The Australian Curriculum: Mathematics has three strands: Number and Algebra, Measurement and Geometry, and Statistics and Probability. Numeracy refers to the skills students require to recognise and understand the role of mathematics in the world, and the dispositions and capabilities to apply mathematical knowledge and skills in personal, social and work situations that are constructive and meaningful. The emphasis is on problem solving and understanding and is achieved through hands on practical work, relevance to real-life situations, and the practice of fundamental skills and routines.
The Mathematics program at Turner School provides students with essential mathematical skills and knowledge in Number and Algebra, Measurement and Geometry, and Statistics and Probability. We aim to develop the numeracy capabilities that all students need in their personal, work and civic life, and provide the fundamentals on which mathematical specialties and applications of mathematics are built. Teachers use the content descriptions from the Australian Curriculum to guide them in their planning. These year level statements describe the knowledge, skills, concepts and processes that teachers are expected to teach and students are expected to learn. The content descriptions are intended to ensure that learning is appropriately ordered and that unnecessary repetition is avoided. However, a concept or skill introduced at one year level may be revisited, strengthened and extended in later years.
At Turner School we use a range of resources to support learning and include time for explicit teaching, investigation, problem solving and application of mathematics. Time is given to think and talk about Mathematics, to work both independently and collaboratively and construct meaning through practical, hands on activities. Strategies are explicitly taught to support an understanding of numbers and mental computation.
As research suggests, students learn best when they are actively involved in their own learning and when the learning that takes place is significant, relevant and challenging. Emphasis is placed on providing rich and authentic numeracy learning experiences so that students are confident and creative users of Mathematics.