This policy should be read alongside the victorian curriculum of mathematics
Mathematics enhances our understanding of the world and the quality of participation in society. It enables cultural, social and technological advances, whilst empowering individuals to be critical citizens in a contemporary society. Mathematics is used widely in our society to describe and make sense of the world. The aim of the schools Mathematics program is to develop in students a confident understanding of mathematical concepts, processes and the ability to apply this knowledge effectively to real life situations. Each child will experience success and achieve appropriate learning outcomes. Important mathematical skills and concepts will be experienced by students in our Mathematics Workshops as well as the School Maths Rangers program.
The Mathematics aims for students are to:
The numeracy content is derived from the Victorian Curriculum of Mathematics.
The Mathematics curriculum is organised around the interaction of three content strands and four proficiency strands.
The content strands are Number and Algebra, Measurement and Geometry and Statistics and Probability. These describe what is to be taught and learnt.
The proficiency strands are Understanding, Fluency, Problem Solving, and these describe the how content is explored or developed, that is, the thinking and doing of Mathematics.
‘I can statements ‘are student friendly written statements which directly identify the skills students need to learn. These are used within termly and weekly planning documents, Pre/Post-testing with student centered goal setting and to highlight/celebrate student growth on reports.
Teachers will be supported through Maths coaching from their Team Leaders in consultation with the Learning Team Leader. These Leaders will assist during planning time and meet with teachers for one to one sessions.
The Head of Numeracy will also lead the Maths Learning Team.
A Maths Resource trolley is set up in each of the Learning Communities and is the responsibility of the PLC Leader and team to maintain.
The Maths PLC will work towards lifting the profile of Maths throughout the school and community through family Maths nights, Maths network meetings, Maths week activities, newsletter articles, information night displays, implementation of Mathematics Rangers program/brochure and professional development both external and internal.
At John Henry Primary School Mathematics is a fluid moving, student needs based, type of Maths Workshops. Maths groups are run within Learning Communities and allow greater targeted learning opportunities.
Maths Groups are expected to run for 4hrs per week (most commonly 4 x 1hr sessions) The Maths Rangers Program is expected to be implemented for another hour per week.
5 hours of Maths per week is the minimum expectation.
The program is a Pre/Post-Test model which directly identifies the individual learning needs of students, allows for explicit, targeted teaching and allows students learning growth to be clearly identified. Mathematics concepts are taught over three-week blocks. This aligns with the current best practices for teaching of Mathematics.
Students initially sit an online Pre-Test through the Essential Assessment Program; they are then placed in an ability-based group dependent on their learning needs. The first lesson of the three-week block will be where students look at their Pre-Test to identify their known skills, identify their unknown skills and set their individual learning goals for the remainder of the unit. After completing their Post-Test, students the next day receive their graded test back. This is where success of meeting learning goals is celebrated and growth for the Maths unit recorded onto Compass so parents can view the progress.
With the assistance of Essential Numeracy Assessment, Pre and Post-tests allow for a school wide consistent approach that highlights students learning growth in each Mathematics Strand.
The Mathematical lesson structure is consistent throughout each classroom.
Every lesson consists of:The ‘Engagement’ section or ‘Tune In’ introduction, where the students learning focus for the lesson is explained WALT (We Are Learning To), discussed and examples demonstrated.
The ‘Practice’ section, involves students working through mathematical problems and building confidence in the concept. Students will rotate through a mixture of explicit teaching focus groups, strategy or skilled Maths game groups, consolidating math skills worksheet groups and online Maths program groups.
The ‘Reflection’ stage of the lesson allows students to look back on their learning (did they achieve the WALT), ask questions, receive feedback, share findings and discuss the real life relevance of the Mathematical concept learnt.
The students participate in a school specific designed ‘Maths Rangers’ program. The program aligns with Dianne Siemen’s ‘Developing Big ideas in number’ and was developed to instil the key basics of number sense into our students, while creating a fun and rewarding Maths program for all.
This program is currently carried out by all classes for one hour per week. With a large focus on all Foundation students aiming to achieve their Yellow Ranger Belts by the completion of the year. The program has been developed to include a direct link to the curriculum and align itself with “I can” statements.
Every lesson consists of:The ‘Engagement’ section or ‘Tune In’ introduction, where the students learning focus for the lesson is explained WALT (We Are Learning To), discussed and examples demonstrated.
The ‘Practice’ section, involves students working through mathematical problems and building confidence in the concept. Students will rotate through a mixture of explicit teaching focus groups, strategy or skilled Maths game groups, consolidating math skills worksheet groups and online Maths program groups.
The ‘Reflection’ stage of the lesson allows students to look back on their learning (did they achieve the WALT), ask questions, receive feedback, share findings and discuss the real life relevance of the Mathematical concept learnt.
The students participate in a school specific designed ‘Maths Rangers’ program. The program aligns with Dianne Siemen’s ‘Developing Big ideas in number’ and was developed to instil the key basics of number sense into our students, while creating a fun and rewarding Maths program for all.
This program is currently carried out by all classes for one hour per week. With a large focus on all Foundation students aiming to achieve their Yellow Ranger Belts by the completion of the year. The program has been developed to include a direct link to the curriculum and align itself with “I can” statements.
Assessment and evaluation will be an ongoing part of the classroom program, consisting of planned formal assessments/tests, Maths investigations, informal games and teacher observations and weekly formative assessments.
Progress will be evidenced through pre and post testing of each unit, anecdotal records, On Demand testing and Maths Master testing. Khan Academy will be used for extending students. Whilst the implementation of a PSWPS Response to Intervention Team will assist those students in need.
This policy will be evaluated as part of the school’s three review cycle or as deemed necessary by the Leadership Team.
Assessment and evaluation will be an ongoing part of the classroom program, consisting of planned formal assessments/tests, Maths investigations, informal games and teacher observations and weekly formative assessments.
Progress will be evidenced through pre and post testing of each unit, anecdotal records, On Demand testing and Maths Master testing. Khan Academy will be used for extending students. Whilst the implementation of a PSWPS Response to Intervention Team will assist those students in need.
This policy will be evaluated as part of the school’s three review cycle or as deemed necessary by the Leadership Team.
John Henry Primary School is proud to offer our students and the wider community our ‘Mighty Maths Rangers’ Program. This engaging Numeracy program is an evolution of the Maths Masters Program, including some exciting new additions. It was created based around the research and findings that reiterate the importance of Number Sense and its direct correlation to success in Numeracy. ‘Mighty Maths Rangers’ is taught as a weekly part of the Numeracy Curriculum at JHPS where students work on improving their skills in the Yellow, Green, Pink and Black ‘Range’ which is achieved sequentially as the concepts become increasingly difficult.
In 2017 we were excited to launch the Red and Blue ‘Ranges’ that are dedicated to other vital Mathematical skills such as Financial Maths and Time. The White ‘Range’ is also a recent aspect that was introduced to extend students who have completed all other ‘ranges’ and involves more advanced algebra. Once students master each skill within the ‘range,’ they will receive the corresponding coloured wristband at assembly, presented be the Maths Rangers themselves. We encourage parents to be an active part in this program and you can assist your child to learn the required skills through the links within this website, the JHPS school diary or the take home ‘Maths Ranger Bags.’ This should be an enjoyable way of assisting your child’s growth in Numeracy as well as celebrating their success.
* Please take note that once you click on the online tests, they will be downloaded as a Microsoft Word document. In addition, the links to the online resources/activities may not function properly on iPads/iPhones due to their requirement for Flash Player. For the links to the online resources/activities, we suggest that you use a PC or laptop. Thank you for your understanding.
John Henry primary school has been designed to support a contemporary pedagogical approach and to foster the development of a strong community.
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