims to provide all children with full access to the curriculum, enabling them to achieve confidence and competence – ‘mastery’ – in mathematics, rather than many failing to develop the maths skills they need for the future.
Key features of our Maths Mastery curriculum:
- High expectations for every child
- Fewer topics, greater depth
- Number sense and place value come first
- Research -based curriculum
- Objects and pictures always before numbers and letters
- Problem solving is central
- Calculate with confidence– understand why it works
Mathematics Mastery places emphasis on the cumulative mastery of essential knowledge and skills in mathematics. It embeds a deeper understanding of maths by utilising a concrete, pictorial, abstract approach so that pupils understand what they are doing rather than just learning to repeat routines without grasping what is happening.
Have a look at the 'What are we learning?' section on each year group's page to see what they are covering in maths.
White Rose Maths
At Parkside we use the White Rose Maths Scheme to support teachers in providing a structured, comprehensive approach to teaching mathematics. The scheme is closely aligned with the UK National Curriculum for Mathematics, ensuring that the content is appropriate, sequenced effectively, and meets statutory requirements. It provides a clear progression of skills and concepts across year groups, reducing gaps in knowledge.
White Rose Maths is grounded in the mastery approach, emphasising a deep understanding of mathematical concepts. This ensures that pupils develop a robust foundation before moving on to more advanced topics. It encourages children to work at a similar pace, with differentiation achieved through depth of understanding rather than acceleration. The scheme balances fluency (basic skills and speed), reasoning (explaining thinking), and problem-solving (applying knowledge to new contexts), which are key pillars of mathematical learning. These elements are woven into lessons, helping children to not only compute but also understand and explain their answers.
A wealth of resources, including detailed lesson plans, slides, worksheets, and assessments are provided. Visual aids like bar models and part-whole diagrams are used effectively to support conceptual understanding. While structured, White Rose allows teachers to adapt the materials to suit their specific needs – the use of the resources will be supplemented by additional lessons and tasks deemed necessary for the pupils.
The small steps approach, used by White Rose, ensures that concepts are broken down into manageable chunks, which is particularly helpful for younger children and those who may struggle with mathematics. Activities are designed to foster discussion and collaboration, building confidence in communication and reasoning skills. Differentiated tasks and the mastery approach ensure that pupils of all abilities can engage with and succeed in maths.
It supports teaching assistants and teachers with clear guidance for scaffolding learning and challenging high achievers. Regular assessments, such as end-of-unit and end-of-term checks, help monitor progress and identify areas needing intervention. Lessons are designed to be engaging, often using practical tasks, visual representations, and real-life contexts to make maths relevant and enjoyable for children.
White Rose have teamed up with TV presenter, teacher and parent Michael Underwood to bring you a mini-series called Maths with Michael. We understand that parents/carers feel like maths has changed and can sometimes find it difficult to keep up to date with modern teaching methods in maths. Click the image below to watch a short video about White Rose Maths, answering the common questions parents ask.
Please click the links below to view White Rose Maths Policies:
Helping with Times Tables at Home
How you can help at home
There are lots of ways to help to build your child's confidence in maths. There are many fun games and activities you can do with your child that practise maths skills. Most children love playing games and it's an easy way to support their learning.
Tips for helping your child to enjoy maths:
- Point out the different shapes to be found around your home.
- Take your child shopping and talk about the quantities of anything you buy.
- Let your child handle money and work out how much things cost.
- Ask younger children to count all the coins in your purse or wallet.
- Look together for numbers on street signs and car registration plates.
- Look at house numbers and talk about odd and even.
- Ask older children to work out the best special offer.
- Look at clocks and tell the time. Talk about timings for cooking.
- Learn how to recall times tables quickly.
- Practice number recognition, numbers bonds to 10, 20 and 100
- Practice times tables including their related division facts e.g. 2 x 3 = 6 6 ÷ 2 = 3
Useful websites
Using online resources is a good way to get your child to practise their maths skills at home. The following websites have fun games and activities to help their learning. Why not try these?
www.oxfordowl.co.uk/for-home/maths-owl/fun-activities
www.mathplayground.com/games.html
How to learn your x tables
www.mathplayground.com/howto_learnmultfacts.html
https://www.solitaireparadise.com/games_list/table-trees.html
www.mathplayground.com/spaceracer_multiplication.html
www.oswego.org/ocsd-web/games/Ghostblasters1/gbcd.html
KS1 bitesize
www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize/ks1/maths/
KS2 bitesize
Maths Methods
Click here for videos illustrating methods used in maths in the different year groups.
Number Sense
