Welcome back to the 2024-25 academic year
In Mathematics our intent is to enable all of our students to access the content and make progress through the curriculum. The Mathematics Department aspires to deliver a varied and stimulating curriculum that enables our learners to engage in all areas of Mathematics. Our curriculum is developed into 3 main pathways that give our learners the opportunity to make progress and consolidate knowledge that links to independence and life skills, with the opportunity to transfer between them as required. Learners are regularly assessed both formally and informally to ensure their needs are being met and they are developing their skill base and transferable knowledge.
We promote Mathematics for independence, confidence and life skills, as well as academic lessons and activities. We provide an array of opportunities for our learners to access mathematics on a practical level as well as written and formal methods. We ensure our curriculum includes exposure to different strategies to problem solve and find solutions to real life experiences for example, understanding and using money effectively, telling the time, measuring and estimating. The use of formal Rising Stars Assessments enables us to ensure that our learners are on the correct pathway and making optimum progress. Work is differentiated accordingly following the pathway but also within individual lessons to meet learner needs. To monitor progress we use a variety of methods, such as, Classroom Monitor, Solo Taxonomy, Scaffolding and mental maths assessments
Mathematics is linked closely with all aspects of independence and promotes problem solving, cognitive skills, cross-curricular links and develops confidence. Learners social skills are greatly enhanced by the opportunities to share, take turns, collaborate and improve communication skills. Mathematics gives learners the skills to apply their knowledge and understanding to support them in life outside of the school environment.
In Maths lessons pupils are encouraged to delve deeply into their understanding of Mathematics and how it relates to the world around them. Our Maths teaching actively encourages risk taking which enables pupils to explore and try new ideas without the fear of failure. This is fundamental to building pupils’ self-esteem within Mathematics. We aim for our students to use their own Maths to explore and question the way the world works and also to apply their reasoning to puzzles for their personal satisfaction.
Spiritual
Key Stage 3
Moral
Social
Cultural
We investigate and research cross cultural patterns – tessellation, islamic tiling.
We demonstrate and encourage diverse techniques e.g. for multiplication that have derived from different ancient civilisations. – Russian / Chinese multiplication,
Occupations Using Maths Although you will see very few jobs titled Mathematician, your subject has a wide application across the working world. It is easy to fall into the trap of thinking that the only options open to you are either finance sector jobs or teaching. However you could also find employment across a broad range of sectors including engineering, information technology, oil industry, biotechnology and the civil service. Any industry that uses modelling, simulation, cryptography, forecasting, statistics, risk analysis and probability will value your subject knowledge and skills. In business employers look for excellent analytical and problem solving skills for such diverse areas as logistics, market research, operational research, business analysis and management consultancy. Here are some ideas to help you think about what you might want to do: Finance: Banking, accountancy, actuarial, tax, underwriter, pensions, insurance Medicine: Medical statistics, medical and epidemiological research, pharmaceutical research Design: Engineering design, computer games Science: Biotechnology, Meteorology, oceanography, pure and applied research and development Civil Service: Scientists (Fast Stream, DSTL, DESG), GCHQ, Security Service, Statisticians Business: Logistics, financial analysis, marketing, market research, sales oil industry, management consultancy, operational research IT: Systems analysis, Research Engineering: Aerospace, building design, transport planning, telecommunications, surveying
Key Stage 3 is split into 5 stages. Pupils are assessed and put into the correct stage then progress through the stage and move onto the next. Often pupils will work across 2 stages where they make more progress in different areas of Mathematics