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Overview of Needs

What you might notice

Children with severe maths difficulties will:

  • Basic number concepts
  • Time concepts eg ‘yesterday’
  • struggle to subitise (instantly recognise amounts even for small numbers below four);
  • have poor number sense and struggle with
  • recognising and using their internal number line so
  • struggle with ordering amounts/numbers, counting backwards and skip counting, e.g. counting in 2s;
  • have ongoing difficulties with learning simple number facts, procedures and performing fluent calculations so even if they produce a correct answer or use a correct method they do so mechanically and without confidence.
  • They may also have short-term and working memory difficulties which can significantly interact with maths difficulties making it harder to hold and manipulate numbers and sums in their heads.

Strategies

  • Regular formative assessment identifying gaps and progress in number skill acquisition so that intervention is appropriately targeted at the right pace;
  • Teach each new number concept in the order: concrete, visual/pictorial, abstract so always provide appropriate concrete and visual resources that can be used to support number manipulation if needed. This should always include an individual number line for the numbers they are working within and ideally avoid resources that do not visually show numbers increasing in the same continuous way as a number line;
  • Daily counting practice to develop fluency moving up and down the number line within known numbers – counting forwards and backwards in ones and/or skip counting from depending on level of need. The area of the number line being practiced needs to be visually provided to the child;
    daily practice of concepts – relating numbers working on in number line to quantities and to each other, such as one more/less.
  • Daily practice of procedures to use addition/subtraction/multiplication/division with numbers working on in number line;
  • Daily practice of word problems using the numbers working on in the number line

Resources Interventions and Activities

The guidance developed in Devon and Hertfordshire are really useful starting points.

Resources and interventions