In Year 3, Mrs Eley makes Maths lessons fun (and tasty), drawing on her years of experience, she knows how to make learning engaging and memorable.
Rather than relying on worksheets and traditional methods, Mrs Eley brings mathematical concepts to life using familiar treats that children instantly connect with.
One particularly popular activity involves Smarties. The children use them to learn and understand about data collection. Children sort out the colourful sweets, record their findings in tables, analyse results, and then use the information to create bar charts using a scale. This practical activity helps children clearly understand how data can be gathered, organised, and represented visually.
When exploring fractions, Mrs Eley uses KitKats to teach the concept of equivalent fractions. By physically breaking apart the chocolate bars into sections, children are able to see the Maths in a practical way, making concepts much easier to understand.
For place value, one of the class favourites is the now famous Marshmallow Place Value Challenge. This interactive activity allows pupils to demonstrate their understanding in a fun and engaging way, and Mrs Eley can check how securely children have grasped the concepts they have been learning.
Once the lesson is finished, the children get to eat the resources. The best part of the lesson for the children!
The class are encouraged to use TT Rockstars to help them to learn their times tables. Each half term they take part in a ‘Grand Prix’ times tables competition in which they strive to win the race.
But behind the fun is a carefully planned teaching approach. Mrs Eley knows that children often move too quickly from one Maths topic to another before fully understanding it, due to the nature of the curriculum. To build confidence and secure learning, she revisits key topics every term, including Place Value, Shape and Space, Multiplication, Problem Solving, Fractions and many more that make up the Key Stage 2 curriculum.
By repeating and reinforcing concepts throughout the year, children develop a deeper understanding rather than simply learning and forgetting. Mrs Eley’s approach proves that when learning is enjoyable and memorable, Maths really can be a recipe for success.
