Number Sense

We have fidelity to the Number Sense programme to teach fluency in subitising and number facts from EYFS to Year 3. This programme is also used to support children who are not yet secure with number facts in Key Stage 2. We use the programme's assessment and tracking tools to ensure children are secure with these skills and deliver interventions to close any gaps.

EYFS

What is subitising?

Subitising is being able to look at a group of objects and identify how many there are without counting.

Subitising is a visuospatial skill, number sense develops children's understanding of number and spatial awareness hand in hand. The programme materials expose the different ways that small quantities can be arranged and manipulated, and teach children to see quantities within quantities. Some examples are below. The programme supports children to develop their own visual images of quantities to ten.

A Systematic and Structured Approach

The programme's systematic approach provides a coherent teaching sequence to develop a deep understanding of numbers to 10. This is broken down into a series of 13 books.

Matched to the 2021 EYFS Statutory Framework

The Early Years Number Sense programme is written to tie closely to the 2021 statutory framework. It covers all the number elements of the framework, with the exception of counting. Our teacher guidance materials also show how the programme materials can be used to support the assessment of the Early Learning Goals for Number and Numerical Patterns.

KS1

A defined set of facts

At the core of the programme are the Addition and Subtraction Fact Grids

A defined set of strategies

The core facts are taught alongside 12 calculation strategies. Learning and applying these strategies gives children a deep understanding of number and number relationships. Using these strategies children can then "use what they know to work out what they don't know". Explicit teaching of derived fact strategies is an effective route to fluency in addition and subtraction facts for all children. Please see below for the strategies that are taught.

Scheme of work

The facts and strategies are brought together in a six stage teaching programme. Each stage of the programme is broken down into smaller teaching steps to ensure a systematic and coherent teaching sequence.

For more information about the pedagogy this programme is built on please visit numbersensemaths.com