TP-Issue14.5

PARTNER CONTENT www.teachwire.net | 51 Louise Pennington, professional development leader, discusses how to use Numicon in your school Numicon 20+ YEARS OF RESEARCH Numicon is not just the name of the well-known plastic pieces. It actually refers to a pedagogical approach which was first developed in 1996. It was the result of a UK-based longitudinal research study, funded by a TTA grant, and carried out by Dr Tony Wing and practising teachers Romey Tacon and Ruth Atkinson. The Numicon approach centres on three key aspects: communicating mathematically (thinking, talking and manipulating resources), making connections (between mathematical ideas) and generalising (using knowledge in different situations). FLEXIBLE PROGRAMME Numicon consists of printed books, digital online resource Numicon Online (see below) and concrete apparatus such as Numicon Shapes and Cuisenaire rods. The Teaching Resource Handbooks contain pedagogical and organisational support and long- and medium-term planning, alongside activity groups to ensure concept progression across lessons. Pupil Books contain additional ‘practice’ and ‘going deeper’ activities and printed homework activities. Together these different resources make a flexible programme that can be used alongside other resources or as a full programme to teach Primary maths. ONLINE RESOURCES Numicon Online contains a wealth of planning and teaching support, including new digital versions of the Teaching Resource Handbooks hosted within a simple planning tool; videos to support teaching and learning and downloadable resources for teaching and homework. There’s also a range of front- of-class resources, including the BETT award-winning REASONS TO TRY… 30 SECOND BRIEFING Numicon is an approach to teaching maths thatmakes tangible connections between numbers and concepts and is suitable for KS1, KS2 and the transition into KS3. Based on a concrete-pictorial-abstract approach, Numicon encourages children to exploremaths using structured imagery and manipulatives in order to understand and explainmathematical concepts. Interactive Whiteboard Software programme which enables teachers to model for the class and children to manipulate. Schools can request a free trial up until September 2020 (see contact details below). CATCH-UP & INTERVENTION Numicon also has catch-up and intervention programmes. Breaking Barriers is a one-on-one or small group intervention aimed at children aged seven onwards who need to revisit content or have individual programmes based on earlier curriculum content. Big Ideas is a catch-up programme for nine to 12-year-olds who would benefit from revisiting key concepts from the upper primary maths curriculum. Numicon Intervention Programme (NIP) is a 12-week intervention aimed at narrowing the gap for children aged seven and up. A two-day course supports schools to implement this independently- proven intervention*. JOIN OUR COMMUNITY There is an active Numicon community on social media. Numicon Facebook group members from all over the world ask and answer each other’s questions and share photographs and ideas for teaching in school and supporting learning at home. You can also find Numicon on Twitter by following the #Numicon and #WeLoveNumicon hashtags. There’s also lots of Numicon videos to watch on Oxford Education’s YouTube channel. KEY POINTS Contact: For any enquiries and to get free access to Numicon Online until September 2020 email oxfordprimary@oup.com 5 1 2 3 4 5 Numicon is the most well- known maths brand in the UK. It is successfully integrated into global curriculums to support primary-aged children to learn maths. Numicon Shapes are weighted – a seven-shape and a three-shape weigh the same as a ten-shape or any combination of Numicon shapes that make ten. Numicon Shapes can be popped into the top rack of a dishwasher on a normal wash or dipped into diluted sterilising fluid to fully sanitise the pieces. NCETM-accredited Numicon Professional Development fromOUP ensures that schools get the most out of the Numicon print, digital and manipulative resources. * Closing the Gap: Test and Learn Research Report (National College for Teaching and Leadership 2016)