And just like that… it’s September again!
This blog is a short and sweet reminder of how to get your maths subject leadership off to a flying start.
Before I delve into my three September Suggestions, a quick nod to some great guidance from the EEF around implementation; if you haven’t already had the chance, have a read of EEF: A School’s Guide to Implementation.
If you focus on anything in subject leadership over the next few weeks, I suggest communication, summative assessment and making your plan manageable.
When everyone knows…
- what impact their efforts have already had
- why things need maintaining or changing, and
- how this is being planned
… progress is made!
Communicate with colleagues
Over the summer term, there will have been natural opportunities to reflect on the success of your intended curriculum; the progress made against your action plan and the progress learners have made.
Dedication from your team make positive outcomes possible, so share the fruits of their labour to keep things ticking along and building success.
Use data to support what you are saying so colleagues know this isn’t empty words, so for example, the 5 minutes they spent every day tweaking their fluency slides had an impact on children’s learning!
Ensure you share:
- what went well last year
- what they need to keep doing this year
- why this is important.
Make use of summative assessment
No matter what resource you and your school use for summative assessment, make it count!
Summative assessment provides the opportunity for subject leaders to drill further down into how many children met age-related expectations in that assessment or to track scaled scores year on year.
Make the most of the summative assessment by completing a gap analysis of end of summer term data.
What domains did the children succeed in across the school? Why do you think that was?
Are there any strands where children didn’t perform well? Is this a cohort-specific barrier or school-wide trend?
Remember: summative assessment data is a starting point for further enquiry. This information can inform the CPD and training you provide for staff, as well as any adjustments to your intended maths curriculum pathway for classes, groups or individual pupils.
Manageable action planning
When writing our action plans for the year ahead, it is easy to fall into being (dare I say it) too ambitious.
Knowing where to start and how to make it manageable can be overwhelming, which is why the Primary Maths Team have included guidance, examples and templates in the maths subject leader toolkit.
When planning your priorities, consider these three questions:
- What needs maintenance?
- What needs a tweak?
- What needs implementing or changing altogether?
Once this has been mapped out, consider what steps and actions are needed and how and when you are going to monitor how it’s going.
How will you reassure yourself that your actions are having the intended impact?
Get your whole school calendar or diary open and plot the dates or windows for any CPD (whether that’s a staff meeting or a modelled fluency session), monitoring, feedback and reflection. Keep it specific and consider the wider priorities of your school and how your subject fits into these.
Finally, I have linked below some available resources to support you for the year ahead, as well as training you and your staff may find helpful.
Resources
Maths subject leader toolkit
- Suite of documents to support you in your role as maths subject leader
- Exemplification, guidance and templates for action planning and monitoring activities in EYFS, KS1 and KS2
Year 6 maths gap finder: SATS preparation toolkit
- Diagnostic summative assessment papers for early identification of gaps
- Resources to support teaching and rehearsal of arithmetic and reasoning
CPD
Leading primary maths in current times – 2024-25
- Half-termly, online, bite-sized CPD
- First session: 10th October 2024
- Develop and enhance your subject and leadership expertise
- Strategies and resources to use at key points across the year
- All sessions will be recorded and available until July 2025
Reaching the expected standard in Year 6 maths – 2024-25
- Series of four half-day workshops at Killigrew Primary School, St Albans, Herts
- First session: 18th September 2024
- Develop subject knowledge and learn practical teaching strategies
- Use your data to create a personalised plan for your class to secure arithmetical and reasoning skills
Teaching Assistants: Subject knowledge in primary maths webinars – 2024-25
- Six, online, bite-sized CPD sessions
- First session: 18th September 2024
- Develop confidence to effectively support the delivery of the primary maths curriculum
- All sessions will be recorded and available until July 2025
Charley McKay
