In 2015 we introduced Inspire Maths throughout the school. Inspire Maths is a transformational, whole-school primary maths programme based on the leading Singapore Maths series My Pals are Here, used in 100% of Singapore's state primary schools.
- Accessible pupil textbooks introduce concepts in a highly scaffolded way, enabling all children to develop critical thinking skills, make mathematical connections and become confident mathematicians
- Built on a concrete - pictorial - abstract approach, ensuring secure foundations and deep understanding of mathematical concepts
- Uses a spiral progression to develop fluency, reasoning, and problem solving and conceptual understanding for mastery.
Below you will find 2 documents for you to read and/or download which provide more information regarding the Inspire Maths program.
For our younger children we use the Numicon maths programme to support the Inspire Maths programme. Numicon's imagery uses patterns to represent each numeral. The patterns are structured so number relationships can be seen and experienced. It encourages an understanding of numbers and their relationships. Understanding numbers is reinforced through conversation and use in real-life contexts. This generalises learning and the meaning of mathematical concepts. The activities incorporate 'rich' tasks rather than worksheets or text book tasks.
Numbers are abstract ideas - all we can do is show representations of them. Numicon shapes can be seen as 'pictures of numbers'. Patterns of objects, Numicon shapes and Cuisenaire rods are all used to give children a confident sense of 'number'. The experience and understanding of 'pattern' is essential for successful mental and written arithmetic, and for understanding algebra.