At Christ the King, our Maths curriculum is designed to support children in becoming fluent with the fundamentals of Maths, being able to confidently and independently apply these skills when reasoning and problem-solving.

The White Rose Maths scheme, which adopts a mastery-based approach, is used and adapted by staff in order to provide children with opportunities to challenge their thinking and develop an in-depth understanding of topics.

We use and adapt the White Rose Maths scheme, which adopts a mastery-based approach.  Central to this is the use of the concrete, pictorial, abstract (C-P-A) approach which allows children to first experience new concepts with the use of manipulatives (physical items), before progressing to pictorial representations and finally abstract representations (written number calculations).

Why are times tables so important?

Secure and confident knowledge of times tables is vital to children’s success in Maths. They are the building blocks of Maths and with multiplications mastered the doors to many other areas of Maths become unlocked!

Here are some ways which memorising times tables can benefit your child:

• Most importantly, knowing their times tables will give your child confidence in their ability in Maths. We aim for all children to be able to mentally recall their times tables, moving away from counting on their fingers as they become more confident.
• Times tables can help your child to grasp other mathematical concepts, such as fractions, division, ratio and percentages to name a few. Children who do not know their times tables will not be able to access more complex procedures.
• If a child is confident with their times table skills, then this can reduce the cognitive load when learning a new method. An example of this is when learning the long multiplication method; if a child is already confident with their times tables then they can solely focus on the new skills with the method, e.g. where to carry numbers, when a place value holder is needed, estimating and checking that their answer is correct. This will not only help to ensure that their calculations are accurate, but speed up the process of learning a new method and also boost their confidence as they see that they have been successful. 

Expectations for times tables for each year group:

What is the Year 4 Times Tables Test?

The Year 4 Times Tables Test, known by the government and schools as the Year 4 Multiplication Check (MTC), is an annual check to see if Year 4 pupils in England and Wales have a good level of times tables knowledge.  Primary-school children are expected to know all their times tables up to 12x12. Under the current National Curriculum, children are supposed to know their times tables by the end of Year 4.

Why has the test been put in place?

The DfE says that the check is part of a new focus on mastering numeracy, giving children the skills and knowledge they need for secondary school and beyond. The purpose of the MTC is to determine whether Y4 pupils can recall their multiplication tables fluently (being able to answer times tables questions accurately and quickly, without having to work out the answers).