Marvellous Maths!

Here is a photo of my most recent Maths display centred around Place Value and Measure. I have included some things on my display which I will keep on there all year round as they are useful essentials which I will be referring to regularly in my teaching. Others will be taken down and replaced with other things relating to new maths units covered. 

The middle of my display was left blank deliberately to be used as a working space where current tips and steps to success could be displayed clearly. You don't have to cover all of your displays - leave some spaces blank for success tips to be displayed each lesson. I have also pinned up some of the children's extra homework they have sent in as good examples of maths homework! 

Progress Display

Progress and attainment - always tricky to get the children to connect with and understand it. This year I have created a 'progress' display where I will be able to visually record the children's progress in Reading, Writing and Maths in relation to 'sub-levels'. I have included 3 jumps on my display to reflect aspirational progress of 3 sub-levels progress over the year (E.g. moving from a 3b to 4b).

I have included three jumps for each subject and for each subject the children have their own name label with their starting level on at the bottom. They will be able to see their progress on the display as well as be able to tell me and other adults what their target levels are by using the progress ladder at the top. 

The children will have a greater awareness of their starting levels and their responsibility to make progress over the year. Later on in the year I will post other photos showing how the display changes over time. I intend to update the children's journey on the progress path at key assessment points throughout the year. Who will leave the year having made the most progress?

Before and after: New school, new job, new classroom!

This year I have the pleasure of moving to a new school! I have been promoted to Year 5 and 6 Phase Leader as well as Literacy Leader for the whole school. I am now teaching Year 5 again, an age group I love!

Someone recently asked me on my blog how my classroom looked at the beginning of the year. I was asked if I put up displays or left them blank.

Here are some photos of my classroom when I arrived!

BEFORE:

Well here is my answer!

AFTER:

I back all of my display boards and designate them to particular subjects. I fill the display boards with a variety of things - key information, key vocabulary and expectations of the children's work. I also have a couple of display boards filled with the children's work that they completed with me on 'going up day.' This is nice for the children to see their work on the wall in their new year group in September. Some display boards are deliberately left blank for working walls and usually Art displays which will be filled with the children's work early on in the term.

I think it is really important for the learning environment to be stimulating and inviting at the beginning of term to welcome the children back to school. It also needs to be organised! Here is a photo of how I organise the children's resources on their tables. I show them this picture at the beginning of the term to show them my expectations of keeping their table pots tidy and organised!

Maths Working Wall

Most recent maths working wall...

Currently in maths my class are struggling with choosing the correct method to match the right operation! If I put a random sum on the board for them to complete they often struggle to choose the correct method. My working wall aims to help support their thought process and choice by listing all the methods for the different operations, an example of each one and a time where they might need to use it. I have already had a child wonder up to the display board to see which method they should use.

Targets Display - Reading, Writing and Maths

All schools and classes have particular targets to work towards. As a teacher there is a lot of pressure to ensure the children in your class know their personal targets and how they can achieve them. I came up with a 'rocket' themed target display/concept to help the children remember their target. Lower ability children were on 'Ready' targets, middle ability children were on 'Steady' targets, higher ability children were on 'Go' targets and gifted and talented children were on 'Blast off!' targets. The children could remember which stage of the rocket taking off they were and as their targets for Reading, Writing and Maths were displayed around the target rocket, the children could find their target easily. A simple concept which worked really well.

Working Walls - Literacy and Maths

As well as my enquiry (topic) displays and other wider curriculum displays I have two working walls in my classroom - Literacy and Maths. These displays are not put up at the beginning of a unit of work they evolve and develop as the children's work progresses. At the beginning of the unit they often look bare but have key features of the genre or maths unit of work the children are currently working on. Throughout the unit examples of successful work or strategies to solve questions will be displayed as reminders for the children but also as a scaffold.

The children's work is often displayed at different stages of the writing process on my Literacy working wall - from their initial ideas, to mind maps, to first drafts, to final edits and eventually a final and finished presented piece of writing. I often photocopy the children's work and highlight successful use of vocabulary, connectives, openers or punctuation. I will stick post-it notes up around the work highlighting what has been done well. Sometimes I place questions around the work for the other children to answer about how it could be improved. The children really enjoy seeing the working wall evolve during the unit and always come into my class and look straight away at what has been added since their previous lesson. The children also even suggest to me what could be put on the wall to help them.

Maths is more of an interactive display to start with. I will have number of the week up, or shape of the week and the children have to answer the questions around the number or shape using post-it notes to record their answers and ideas. This can be a quick extension activity for the children at the end of a lesson to consolidate their learning. Throughout the unit formulae or important facts or rules are displayed on the working wall as well as examples of successful work. Again this display changes throughout the topic and helps support the teaching in the classroom - I find myself displaying success criteria frequently on my Maths working wall which the children then use at the end of the lesson to assess their work.