Maths 

"To build safe, independent lives for autistic young people through support, understanding and enablement"

Through our maths curriculum we intend:

• For students to leave numerate and to be able to use numeracy skills in the workplace and throughout their lives.
• For all students to have an understanding of number and the number system, able to tell the time, read timetables and handle money confidently in the real world.
• For all students to leave Springfields with a maths qualification.

Implementation: 

The Maths curriculum covers the following areas of maths:

• Number
• Measurements        
• Geometry
• Statistics

We adapt the ‘White Rose’ framework to ensure there is clear progression across all Explorer curriculums and Pathfinders.

We plan for this using a mastery approach which focuses on ensuring complete understanding before moving students on to new learning experiences.

In order to support students moving from a concrete understanding to more abstract ideas, we use a variety of manipulatives, models and images (reference Calculation Policy). We providing full immersion in the concepts before moving to procedures. It follows the research of Bruner (1966)- for children to fully understand and master concepts in maths they needs to follow the process of

enactive→ iconic →symbolic.

Building on the work of Temple Grandin ‘Thinking in Pictures’ (1993) our learners with autism have the opportunity to develop a concrete understanding of abstract mathematical concepts through:

1. Concrete experience based activities    
2. Pictorial representation
3. Abstract 

Whilst there are age related expectations for those pupils who have the cognitive ability to achieve them, it is important that pupils are taught according to the stage at which they are currently working. They will be moved to the next stage when appropriate and pupils who grasp concepts quickly will be challenged appropriately.