What will students be studying in Maths this year?
In Year 10 students will work through the majority of the EDEXCEL Mathematics GCSE course. At the end of Year 10 students are placed into new sets. In year 11 set 1 student will be following the OCR Level 3 FSMQ curriculum. Set 2 students will be doing an AQA Level 2 Certificate in Further Mathematics. Set 3 will be focussing on exam technique and gaps in knowledge from KS3 and year 10.” The mathematics department decides which path students will be following based on their professional judgement to to ensure that they have the very best mathematical experience possible at Newstead whilst preparing them fully for the next stage of their mathematical education.
Additionally, extremely gifted students are invited to undertake a Statistics GCSE as part of the elective programme.
What do we expect of the students in the classroom?
The students should turn up to every maths lesson with the correct equipment i.e. in addition to the normal items a calculator, ruler, protractor and compass. They should pay close attention in class and ask if they do not understand any part of the lesson. If they still don’t get it at the end they should tell the teacher who may see them at lunchtime to clarify any outstanding issues. There are sessions run every lunchtime Monday-Thursday for those requiring additional help.
What homework are they set?
In Year 10 each week in Sparx, students are set topics by their teachers. These will make up the majority of questions that your child sees. Sparx personalises each child’s homework, making sure it is easy enough for them to complete, but not so easy that they’re not getting stretched! We appreciate that parents will of course want to support their child with their home learning. However, please understand that if you give your child the answers, there is a risk that the homework will get too hard for them. It is therefore really important that your child completes their homework themself and watches the support videos or reaches out to their teacher if they are stuck. In Year 11 students are set homework from a variety of sources depending on which path they are following.
What are the major assessments this year?
In year 10 the curriculum is broken up into 14 units. Each of this is supported by a check-up, strengthen and extend that closely reflects assessment. Students should attempt these on top of their Sparx as part of a regular review. Students are assessed at the end of every half term as well as an End of Year assessment that will closely reflect their GCSE experience in year 11. Setting in year 11 is only based on their performance in these assessments.
What should my child do if they feel they are struggling in the subject?
In the first instance, they should speak to their subject teacher. There are a host of resources on the onenote page for students that are struggling.
How can I support my child?
Please do not worry if you do not understand the topics, you do not have to! The best way to provide general support to students is by talking to them about their work in the subject and how things are going. Encourage them to attempt the optional and extension work on Sparx. Encourage them to review their learning regularly by attempting the check-up activity for each unit assessment. After a unit assessment encourage them to attempt the strengthen or extend activity depending on whether they need support or challenge. Insist that they ask for help when needed. After an end of term assessment enquire which areas they need to improve on and ask how they are going to do it.
Who can I contact for further advice and information?
Please contact your child’s teacher in the first instance, but Mr Anthony as Head of KS4 Mathematics is available at janthony@newsteadwood.co.uk as is Dr Neman as Head of Mathematics at aneman@newsteadwood.co.uk.