Mathematics
Mathematics Curriculum Intent
Our curriculum intends to provide every student with a rich experience of mathematics. Students develop an understanding of the relevance of mathematical skills, whether practical or abstract, in today’s society and for the future. The department will promote problem solving, analytical thinking, critical assessment of information and the importance of being intellectually curious.
Our students will be challenged and given personalised support to become resilient, independent mathematicians.
Facilities
The Mathematics department are based in a section of the school where all Maths lessons take place. All classrooms have large touch screen displays. Teachers within the Mathematics department use iPads every lesson either to share work via apps such as Showbie or demonstrate ideas via websites such as Mathsbot, Desmos and GeoGebra.
How parents can help
Parents/carers can support students in Mathematics in a number of different ways. In particular the following will help ensure students are achieving their full potential:
- Being positive about Maths regardless of your own experience
- Ensuring all homework is completed to support the learning process
- Encouraging students to use Sparx videos to go over concepts that they have found challenging in lessons and practice little but often.
- Practising mental calculations (estimating the shopping bill, sharing the cost of a meal, how many litres of petrol can be bought for £50 etc).
- Encouraging Year 11 students to make use of the revision resources available to them on Showbie (please contact Mr Hield for the Showbie codes – Hield@blenheim.surrey.sch.uk).
- Use the How We Teach It Booklet
- Access the Mathematics Glossary
Useful Links
- https://sparxmaths.com/ - used for homework at KS3 and 4 but also provides support when students wish to revise or review the current topic
- https://www.mathsgenie.co.uk/ - GCSE and A-Level revision resources
- https://corbettmaths.com/ - Support for students at KS3 and 4, the ‘five a day’ daily challenge is good for regular practice.
- http://www.physicsandmathstutor.com/ – support for students studying at A level
- https://www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize/examspecs/z9p3mnb - GCSE resources to support revision
The Curriculum
Students are taught a five year curriculum. It has been developed by Pearson (Edexcel) and is in line with the National curriculum for Mathematics . The curriculum takes into consideration numeracy within the wider curriculum subjects and where relevant, we include these. For example, when teaching rearranging equations, we include in Science to support students application to other areas.
The educational approach is one where learners revisit the same topics over time, each time deepening their understanding.
The benefits this curriculum include:
- Topics are revisited to consolidate understanding
- Topics increase in complexity
- New learning is related to previous learning
- Learners mathematical understanding increases
KS3 Mathematics
Years 7 and 8
In years 7 and 8, students are taught the curriculum across 9 lessons per fortnight.
The scheme of work and deliberate practice within lessons is carefully designed to develop and consolidate students’ conceptual understanding in the following key areas:
- Number
- Calculating or using and applying mathematics
- Algebra
- Space shape and measure
- Statistics or data handling
Students are also encouraged to develop their reasoning and mathematical thinking through “Toughest, Tougher and Tough” activities.
How students are assessed
Students will be assessed via homework, Tri-Weekly and Key Assessments tests on a regular basis throughout the year. These Key Assessment tests are unseen assessments set by the head of department or key stage lead. Reports to parents on these tests would follow the school reporting system. We also support students to develop in their self-assessment and peer assessment skills.
Homework
Each student will be set 30 minutes of Mathematics homework per week in year 7 and 8. This work will be set on Sparx with students following the planned scheme of work. For each homework, every question has an associated video to aid recall (if needed) before questions are answered. It is the student’s responsibility to ensure that homework is complete before the deadline. If there are any problems with accessing Sparx please email your Maths class teacher.
How parents can help
- Checking that homework is completed on time and to a satisfactory standard, and assisting in any way they can to complete it if necessary.
- Encouraging students to revise regularly throughout the school term by reading the “Green Box” examples in their exercise book.
- Ensuring students have the correct equipment i.e. pens, pencil, ruler, scientific calculator, Mathematical Geometry set.
- Ensuring students have a quiet place to study away from distractions.
KS4 Mathematics GCSE
Exam Board and Details
Pearson Edexcel Level 1/Level 2 GCSE (9-1) in Mathematics (1MA1)
Link to Personal Learning Checklists
Course Outline
Mathematics is a Core subject and as such is compulsory at Key Stage 4.
The course content includes topics on:
- Number
- Algebra
- Ratio, proportion and rates of change
- Geometry and measures
- Probability
- Statistics
Key skills students will develop
In order to be successful, students will have to demonstrate that they can select and use the appropriate mathematical methods needed in a range of situations. Passing GCSE Maths is a pre-requisite for most higher education courses and professional careers. Students will need to work hard consistently throughout the course in order to achieve their full potential.
The aims and objectives of the GCSE Mathematics course are to enable students to:
- Develop fluent knowledge, skills and understanding of mathematical methods and concepts
- Acquire, select and apply mathematical techniques to solve problems
- Reason mathematically, make deductions and inferences and draw conclusions
- Comprehend, interpret and communicate mathematical information in a variety of forms appropriate to the information and context.
How students are assessed
|
Exam (1.5 hrs) |
Mixed content (non-calculator) |
33.3% of the qualification |
|
Exam (1.5 hrs) |
Mixed content |
33.3% of the qualification |
|
Exam (1.5 hrs) |
Mixed content |
33.3% of the qualification |
Homework
Homework will be set on a weekly basis and should take between 1 and 1½ hours. The aim of homework at GCSE is to consolidate the learning in lessons and progress further through extension tasks.
How Parents Can Help
- Encourage students to practice, practice, practice. Even if they say they can do a task, insist they show you to prove they can!
- Encourage students to set out their work as they have been shown. The structure will help them to solve the problem successfully.
- Practice questions at home which challenge students' problem solving skills as well as the straight forward maths techniques, especially exam questions which can be accessed through past papers which will be shared via Showbie in the GCSE Maths Revision Area
- Always check over work when it is completed. It is really easy to lose marks at the beginning of a paper. Carefully reviewing homework tasks with students will help to establish this habit.
- Owning a calculator is not sufficient; students need to know how to use it. This only comes through familiarity which is why we insist they use a calculator for classwork and not an iPad version. Students should bring their calculator to every lesson.
- Encourage students to show how they reached their solution. Usually there is only one mark for the final answer; the rest are for the working out.
