Overview
Allendale Primary School deliverers a Maths program which provides a balanced approach, by doing Mathematics and developing skills, knowledge and understanding through explicit and direct instruction. Students participate in a one-hour Mathematics lesson each day, where formal instruction is delivered in the strands of:
1. Number an Algebra
2. Measurement and Geometry
3. Statistics and Probability
The Numeracy Block
To ensure understanding is developed, teaching and learning is centred around concrete, real life experiences to scaffold and promote abstract thinking. A warmup at the start of every lesson engages students through drill and skill of basic facts and reviews of previously taught content. Students participate daily in card and dice games to develop recall and apply basic facts. Curriculum content is taught through the “I do, We do and You do” gradual release approach.
Focus areas are key to programming and encourage reasoning and problem solving in Mathematics. These include:
- Calculate Strategies – to promote flexible and creative thinking.
- Problem Solving – which is presented as a step-by-step procedure to understand, plan, solve and check word problems. A weekly problem-solving challenge involves the school community, and a competition encourages Numeracy in the home.
- NUMERO – is played each week and students participate in competitions that are held within classes, across the school, region, and state, revealing the school’s commitment to developing mental computation.
Vocabulary
Development of the Literacy of Mathematics is integral to all experiences and students are exposed to terms, graphics, symbols and words in context. Through reasoning and expressing their ideas students develop their mathematical thinking.
Differentiation is catered for and targeted areas reflect trends in data, resulting in programs to enable and extend students. Small group instruction through intervention and the Fast and Furious program supports students to develop confidence and reach their potential in Mathematics.
Every Minute Counts and Allendale Primary School provides a whole school program in Mathematics from Years K-6 with high expectations for all students to achieve and succeed.