Adaptive teaching is a key goal for all teachers. Gill Shearsby-Fox shares five ways adaptive teaching methods can be used to improve primary maths provision as we work to ensure no child is left behind
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There has been a lot of talk about the importance of adaptive teaching, but what do we mean by this and how can it be used in the maths classroom to ensure you are creating confident, fluent mathematicians?

The fifth of the Teachers’ Standards (DfE, 2011) says that we should strive to “adapt teaching to respond to the strengths and needs of all pupils”. It details an expectation for teachers to differentiate appropriately and to use and evaluate a range of teaching approaches, taking into account pupils’ learning needs.

This ideology is reflected in the aims of the primary maths curriculum, which itself states: “The expectation is that the majority of pupils will move through the programmes of study at broadly the same pace. However, decisions about when to progress should always be based on the security of pupils’ understanding and their readiness to progress to the next stage.” (DfE, 2021)

As teachers, we understand the theory, but how can this be applied in the maths classroom to ensure we are fostering a generation of children who are confident and fluent calculators? Here are five principles:

 

1, Be prepared to flex

Start with a well-structured curriculum and be prepared to go off plan. Many schools choose to purchase a maths scheme that is well structured and breaks the learning down into small steps for them. Careful thought has already been put into the order of the curriculum and the learning steps teachers should follow. However, the authors of these schemes don’t know the pupils in your classroom, so you will need to review the content and adapt it to the individuals you are working with.

 

2, Ensure prerequisite learning is secure

Maths learning is hierarchical. Therefore, to be able to learn new knowledge, previously taught content must be secure. Continuous assessment is needed to know what is and isn’t secure, and thought needs to be given to what has come before.

For example, let’s consider this end of year 5 national curriculum statement: “Identify multiples and factors, including finding all factor pairs of a number, and common factors of two numbers.”

If I am going to be teaching a year 5 class to work towards this outcome, I need to understand what the prerequisites are, and I need to check that they are secure. The table here shows some of the prerequisite learning that has come before.

One way to check the security of previous learning before new learning is introduced is to use diagnostic questions. These could be an early morning task, or a fluency starter question a week or two before the new learning is due to be taught. The questions need to be carefully thought out:

  • Does it focus on the correct aspect of learning?
  • What response is expected?
  • Is it open or closed?
  • What possible misconception or gap in learning might it expose?

Examples of diagnostic questions for year 4

 

Examples of diagnostic questions for year 3

 

Examples of diagnostic questions for year 2

 

3, Identify and plan for tricky bits

When planning, thinking carefully about what children might find tricky enables you to make adaptations in advance and creates a readiness to make adaptations in the moment.

Let’s think about the year 5 statement around factors and multiples again. One possible tricky bit with this learning is linked to the vocabulary – factors and multiples – and remembering what the words mean.

Language mats could be used to support pupils’ understanding of vocabulary and as a memory aide. These could be created as a class, in groups or individually.

The examples below show some prompt questions and possible responses.

 

4, Using different models to support the learning

Modelling the learning is essential and can be adapted to meet the needs of different learners.

When modelling, you need to model your thinking, articulating the decisions you are making and why you are making them. This might be referred to as “I do”.

When doing this, pupils should not be invited to share their input; there will be a time for this when you complete a similar question or problem – the “we do”.

Let’s think about our year 5 factor learning again. The factor bug (image below) is a common way to help organise and find factors.

If I were completing this bug as an initial model or an “I do”, I would explain how I will work out all the different factors – ruling numbers in and out. Another factor bug with a different starting point would then be completed with pupils taking the lead, sharing their ideas and reasoning. The initial model provides “what a good one looks like”.

Moving on, some children may need to complete further “we do” models and might need additional support.

This could be in the form of a times table square, especially if their recall of times tables facts is less secure. Cubes or counters could be provided to make arrays to build all the factor pairs for a number. For example:

The learning outcome is the same for all children, with adaptations made to enable access and understanding for all.

 

5, Provide opportunities to practise

Pupils need practice at the point of learning and then on-going practice. This can take a variety of forms but needs to enable the curriculum to move on.

Early morning tasks or fluency practice are opportunities to do this. Little and often is the key to successful retention.

Games such as Factor or Multiple (see Herts for Learning, 2021), or fluency resources such as the example below, provide a good opportunity to rehearse learning along with the associated vocabulary and to continue to develop reasoning skills.

 

Final thoughts

The use of adaptive teaching methods in primary maths is essential in ensuring that children are more secure in their past and present learning, which will ultimately lay the groundwork for them to be fluent and confident mathematicians in the future, as they progress from primary to secondary and beyond.

 

Further information & resources