How did we become involved in MMMS?

In January 2008 we attended an introductory session about Making Maths Make Sense in Oxford. It was brilliant! Two members of staff went – Mr Wallace and Miss Gibbes. Following a day like that words like ‘inspirational’ and ‘outstanding’ simply don’t seem powerful enough. We immediately booked a 2-day training course for all of our staff and invited other teachers we knew as well.

What is it?

It is, quite literally, what the title says. It is a way of making maths – complex maths- make sense. It is about high expectations and every child being a successful mathematician. There’s a good website about MMMS at www.mmmsrd.com. It has links to quite a lot of Teacher’s TV clips about this method of teaching maths. But the reality is better than any website…

What are we doing with it?

We had the training in late March 2008. The programme started the day after the training finished, in every class. Here is some of the early work the children did after these two lessons. It is a good benchmark for the progress made after 2 hours of teaching – as they would not have been able to do this previously. We know because we tested them.

Where are we going with it?

Following this training we now all know that ‘complex’ mathematical ideas can be made concrete and understandable to very young children. To do this we now know you need the best teaching methods and a clear learning system. At Woodberry Down, this means the future is about the relentless use of a clear mathematical learning system, developed by someone (Richard Dunne) who deserves the title genius.

And we want to make sure that what we learn and do with MMMS is shared as widely as possible. Every child and teacher deserves the best – we know this is it.