One of the three main aims of the revised maths curriculum is to ensure that all pupils can reason mathematically in maths but it’s not always clear what we mean by this and how to incorporate it into lessons. So what is reasoning? The NCTM tells us that: The ability to reason systematically and carefully develops when students are encouraged to make conjectures, are given time to search for evidence to prove or disprove them, and are expected to explain and justify their ideas. It must become a part of the way we teach daily in order for our students to become proficient in their ability to ..read more

This very question appeared in a Facebook group recently albeit with a couple of words replaced to make it more palatable! As teachers, we assume that parents know what we are talking about when we use terms such as the number line but how would a parent know if it is their first child at school and they have never heard the term before? If it’s just been introduced, their child may not be able to explain. So how can you help parents to be fully prepared to help their child at home? Inform Parents Tell parents what equipment they need for a particular homework and suggest alternatives. Also ..read more

Over a period of eighteen years, my mum had a vested interest in the primary school that all six of us attended. For the first fourteen years, she had no reason to ask for a meeting since she had no concerns. However, when our youngest sibling was seven, Mum noticed that she didn’t have a good grasp of her multiplication facts whereas we were all fluent in the use of multiplication facts (up to 12 x 12) by that age. So Mum wanted to understand whether my sister was struggling with maths. The teacher explained that within the gap of five years between myself and my sister, teaching styles had ..read more

One aim of the primary maths curriculum is for pupils to solve problems by applying their mathematics to a variety of routine and non-routine problems. While we should incorporate this throughout the year, it can sometimes slide as teachers prepare for tests. If that’s the case, now is the perfect time to provide opportunities for pupils to apply their learning in a real-life context. By this, I don’t mean pupils completing a sheet of word problems, rather using maths to create something or provide information that somebody needs. Benefits Working on real-life applications often brings togeth ..read more

As pupils and teachers enjoy their Easter break, those teaching in Year 6 will be acutely aware of the time left after the break to prepare for SATS. Given that these tests are designed to show pupils’ attainment by the end of their primary schooling, perhaps schools should go about their usual business and students sit the tests in May without any particular preparation. However, this is rarely the case. Teachers help pupils by revising content that has been covered over the last two years. This is important since we teach maths in topics for much of the time and pupils need to bring those t ..read more

Running any extra-curricular club takes time and commitment often within an already frenetic day. So you want to make sure that your time is spent well and pupils benefit from attending an extra-curricular activity. The following questions can help you clarify your thoughts before starting a maths club. Why run a maths club? Pupils in primary school already spend a significant amount of time learning maths so surely extra-curricular activities should exclude this core subject? We do spend a large portion of time teaching maths but there is a large curriculum to cover and little time for diver ..read more

With Wix Blog, you’re not only sharing your voice with the world, you can also grow an active online community. That’s why the Wix blog comes with a built-in members area - so that readers can easily sign easily up to become members of your blog. What can members do? Members can follow each other, write and reply to comments and receive blog notifications. Each member gets their own personal profile page that they can customize. Tip: You can make any member of your blog a writer so they can write posts for your blog. Adding multiple writers is a great way to grow your content and keep it fres ..read more

When it comes to design, the Wix blog has everything you need to create beautiful posts that will grab your reader's attention. Check out our essential design features. Choose from 8 stunning layouts Your Wix Blog comes with 8 beautiful layouts. From your blog's settings, choose the layout that’s right for you. For example, a tiled layout is popular for helping visitors discover more posts that interest them. Or, choose a classic single column layout that lets readers scroll down and see your post topics one by one. Every layout comes with the latest social features built in. Readers can easil ..read more

We’ve made it quick and convenient for you to manage your blog from anywhere. In this blog post we’ll share the ways you can post to your Wix Blog. Blogging from Your Wix Blog Dashboard On the dashboard, you have everything you need to manage your blog in one place. You can create new posts, set categories and more. To head to your Dashboard, open the Wix Editor and click on Blog > Posts. Blogging from Your Published Site Did you know that you can blog right from your published website? After you publish your site, go to your website’s URL and login with your Wix account. There you can wri ..read more

“What do you mean you’ve got a maths game for homework? That’s not real work but don’t worry, I will find you a worksheet.” When this conversation between a pupil and his mother was relayed to me one morning, it made me realise that I had made a huge assumption that parents would appreciate the benefits of playing maths games. This clearly not being the case, we obviously needed to run some maths workshops for parents focusing on the approaches used when teaching maths and an explanation of their benefits. So how do we justify the playing of games? Consolidation Pupils need to apply and pract ..read more