Mathematics

Introduction

The Maths department at Trinity is an enthusiastic, highly achieving and supportive department. We are passionate about sharing our love of Maths with the students.

We have 10 members of staff who are all subject specialists, and we have a great wealth of experience within the team. All staff teach across the age range from Year 7 to Year 11 and 7 of our staff also teach A level.

We are a very forward thinking and collaborative team, utilising the best advances in educational practices to ensure our students develop a deep and secure understanding of Mathematics, make great progress and importantly enjoy their studies. We strongly believe that with encouragement, hard work and good teaching all students can make progress, achieve and enjoy their Mathematics.

We have strong links with our local Maths Hubs and with the University of Nottingham. We regularly work with the school of Education at the University of Nottingham hosting trainee teachers in their first and second placements.

Key Stage 3

In Years 7, 8 and 9, students receive 3 hours of Maths lessons every week in which they build on the strong foundations they have laid at Primary school.  All students follow the same scheme of learning, which closely follows the National Curriculum for Key Stage 3. Students are taught in a “Mastery” style, which aims to deepen their understanding of mathematical concepts. Our approach focuses on building up students’ mathematical fluency, developing their reasoning skills and fostering a greater ability for problem solving. Lessons incorporate many different activities, including an emphasis on the use of diagrams, discussion and explanation work, mini whiteboards and written work. We aim to build up students’ confidence in Maths so that they can achieve as highly as possible. We use regular low stakes tests to track students’ progress as well as end of term assessments.

In Year 7 classes are taught in mixed attainment groups and we have created a carefully written scheme of learning to ensure that all students are challenged and make progress.

Years 8 to 11 are set according to prior attainment. We always ensure there is special provision made for stretching our higher attaining students as well as supporting our lower attaining students.  High standards of effort, work, presentation and behaviour are expected throughout all lessons. Homework is compulsory and is set every week online via the HegartyMaths website.

Parents are asked to provide their children with the following equipment for every lesson: pen, pencil, ruler, protractor, compasses and a scientific calculator. The school recommends the CASIO fx-83GTX. These calculators are widely available and can also be purchased at school.

Key Stage 4

Mathematics GCSE is taken by all students. We follow the Edexcel/Pearson syllabus.

Students will be entered for either the Higher tier (Grades 4-9) or the Foundation tier (Grades 1 – 5), based on previous attainment and will be taught and prepared for that tier.  Students will sit three exam papers at the end of Year 11, one non-calculator and two calculator papers. Each paper is 1 hour and 30 minutes and they are equally weighted. There is no controlled assessment. Lessons are planned carefully considering students’ starting points and target grades. We use spaced retrieval and low stakes testing to encourage retention of knowledge. Students receive 4 hours of Maths lessons every week, and homework is set weekly on Hegartymaths.

Regular exam preparation, including after school revision sessions, is provided for Year 11 students in the run up to their exams.

We also offer the AQA level 2 certificate in Further Maths (GCSE Further Maths) to those students who are interested (typically those aiming for grades 8 and 9 in their Maths GCSE). This is taught in additional sessions after school and provides an excellent foundation for A level Maths.

Key Stage 5

A level Mathematics is a very highly regarded subject. It is a popular choice with students and develops logical reasoning, problem solving and critical thinking skills. We teach the Edexcel/Pearson syllabus. The course provides an excellent balance of mathematical topics across the areas of Pure Mathematics, Mechanics and Statistics. Mathematics also combines very well with other subjects. It is a challenging subject, but a great deal of support is available from a team of very experienced teachers and results are excellent. Students receive 5 hours of lessons per week, split between 2 teachers. All textbooks are provided; however, students will need to buy a Casio classwiz calculator. These are available through the school. The course is suitable for anyone having studied a Higher-level GCSE, and achieved a grade 6 or above.

We also offer A level Further Maths for those with a real love of the subject who wish to delve even deeper into Mathematics. This is taken in addition to A level Maths (as a 4th A level) and provides an excellent preparation for a Maths degree or other degree with a high level of Mathematical content. Students need to achieve a GCSE grade 8 to be eligible for this course.

We also provide lessons for those students needing to re-sit their Maths GCSE.