Maths - Calculation policy
These Calculation Policy sets out the methods used in school to help your children with calculations. It has been written to meet the requirements of the National Curriculum 2014, and gives pupils a consistent and smooth progression of learning in calculations across the school. It works alongside the highly effective Singapore style of teaching from the scheme Maths No Problem!
Children are taught strategies to develop and strengthen their mental agility daily. They also need to be able to apply written calculation skills in order to:
- represent work that has been done practically
- support, record and explain mental calculations
- keep track of steps in a longer task
- work out calculations that are too difficult to do mentally
These policy shows methods that pupils will be taught within their respective year group, in the order they are taught. Children will be encouraged to develop their confidence in choosing and using a strategy that they know will get them to the correct answer as efficiently as possible.
Concrete, Pictorial, Abstract (CPA): 
A key principle behind the Singaporean methods used in Maths No Problem! is the concrete, visual and abstract approach. Children are firstly introduced to an idea or skill by acting it out with real, concrete objects (a hands – on approach). They then move onto the pictorial (visual) stage, where they relate the concrete understanding to visual representations. The final abstract stage is a chance for them to represent problems by using mathematical calculations. The CPA approach is used continuously in all new learning and calculations throughout the school.