Jo Sibley – Poole Grammar School

Further Mathematics Support Programme

Department structure:

• 8 full time teachers, 3 part time or shared with other depts

• 11-18 boys’ grammar in Dorset.

• KS4 cohorts of up to 180, split into two halves, with 4 sets in each half. Small sets 3&4, larger sets 1&2.

• A level Maths is the largest subject at our school – we are expecting more than 100 to start the course this Autumn.

• Our dept are very committed and close-knit; we have all been working to improve learning through continuous in-classroom assessment methods such as mini-whiteboard work and imaginative pair and group work.

• We host up to two PGCE and two School Direct trainees each year and hope soon to be offering a post-ITT SKE as part of our Teaching School commitment.

…but I’m the only girl

A bit of history:

• Previously used OCR FSMQ Additional Maths after early entry for GCSE (summer of Y10 or Autumn of Y11) for the two parallel top sets.

• In summer 2012, we also offered the AQA FM course to Year 11 Sets 1 (as well as Add Maths) and allowed selected students from Sets 2 and a few from a Set 3 to opt in to the new course as well, to be examined at the same sitting as their GCSE (starting teaching from Nov 2011).

• Currently Year 10 are not entered for early GCSE and we integrate the L2 FM with their GCSE teaching for all groups.

• In summer 2014, both Sets 1 and Sets 2 took the exam. Sets 3 and 4 were offered the chance to opt in.

A level preparation:

• We would like all students embarking on A level Maths to have completed either FSMQ Add Maths or AQA L2 FM.

• We provide booster days in the summer for any who haven’t had access to this.

• Stretches and challenges the more able

• Good preparation for AS/A level study

• More accessible than OCR Additional Maths

• Can be taught in parallel with GCSE

• Interesting exam questions (requiring students to think Mathematically)

• Excellent support from AQA

• Good free resources available (AQA, MEI etc)

• Graded on a five-grade scale:

• A* with Distinction (A^), A*, A, B and C.

• Examined by two terminal papers:

• Paper 1 (Non-calculator) 1 hr 30 mins – 70 marks, 40%

• Paper 2 (Calculator) 2 hours – 105 marks, 60%

• Two sittings per year; January and June

• It gives high achieving students an introduction to AS level topics that will help them to develop skills in:

• Algebra

• Geometry

• Calculus

• Matrices

• Trigonometry

• Functions

• Graphs

• AQA’s own assessment guidance • made into a student booklet for Y11, used electronically for teaching

examples on screen, lots of mini-whiteboard use

• AQA’s worksheets • A later addition, now added to student booklets

• Exam paper booklets with topic cross referencing • Initially completed in exercise books by topic, then full papers at end

• Integral resources • Much use made of chapter assessments and multi-choice section tests,

on board or on paper

• Standards Unit box for Core Maths for fun activities

• Revision sheets designed in-house

• Old OCR Add Maths textbooks and past papers • Especially good for coordinate geometry, trig

equations, quadratic inequalities, factor theorem and differentiation

• Core 1 and 2 questions from past papers

• MaxBox coursework task

• Specifically designed expensive text books! • They didn’t exist at the beginning so we got by without and now we

don’t miss them at all!

• We have now bought a set of these but haven’t had a chance to try them yet… watch this space!

Categorising quadratics

At least 1

positive root

Negative y-

intercept

Turning point

in 3rd

Quadrant

Piecewise functions ◦ With curve sketching?

Differentiation ◦ 6th form familiarisation?

Matrices ◦ With transformations?

Factor theorem ◦ With quadratics?

… or at the end of the course.

Matrices: ◦ Combinations of transformations AB BA

◦ Rotation is anticlockwise in Maths!

◦ Negative determinants mean reflection

Equation of a straight line ◦ y - a= m(x – b) from the start

Second derivatives and points of inflexion

Things we don’t like so much:

No integration

No binomial expansion

No complex numbers

… but we probably wouldn’t have time to do these anyway!

Things we would like to see:

A separate applied course on the same lines

Stuff we do like:

Problem solving, puzzle-type questions

Connecting topics and different ways to answer a question

Exact answers – surds all over the place, 30/60/90 triangles

Proper algebraic proof

Interesting to teach and room to extend - for fun!

… and so much more fun than Stats GCSE!

Simplify: 12: 48: 300

OABC is a kite. Find its area and the coordinates of point B:

C(0, 4)

B

A(12, 0) O

Jo Sibley – Poole Grammar School

Further Mathematics Support Programme