Quality Improvement

Guidance for Teachers

on
Learning and Teaching
Approaches in Mathematics



Quality Improvement
What are the key features of a
mathematics lesson?








Standards and Quality in Primary Schools:
Mathematics 1998-2001 HMIE

Quality Improvement
Guidance for Teachers
The Mathematics Lesson

Interactive Oral Mental Mathematics
Introducing the Lesson
Direct Interactive Teaching
The Plenary Session

Quality Improvement
Interactive Oral Mental Mathematics
Quality Improvement
It is important to recognise that when calculating
mentally we usually make use of different methods
from those we have used for written calculations. We
should encourage pupils to develop and practise
flexible mental approaches. One way of doing this is
through class or group discussion of the variety of
different ways of carrying out different operations.



Mathematics 5-14 National Guidelines SOED 1991 p52
Interactive Oral Mental Mathematics
Quality Improvement
At all stages, many pupils tried to perform mental
calculations by attempting paper and pencil methods
in their heads, seldom if ever the most efficient
approach. As a result they responded slowly and
often wrongly. Overall there was insufficient practice
in mental calculation and, even when mental work was
done, almost no discussion of how answers were
obtained.


Improving Mathematics 5-14 SOEID 1997 p7
Interactive Oral Mental Mathematics
Quality Improvement
In all classes there should be regular mental
calculation sessions to provide opportunities to
practise skills, discuss alternative mental methods
and be shown how to use efficient approaches.






Improving Mathematics 5-14 SOEID 1997 p8
Interactive Oral Mental Mathematics
Quality Improvement
In less effective courses, the mental mathematics
programme consisted merely of a series of regular
mental tests or involved pupils working individually
through mental exercises. This approach missed
opportunities for teachers and pupils to work together,
for pupils to share their thinking with teachers, reveal
evidence about their understanding and use
mathematical words and phrases in explanations and
discussions.
Standards and Quality in Primary Schools:
Mathematics 1998-2001 HMIE p13
Interactive Oral Mental Mathematics
Quality Improvement
Most schools had made improvements to the
emphasis on the progressive development of pupils
mental mathematics skills, with emphasis on oral
rather than written calculation in the early stages.
Some schools included short daily sessions of oral
activities to keep pupils mental skills sharp. The best
sessions involved regular discussion of the different
strategies used by pupils to answer questions in
mental mathematics so that they became aware of the
variety of possible approaches.
Standards and Quality in Primary Schools:
Mathematics 1998-2001 HMIE p13
Interactive Oral Mental Mathematics
Quality Improvement
Mental Calculation
38 + 47
count on in tens from 40, 50, 60, 70, add 8 to get 78
and then 7 to get 85;
first add 38 and 40 to get 78, then add on 7 to get 85;
add 30 and 40 to get 70. Add 8 and 7 to get 15. Add
70 and 15 to get 85;
add 38 and 2 (from the 47) to get 40, add 40 and 40 to
get 80 and the 5 left to get 85;
add 40 and 50 to get 90, take away 2 (for the 38) to
get 88 and take away 3 (for the 47) to get 85.
Mathematics 5-14 National Guidelines SOED 1991 p82
Quality Improvement
Mental Calculation
47 - 18
18 add 2 gives 20, then 20 gives 40, now 7, so 29 in
all;
47 - 10 leaves 37, 37 take away 7 is 30, then take away
another 1, leaves 29;
47 - 20 + 2 = 27 + 2 = 29;
47 - 18 = 47 - 17 - 1 = 30 - 1 = 29
Quality Improvement
Interactive Oral Mental Mathematics
This session can be used to:

Consolidate previous work
Establish knowledge of an attainment target
Focus on skills needed in the main part of the
lesson
Practise mental calculations and rapid recall of
number facts in a variety of ways
Establish new facts from known facts and explain
the strategies used
Develop a particular strategy
Quality Improvement
Interactive Oral Mental Mathematics
Questioning
Questioning should effectively:

give pupils time to think before providing an
answer
involve as many pupils as possible
allow time to explore reasons for wrong answers
take account of pupils attainments
Quality Improvement
Interactive Oral Mental Mathematics
Questioning
Different types of questioning can be used:

Quick Recall
Mental Calculation
Oral Responses to Written Problems
Oral Questions in Context
Oral Questions with Multiple Answers

Quality Improvement
Interactive Oral Mental Mathematics
What is 6 - 4? Show me two numbers with a
difference of two.
Is 16 an even number? What even numbers lie
between 10 and 20?
What are four threes? Show me two numbers with a
product of 12.
How many centimetres in a metre? Tell me two
lengths that together make a metre.
Continue this sequence: 1, 2, 4, Find different
ways to continue this sequence: 1, 2, 4, ...
Quality Improvement
Interactive Oral Mental Mathematics
Strategies
There are a variety of ways in which the session can
be practised:

Unison Response
Show Me
Cover-ups
Using the Pupils

Quality Improvement
Unison Response
Counting Stick
0 10 count forwards/back/random
0 20 count forwards/back/random
0 100 count forwards/back/random
0 1000 count forwards/back/random
6 count on13 count on42 ...
16 count back... 23 count back...
0 50 5x table, 0 70 7x table
Zero in middle
Quality Improvement
Unison Response
Rhythm Counting
count forward in ones to ten - then back
count forward in tens - then back
count in fives, threes...
count on in twos from 5...
count on in threes from 55...
count back in fours from 40...
count in halves from one half
count in quarters - and simplify
Quality Improvement
Unison Response
Pendulum Counting
count forward in ones to ten - then back
count forward in tens - then back
count in fives, threes...
count on in twos from 5...
count on in threes from 55...
count back in fours from 40...
count in halves from one half
count in quarters - and simplify
Quality Improvement
Show Me
Flip Flops
how many can you see?
show me more/less/same/one more/less
how many can I see?
in pairs - make 12
in threes - make 15
Quality Improvement
Show Me
Digit Cards
show me 6, 15, 36, 85
show me an even, odd number
show me a number greater than 4
show me a number between 16 and 20
show me number bonds +, -, x,
show me double 5, 9, 36
show me the remainder: 185
show me 1 less than 70
Quality Improvement
Show Me
Digit Cards in Pairs
show me pairs of numbers that total 10
show me four factors of 24
show me two multiples of 7
show me square numbers
show me a four digit multiple of 3
Quality Improvement
Show Me
Digit Cards - use four (1, 2, 4, 7)
show me the largest/smallest number
show me the number nearest to 3000
in groups of 3 - make different numbers
who has the largest/smallest?
who has the nearest to 5000?
Quality Improvement
Show Me
Digit Cards - use two (3, 4)
show me the sides on a quadrilateral
show me the difference between 129 and 132
show me 246
show me 279
show me the lines of symmetry on an equilateral
triangle
Quality Improvement
Show Me
Fan Cards
show me 2/3 digits which total 8, 10..
show me a 2 digit number which is odd
show me a 2 digit number between 50 and 75
show me a 3 digit number between 250 and 500
show me a 2/3 digit number divisible by 4
show me a 2 digit prime number
Im thinking of a number.
Quality Improvement
Show Me
Number Generator
show me 457, 12 670, 238 300
show me 1750, make it 10 more...
show me 22 000, make it 100 less...
show me 467 - now add 4
show me 342 - now double it
rounding to nearest 10, 100, 1000
multiply/divide by 10, 100, 1000
Quality Improvement
Show Me
2D Shape
show me the shape behind the wall
show me a hexagon
show me a triangle with an angle greater than 90
show me a four sided shape with only two lines of
symmetry
Quality Improvement
Cover Ups
Grids
0-99 grid - recognition/one more/less
1-100 grid
shapes - names, symmetry, angles
fractions
tables - cover up answers to 9x, 4x...
money
24 hour time
Quality Improvement
Using the Pupils
Loop Cards
Human Lines - change places with number 15;
number before/after 12; number more/less than 6...
Decimal Point - Hold 3.2 One person holding 1 to join
in. Where to stand to make number smaller/larger?
Could she stand elsewhere?

Quality Improvement
Schools did not place sufficient emphasis on
developing pupils skills in written and mental
calculation. Too often the approach was restricted to
ten-a-day which did not develop pupils knowledge
and understanding of techniques in mental calculation.

Improving Achievement In Mathematics in
Primary and Secondary Schools
HMIE 2005
Quality Improvement
Features of effective learning and teaching at primary
stages include:

Teachers focused their questioning on checking pupils
understanding, rather than simply eliciting correct
answers.

Teachers asked pupils to explain their thinking, and
responded skilfully when pupils made mistakes using
these as a basis for further learning.
Improving Achievement In Mathematics in
Primary and Secondary Schools
HMIE 2005
Quality Improvement
Using the Pupils
The Answer Is
7
x





+

Quality Improvement
Using the Pupils
The Answer Is
7
7 x 1
35 x 2
175 x 4
35 5
63 9
70 10
77 11

8 1
10 3
29 22


3 + 4
5 + 2
12 + 58
-1 + 8

Quality Improvement
Using the Pupils
What Else Do You Know?
12 x 5 = 60
Quality Improvement
12 x 5 = 60
60 5 = 12
5 x 12 = 60
60 12 = 5
6 x 5 = 30
12 x 5 = 6 12 x 10 = 120
11 x 5 = 55
Using the Pupils
What Else Do You Know?
Quality Improvement
Using the Pupils
What Else Do You Know?
12 x 5 = 60
60 5 = 12
5 x 12 = 60
60 12 = 5
6 x 5 = 30 12 x 25 = 30
12 x 5 = 6
3 x 5 = 15
12 x 05 = 06
24 x 5 = 120 12 x 10 = 120
11 x 5 = 55 10 x 5 = 50
Quality Improvement
Using the Pupils
What Else Do You Know?
12 x 5 = 60
60 5 = 12
5 x 12 = 60
60 12 = 5
6 x 5 = 30 12 x 25 = 30
12 x 5 = 6
3 x 5 = 15
12 x 05 = 06
24 x 5 = 120 12 x 10 = 120
of 60 = 5 of 60 = 12
11 x 5 = 55 10 x 5 = 50
1
5
1
12
20% of 60 = 12
Quality Improvement
Mental Calculation
Multiplication
3 x 13 = (3 x 10) + (3 x 3) = 30 + 9 = 39
3 x 14 = 3 x 2 x 7 = 6 x 7 = 42 or
3 x 14 = 3 x 7 x 2 = 21 x 2 = 42
3 x 15 = (3 x 30) 2 = 90 2 = 45 or
3 x 15 = (2 x 15) + (1 x 15) = 30 + 15 = 45
3 x 16 = 6 x 8 = 12 x 4 = 24 x 2 = 48 or
3 x 16 = (3 x 15) + 3 = 45 + 3 = 48
3 x 17 = (3 x 20) - (3 x 3) = 60 - 9 = 51
Quality Improvement
Mental Calculation
Division
51 3
3 x 10 = 30, this leaves 21 3 = 7 and 10 + 7 = 17

90 6 = (90 3) 2 = 30 2 = 15

115 5 = double 115 10 = 11
.
5 + 11
.
5 = 23
Quality Improvement
Using the Pupils
What Could the Next Number Be?
314
Quality Improvement
Using the Pupils
What Could the Next Number Be?
314 414
1314
315
3141
Quality Improvement
Using the Pupils
What Could the Next Number Be?
314 414
1314
315
3141
514
2313
316
3142
Quality Improvement
Using the Pupils
What Could the Next Number Be?
314 414
1314
315
3141
514
2313
316
3142
614
3313
317
3143
Quality Improvement
Online Resources
Quality Improvement
Introducing the Lesson
Quality Improvement
Introducing the Lesson
By sharing the purposes of a piece of learning and
the expected outcomes with pupils, the learning
within a classroom becomes more focused for the
pupils as well as the teacher.

Direct Interactive Teaching SCCC 2000
Quality Improvement
Direct Interactive Teaching
Quality Improvement
Direct Interactive Teaching
Direct interactive teaching is characterised by high
levels of questioning, explaining and worked
examples where pupils together explain their
understanding and solution to a problem.

Alternative ways of solving problems and reaching
answers are sought and shared. Pupils play a very
active part in the lesson. There is a high level of
group interaction and cooperative working.

The Structure and Balance of the Curriculum Guide for
Teachers and Managers 5-14 Learning and Teaching Scotland
2000
Quality Improvement
Direct Interactive Teaching
If used skilfully, a series of questions can be used
together with pupil replies to explore and expand the
area being taught rather than a lengthy teacher talk.

Effective questioning also provides a platform for
effective differentiation, with questions being framed
to provide different levels of challenge as
appropriate.



Direct Interactive Teaching SCCC 2000
Quality Improvement
Direct Interactive Teaching
The least effective teachers relied too heavily on
course material, sometimes reading out tasks from a
textbook rather than explaining the principles of a
topic. Where learning was less successful, pupils
often spent too much time waiting for instructions
from the teacher or working on repetitive exercises
with little opportunity for discussion.



Standards and Quality in Primary Schools:
Mathematics 1998-2001 HMIE
Quality Improvement
Top Tips in Questioning
Ask pupils for questions
Plan
Sequence
Distribute questions
Show interest and respect all answers
Dont give clues
Encourage contribution
Increase wait time
Check how answers were arrived at
Use wrong responses positively
Use more higher order and open questions
Quality Improvement
The Plenary Session
Quality Improvement
The Plenary Session
This part of the lesson can be used to:

ask pupils to present their work, summarising
what has been learned
mark or discuss particular examples, reviewing
the different methods of calculation used,
rectifying any misconceptions
give constructive feedback to pupils
make conclusions or establish rules
highlight pupils progress towards attainment
targets
provide tasks for homework
Quality Improvement
The Plenary Session
The teacher should:

have a clear idea of the purpose and content of the
plenary session
leave enough time for this to be achieved
evaluate their own teaching by reflecting on what
pupils have learned and what progress has been
made
Quality Improvement
How Do We Keep Skills Sharp?
Appropriate resources
Mental mathematics
Workcards and Worksheets
Homework
Problem of the Week
Websites
Assessment
Quality Improvement
Numbertime
The Maths File Game Show
Teaching Time
Revisewise Maths
Numeracy Software
Schoolhouse Technologies
Skillswise
Workcards and Worksheets
Quality Improvement
Nrich
NZMaths Problem Solving
Word Problems for Kids
Mrs Renzs Math Web Sites
TES Brainteasers
Count On

Problem of the Week
Quality Improvement
CurricuLinks Interactive Whiteboards
CurricuLinks 5-14 Mathematics


Websites for Interactive Whiteboards
Quality Improvement
Homework
Quality Improvement
Homework
Quality Improvement
Assessment
National Assessments
Tracking Database
Standardised Tests
Mathematics Check-ups and Pupil Assessment
Files
Formative Assessment
Questioning

Quality Improvement
Guidance for Teachers
on
Learning and Teaching
Approaches in Mathematics