Intention

At St Thomas’, we aim to develop the children’s Knowledge and Skills in line with a Knowledge and Skills based curriculum.

We inspire Creativity through thought-provoking concepts and variation, which encourage our pupils to think creatively. We encourage Discovery through posing problems that we solve with our peers to gain greater understanding and independently

to consolidate our understanding.

We foster a Curiosity by encouraging our children to think differently and from different perspectives.

We develop Independence by empowering and encouraging them to apply their mathematical understanding to a range of problems while working systematically to achieve their desired outcomes. 

As a result, the children Respect and Value mathematics and become Life-long learners.

Implementation

At St Thomas’, we use a mastery approach to the curriculum, which means pupils spend far longer on fewer key mathematical concepts whilst working at greater depth. Long-term gaps in learning are prevented through speedy teacher intervention and those children who grasp the concepts more quickly are given opportunities to deepen their knowledge and improve their reasoning skills rather than accelerating on to new curriculum content.

Problem solving is central and opportunities are given for pupils to calculate with confidence, ensuring an understanding of why it works so that pupils understand what they are doing rather than just learning to repeat routines and procedures without grasping the mathematics happening.

Typically, the majority of pupils will progress through the curriculum content at the same pace. Differentiation is achieved by emphasising deep knowledge and through individual support and intervention. Practice and consolidation play a central role. Carefully designed variation within this builds fluency and understanding of underlying mathematical concepts in tandem.  Teachers use precise questioning in class to test conceptual and procedural knowledge, and assess pupils regularly to identify those requiring intervention so that all pupils keep up. Teachers will use the concrete, pictorial and abstract approach (CPA) to secure procedural and conceptual understanding simultaneously.

Other ways in which we ensure high-quality maths provision at St Thomas’ include:

• All classes from Reception to Year 6 follow the MyMastery scheme of work by Ark Curriculum, which is fully aligned with the UK National Curriculum.
• Key Stage One complete Mastering Number lessons from the Venn Essex Maths Hub to secure firm foundations in the development of good number sense for all children. The aim over time is that children will leave KS1 with fluency in calculation and confidence and flexibility with number. 
• Staff are continuously provided with professional development. We constantly look to develop our practice by regularly attending relevant courses and engaging with others in the local Maths Hub (Venn Essex) as well as mastery professionals from MyMastery at Ark Curriculum.

Impact

Our pupils have great passion and curiosity for mathematics and can apply their understanding to a wide range of contexts. Our dynamic and progressive curriculum cultivates genuine enthusiasm, confidence and curiosity in the subject which leads to deep level thinking and understanding. Pupils are confident and believe in their mathematical potential. This is reflected in our end of Key Stage attainment which    consistently ranks above national averages. We provide a secure foundation for pupils to meet the challenges of secondary education and beyond.