Concrete activities use everyday objects or maths equipment to support the children's learning in maths.

Pictorial is the ‘seeing’ stage, using representations of the objects involved in maths problems, by drawing or looking at pictures, circles, diagrams or models which represent the objects in the problem.

Abstract is the ‘symbolic’ stage, where children are able to use more formal written methods to solve calculations.

Mathematics is essential in everyday life.  It develops in people the ability to think logically and to order and organise their thoughts.  As a school we want to give all children the competence and confidence to use mathematics in everyday situations and to solve problems effectively.  

 The aims of mathematics at Aldwyn are:

• to promote enjoyment and enthusiasm for learning through practical activities, exploration and discussion;
• to promote and develop pupils’ mental maths skills and ensure that these underpin any written strategies that children may learn and use; 
• to promote confidence and competence with numbers and the number system; 
• to develop the ability to solve problems through decision-making and reasoning in a range of contexts;
• to develop a practical understanding of the ways in which information is gathered and presented;
• to explore features of shape and space, and develop measuring skills in a range of contexts;
• to understand the importance of mathematics in everyday life.

The National Curriculum of mathematics gives a detailed outline of what we teach in the long term and our yearly teaching programme identifies these key objectives. Our medium-term plans are also adopted from the National Curriculum and they ensure there is a balanced coverage of the key objectives. These medium plans allow us to link our teaching to other subjects to create good cross curricular links. Our teaching is also supported from schemes such as Abacus Evolve, White Rose and a variety of other maths resources. 

At Aldwyn a big emphasis is placed on having the ability to work out answers to a problem mentally so all age groups have mental maths lessons where these skills are developed at an appropriate level.   

You can improve your maths by trying these games and activities at home.  Click here .  Every child has been given a username and password.  Good luck.

How do we teach maths at Aldwyn? 

We have some documents that will help explain the methods we use to teach maths to children.  We hope you find them useful.

Progression in mental maths