Together, they explore what active learning really means in primary maths and, just as importantly, what it does not mean. This is not about children running around the classroom for the sake of it. It is about purposeful movement that supports attention, participation, memory, oracy and mathematical thinking.

Paula and Danielle share how active learning has become part of the everyday culture at Birkby Infant and Nursery School, a large, diverse school with high levels of EAL, SEND and pupil mobility. They explain how carefully chosen games and routines help children engage with mathematical ideas, demonstrate understanding, talk in full sentences and take part without always relying on spoken answers.

Bryn explains the thinking behind Move and Learn, including how movement can support retrieval, modelling, connection and creation. He also discusses the importance of simple routines, low-cost resources and building a classroom culture where children understand why movement is being used to support learning.

The conversation includes practical examples such as cone games, tick and cross activities, yoga poses for multiple choice answers, partner talk and sentence stems. It also explores how active learning can fit naturally within a mastery approach, supporting small steps, rehearsal, reasoning and whole-class participation.

This episode is especially useful for primary teachers, maths leads, senior leaders and anyone interested in making maths lessons more active, inclusive and engaging without losing sight of the learning intention.

You can find out more about Move and Learn here:

https://moveandlearn.co.uk/

Bryn also mentions the book How to Move and Learn, written by Ian Holmes, Bryn Llewellyn and Rich Allman, published by Crown House. https://www.crownhouse.co.uk/how-to-move-learn

TEDx Talk with Prof Andy Daly-Smith - https://youtu.be/tARSCzHLF5g?si=4tH_WZEYtkgLgzEo

Birkby Infant & Nursery School (Centre of Excellence video) - https://moveandlearn.co.uk/case-studies

You can get in touch with the podcast by emailing:

primarymathspodcast@twinkl.co.uk

You can connect with Jon on LinkedIn here:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/joncripwell/

And you can subscribe to the Primary Maths Podcast Substack here:

https://primarymathspodcast.substack.com/

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe or follow the podcast wherever you listen, leave a rating or review, and share it with a colleague who might be interested in making maths lessons more active, purposeful and engaging.

Ash shares some suitably mind-bending space facts, including moon rocks, sunlight, Apollo, Artemis and why the Moon might be thought of as Earth’s child. Jon also remembers the author he forgot during the episode: Andy Weir, who wrote The Martian and Project Hail Mary, both brilliant examples of science-rich storytelling.

The second half of the episode turns to the new Student Grouping Study from the Education Endowment Foundation and UCL Institute of Education. The study looked at Year 7 and Year 8 maths classes, comparing pupils taught in mixed attainment groups with those taught in sets by prior attainment.

Jon reflects on what the findings might mean for primary maths, especially for teachers and leaders thinking carefully about mixed attainment teaching, challenge, lesson design and pupil confidence. The episode does not treat the report as a simple argument for or against setting. Instead, it asks a more useful question: what does any grouping model require teachers to think about?

If mixed attainment teaching is going to work well, pupils need access to the lesson, but they also need sufficient challenge. That means thinking carefully about pitch, representations, questioning, task design and how deeper thinking is built into the learning, rather than added on as a disconnected extension task.

The episode also considers the impact that grouping can have on pupils’ mathematical identity. In primary classrooms especially, children are often very aware of who is seen as “good at maths” and who is not. So the way we group pupils is never just a logistical decision. It can shape confidence, opportunity and how children see themselves as mathematicians.

You can read the EEF Student Grouping Study here:

https://educationendowmentfoundation.org.uk/projects-and-evaluation/projects/student-grouping-study

You can find Ash on STEM Conversations, another Twinkl podcast, available on YouTube, Spotify, Apple Podcasts and wherever you usually get your podcasts.

You can find Jon on LinkedIn here:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/joncripwell/

You can subscribe to the Primary Maths Podcast Substack here:

https://primarymathspodcast.substack.com/

And you can listen to The Primary Maths Podcast on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, YouTube or wherever you usually get your podcasts. If you enjoy the episode, please subscribe, leave a rating or review, and share it with a colleague who is thinking carefully about grouping, challenge and mixed attainment teaching.

Kate and Kat share their own experiences of maths at school, including how conceptual understanding, representations and manipulatives transformed the way they thought about the subject. The conversation then explores what we really mean by foundational knowledge in maths, and why that phrase needs careful thought if it is to be useful in classrooms rather than just another piece of educational terminology.

They discuss the importance of knowing what we want children to notice, how teachers can adapt schemes and resources without losing sight of the underlying principles, and why intellectual preparation matters even when high-quality materials are already available. There is also a strong focus on slowing down, asking better questions, choosing representations carefully and creating space for pupils to reason, explain and explore.

Along the way, Jon, Kate and Kat consider the tension between coverage, accountability and deep understanding, as well as the role of oracy, manipulatives, scaffolding and authentic questions in helping children engage more meaningfully with mathematics.

If you are interested in helping pupils think more deeply, make connections and experience maths as something to explore rather than simply complete, this episode is well worth a listen.

Kate Henshall is Education Director at Rethink Maths. She has previously worked as Deputy Director of Education and has experience as a primary teacher, maths leader and mastery specialist.

Kat Martin is Director of Foundations at Rethink Maths. She has previously worked as Head of International Development, supporting foundational numeracy work internationally, and has a background as a primary teacher and senior leader.

You can find out more about Rethink Maths at rethinkmaths.co.uk.

You can connect with Jon on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/joncripwell/

You can subscribe to the Primary Maths Podcast Substack at https://primarymathspodcast.substack.com/

To suggest a topic or guest for the podcast, email primarymathspodcast@twinkl.co.uk

Despite being one of the three core aims of the curriculum, problem solving is still too often treated as something we “do at the end” rather than something we explicitly teach. Drawing on classroom experience, research, and a classic article by Mike Askew, they explore the difference between routine and non-routine problems, and why that distinction matters more than ever.

The conversation unpicks a familiar issue. Children can often perform well in lessons, yet struggle when faced with unfamiliar problems. The issue isn’t always the maths itself, but the lack of a clear approach to tackling problems. As Jon puts it, we’ve been doing lots of solving of problems, but not enough teaching of problem solving as a skill.

Becky shares insights from her work developing new problem solving resources, including the importance of explicitly teaching strategies, building a toolkit of approaches, and creating opportunities for discussion, curiosity, and resilience. They also reflect on the reality of packed curricula, teacher confidence, and why “Fun Friday” problem solving didn’t always deliver what we hoped.

You’ll hear about:

• The difference between routine and non-routine problems and why it matters
• Why word problems are only a small part of true problem solving
• How approaches like pattern spotting and working systematically can provide a way in
• The role of resilience, discussion, and mistakes in developing confident problem solvers
• What it actually looks like to teach problem solving, not just assign it

The episode also introduces Twinkl’s new problem solving resource, designed to support both teachers and pupils with structured strategies, modelled approaches, and rich tasks that build understanding over time.

If problem solving has ever felt like the missing piece in your maths teaching, this is a great place to start.

🔗 Links and Resources

Mike Askew article: https://www.teachprimary.com/learning_resources/view/ks1-and-ks2-maths-problem-solving

Twinkl Problem Solving Guide: https://www.twinkl.co.uk/resource/maths-problem-solving-product-guide-t-m-1776075213

Twinkl TeachMeet page (for upcoming webinars):

hhttps://www.twinkl.co.uk/events/teachmeet

📩 Get Involved

Got a question, reflection, or classroom story?

Email: primarymathspodcast@twinkl.co.uk

Connect with Jon:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/joncripwell/

Substack:

https://primarymathspodcast.substack.com/

Join Jon Cripwell, Baroness Bull, and Cat Eadle as they share insights into neurodiversity in the classroom. This teacher podcast aims to provide practical understanding and foster inclusive learning environments.

The conversation compares the Apollo missions of the 1960s with today’s Artemis programme, highlighting how technology has advanced dramatically while the underlying mathematics has remained the same. From trajectory calculations and launch angles to predicting where the Moon will be, this episode brings big mathematical ideas into a form that teachers can share with their pupils.

The episode then focuses on the remarkable story of Katherine Johnson, whose calculations were critical to the success of early space missions, including Apollo 11. Her work reminds us that mathematics is far more than arithmetic. It is about reasoning, modelling, and solving real problems that matter.

Along the way, Jon and Becky reflect on what this means for the classroom, why the maths we teach in primary school matters more than we might think, and how stories like this can inspire children to see themselves as mathematicians.

If you enjoy the podcast, don’t forget to subscribe and leave a review so you never miss an episode. You can also join the conversation on LinkedIn and connect with other educators.

We are also running a free online TeachMeet on problem solving, focusing on the power of pattern spotting. You can sign up here:

https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/maths-problem-solving-the-power-of-pattern-spotting-tickets-1981746761912?aff=ebdsoporgprofile

Get in touch with the show: primarymathspodcast@twinkl.co.uk

Follow Jon on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/joncripwell/In this episode of The Primary Maths Podcast, Jon and Becky explore the mathematics behind space travel, inspired by the recent Artemis mission and the return of astronauts from their journey around the Moon. Starting with the sheer scale of the challenge, they unpack the numbers, distances, and precision required to send humans into space and bring them safely home again.

The conversation compares the Apollo missions of the 1960s with today’s Artemis programme, highlighting how technology has advanced dramatically while the underlying mathematics has remained the same. From trajectory calculations and launch angles to predicting where the Moon will be, this episode brings big mathematical ideas into a form that teachers can share with their pupils.

The episode then focuses on the remarkable story of Katherine Johnson, whose calculations were critical to the success of early space missions, including Apollo 11. Her work reminds us that mathematics is far more than arithmetic. It is about reasoning, modelling, and solving real problems that matter.

Along the way, Jon and Becky reflect on what this means for the classroom, why the maths we teach in primary school matters more than we might think, and how stories like this can inspire children to see themselves as mathematicians.

If you enjoy the podcast, don’t forget to subscribe and leave a review so you never miss an episode. You can also join the conversation on LinkedIn and connect with other educators.

We are also running a free online TeachMeet on problem solving, focusing on the power of pattern spotting. You can sign up here:

https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/maths-problem-solving-the-power-of-pattern-spotting-tickets-1981746761912?aff=ebdsoporgprofile

Get in touch with the show: primarymathspodcast@twinkl.co.uk

Follow Jon on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/joncripwell/

In this episode, I’m joined by Paula Fieldhouse for a wide-ranging conversation about financial literacy, parental engagement, and what it really means to prepare children for the financial decisions they will face later in life.

We explore what financial literacy actually is, beyond budgeting worksheets and coin recognition, and why children’s early experiences of money at home play such a powerful role in shaping their attitudes, confidence and behaviours. Paula shares insights from her research into how families talk about money, how inequality shows up long before formal financial education begins, and why schools on their own cannot solve this issue.

We also discuss common misconceptions, including the idea that financial education is something that can be bolted on later, or that it sits outside the maths curriculum. Paula explains why parental engagement matters so much, what meaningful support for families can look like, and how initiatives like Learning with Parents are helping to bridge the gap between home and school in a practical, respectful way.

This episode will be particularly relevant for teachers, maths leads and school leaders thinking about inclusion, equity and real-world application in mathematics, as well as anyone interested in how education systems can support families rather than work around them.

You can find out more about Paula’s work and connect with her on LinkedIn at

https://www.linkedin.com/in/dr-paula-fieldhouse-7291a6189

You can also explore the work of Learning with Parents at

https://learningwithparents.com

If you’d like to get in touch with the show, you can email us at

primarymathspodcast@twinkl.co.uk

You can connect with me on LinkedIn at

https://www.linkedin.com/in/joncripwell

And you can follow me on Instagram at

https://www.instagram.com/joncripwellmaths/

If you enjoyed this episode, please consider liking, subscribing, or leaving a review. It really helps more people find the podcast.

Jon introduces a fascinating mathematical quirk known as Kaprekar’s constant. Starting with almost any four-digit number and following a simple process of rearranging and subtracting digits, you will always arrive at 6174. It is a brilliant example of how pattern, structure and curiosity can bring maths to life, and offers a simple but engaging classroom investigation.

The conversation then shifts into “Maths of Life”, as Becky shares a very relatable problem: calculating the area of an awkwardly shaped driveway. What follows is a great discussion about different ways to break down complex shapes, and how mathematical thinking allows us to approach the same problem in multiple valid ways.

Finally, Becky brings back “Etymathsology”, exploring the origins of mathematical language. This week includes the surprising Norse roots of the word “odd”, the evolution of “even”, and the historical meaning of “score” as a way of counting in twenties.

As ever, the episode is a reminder that maths is everywhere, from number curiosities to home improvements to the words we use every day.

If you enjoy the podcast, please follow, subscribe and leave a review. It really helps more people discover the show.

We always love hearing from you. If you’ve spotted some maths in your everyday life, get in touch and we might feature it in a future episode.

Email: primarymathspodcast@twinkl.co.uk

Jon’s LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/joncripwell/

Substack: https://primarymathspodcast.substack.com/

The conversation explores a familiar classroom question: what do we do with seasonal contexts like Easter? Jon and Becky discuss the difference between simply dressing up maths with a theme and genuinely finding the mathematics within real-life situations. From hot cross buns to chocolate eggs, they consider how context can support engagement, while also reflecting on the challenge of finding time to explore it properly.

There is, of course, an Easter quiz. Jon puts Becky on the spot with a series of statistics, including how many Easter eggs are eaten in the UK each year, the scale of chocolate production and the surprisingly specific history of the first chocolate eggs in Britain. Expect a mix of sensible estimates, near misses and the occasional wildly inaccurate guess.

Along the way, the episode returns to a key idea that runs through the podcast: maths is everywhere. Even if there is not always time to build a full lesson around it, simply noticing and talking about the maths in everyday life can make a real difference.

To finish, Jon and Becky share their Easter preferences, reflect on how traditions have changed, and make a strong case for bringing back Easter eggs that come with a mug.

If you enjoy the episode, don’t forget to subscribe so you never miss one. You can join the conversation on LinkedIn and catch the Friday Takeaway on Substack for practical ideas from each episode.

Subscribe on Substack: https://primarymathspodcast.substack.com/

Connect with Jon on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/joncripwell/

The conversation turns to the Multiplication Tables Check (MTC), exploring its origins, purpose and impact since its introduction. Jon shares a short history of the check, from its announcement in 2017 through to its first full national rollout in 2022, and discusses what the latest data and Teacher Tapp findings suggest about its influence on teaching and learning.

They consider the benefits of increased focus on multiplication fluency, alongside some of the tensions around assessment, accountability and the risk of prioritising speed over understanding. The discussion raises an important question: does rapid recall alone support deeper mathematical thinking, or are we missing something?

Becky then brings this week’s Maths of Life, inspired by a real-life capybara escape near her home. Using the scenario, she explores how maths can be used to model search areas, introducing ideas around radius, area and real-world problem solving. It’s a reminder of how powerful local and engaging contexts can be in the classroom.

The episode finishes with Research in 60 Seconds, focusing on Mary Budd Rowe’s work on wait time. Increasing thinking time from one second to three seconds can significantly improve the quality of pupil responses, increase participation and deepen reasoning. Jon and Becky reflect on how this simple shift can have a meaningful impact in everyday classroom practice.

As always, the episode blends practical insight, research and a few lighter moments along the way.

If you enjoyed this episode, please follow or subscribe so you never miss a new one, and consider leaving a quick review to help others find the show.

You can get in touch with the podcast by emailing primarymathspodcast@twinkl.co.uk

Explore the free PlanIt Maths taster pack here: https://www.twinkl.co.uk/resource/free-planit-maths-taster-pack-t-m-1691485779

Register for upcoming free training on problem solving: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/maths-problem-solving-the-power-of-pattern-spotting-tickets-1981746761912?aff=ebdsoporgprofile

Explore research on multiplication from the SUM Project: https://thesumproject.wordpress.com/learning-multiplication-facts/

Browse Twinkl’s MTC hub and resources: https://www.twinkl.co.uk/resources/ks2-maths/ks2-calculations-times-tables/year-4-multiplication-tables-check-times-tables-maths-key-stage-2-year-3-4-5-6?utm_source=promo&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=emex.subject-leads-11-03-2026-maths&utm_content=link1

Read more and join the conversation on Substack: https://primarymathspodcast.substack.com/

Connect with Jon on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/joncripwell/

Lucy’s research explores executive function skills such as working memory, inhibitory control and cognitive flexibility, and how these shape children’s mathematical learning. The conversation dives into how multiplication facts are stored and retrieved, why certain errors (like 6 × 7 = 42) are so common, and what this tells us about the structure of memory.

Together, Jon and Lucy explore the distinction between fluency and understanding. While more pupils are improving their scores on England’s Multiplication Tables Check, Lucy explains why improved recall does not automatically translate into stronger applied mathematical reasoning. Drawing on findings from the ESRC-funded SUM Project, she discusses how children can improve fact recall without a corresponding gain in multiplicative understanding.

The episode also tackles maths anxiety, the impact of timed practice, and why speed may matter for testing but not necessarily for learning. Lucy shares practical insights for teachers, including the benefits of varied practice, careful use of multiple-choice formats, and ensuring that multiplication facts are connected to meaningful mathematical structures rather than learned in isolation.

This is a thoughtful and research-informed conversation for teachers and leaders who want to understand not just how to help children remember their times tables, but how to help them truly understand multiplication.

SUM Project website:

https://www.sumproject.org.uk/

Further reading and related articles:

Nine-year-olds in England sit a timed multiplication test – but using times tables is about more than quick recall:

https://theconversation.com/nine-year-olds-in-england-sit-timed-multiplication-test-but-using-times-tables-is-about-more-than-quick-recall-258320

Learning, using and applying multiplication facts – insights from research:

https://my.chartered.college/impact_article/learning-using-and-applying-multiplication-facts-insights-from-research/

Connect with Lucy Cragg on LinkedIn:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/lucy-cragg-b22b0a386/

Contact Lucy via email:

lucy.cragg@nottingham.ac.uk

Connect with Jon Cripwell on LinkedIn:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/joncripwell/

Subscribe to Jon’s Substack, The Primary Maths Podcast:

https://theprimarymathspodcast.substack.com/

About Professor Lucy Cragg

Professor Lucy Cragg is a developmental psychologist based in the School of Psychology at the University of Nottingham. Her research focuses on the development of executive function skills in children and the role these skills play in learning mathematics.

She led a recent ESRC-funded project investigating the cognitive factors involved in multiplication fact learning, examining both multiplication fact retrieval and its contribution to broader multiplicative understanding. Her work bridges cognitive science and classroom practice, helping educators better understand how memory, attention and inhibition influence mathematical learning.

She is passionate about making research accessible to teachers and welcomes contact from practitioners interested in applying cognitive science insights in the classroom.

The Podcast

The Primary Maths Podcast is for teachers and leaders who believe primary maths can be thoughtful, ambitious and inclusive. Hosted by Jon Cripwell, the show explores lesson design, mathematical habits, maths anxiety, problem solving, curriculum thinking and the research that shapes great teaching.

Why do some pupils decide that maths “isn’t for them”? Why do confident learners sometimes disengage from mathematics? And what can teachers do to help every child feel like they belong in the maths classroom?

Tom draws on research around motivation, self-perception and classroom culture to explore how children develop their identity as mathematicians. The conversation looks at how pupils’ beliefs about themselves are shaped over time through small classroom experiences — and how teachers can design lessons that help pupils feel successful, valued and able to contribute.

The discussion also explores the difference between behavioural engagement and cognitive engagement, why success and motivation reinforce each other, and how carefully designed routines and questioning can help pupils build confidence in mathematics.

Along the way, Tom shares practical strategies teachers can use straight away, including partner discussion routines, improving the use of mini whiteboards, and structuring lessons so that pupils experience meaningful success before encountering challenge.

If you want to create maths lessons where every child feels like they matter — and where thinking is valued as much as answers — this episode is packed with ideas you can take straight back to the classroom.

About Tom Oakley

Tom Oakley is a Deputy Headteacher at a primary school in Suffolk, England. Previously, Tom worked as a lead teacher for mathematics in south-west London and later as a Local Authority Maths Adviser in Cambridge for six years. In between those roles, Tom taught at an international school on Koh Samui in Thailand. Since 2010, Tom has supported colleagues’ professional learning in a range of roles and settings. He is an enthusiastic reader of education blogs and an occasional writer, with particular interests in professional development, primary mathematics and curriculum design.

Links and Resources

Follow Tom Oakley on LinkedIn

https://www.linkedin.com/in/tom-e-oakley/

Follow Jon Cripwell on LinkedIn

https://www.linkedin.com/in/joncripwell/

Subscribe to The Primary Maths Podcast Substack

https://primarymathspodcast.substack.com/

Contact the podcast

primarymathspodcast@twinkl.co.uk

Explore Twinkl’s maths resources

https://www.twinkl.co.uk/resources/ks2-maths

Subscribe to the Podcast

If you enjoyed this episode, make sure you follow or subscribe to The Primary Maths Podcast so you never miss an interview or Aftermaths episode.

New episodes are released every week, featuring conversations with researchers, teachers and school leaders about what really works in primary mathematics.

The episode begins with a lighter moment as Jon points out that it is Friday the 13th again, one of three Friday the 13ths in 2026, the maximum possible in a single year. The conversation then moves to this week’s interview episode with secondary maths teacher Will McLoughlin, which explored direct instruction, conceptual understanding and mathematical thinking.

Jon reflects on a moment from a recent school visit where a Year 5 pupil casually said, “I’m not really a maths person.” That comment becomes the starting point for the main discussion: what passive maths can cost learners over time. When pupils spend too much time watching maths rather than doing maths, they may complete work and pass tests, but gradually lose confidence, identity and a sense of belonging in mathematics. The challenge for teachers is that these losses are often invisible in data. Schools can measure answers on a page, but it is much harder to measure what pupils have quietly stopped believing about themselves as mathematicians.

Jon and Becky discuss how lesson design and task choice can make a difference. Starting lessons with accessible entry points, encouraging pupils to explain their thinking, and creating collaborative mathematical environments can all help build confidence and participation. While accountability measures such as the KS2 SATs arithmetic paper or the Year 4 Multiplication Tables Check prioritise speed and procedural accuracy, great maths teaching also develops curiosity, reasoning and identity as a mathematician.

The episode also includes Becky’s History of Maths segment in honour of Pi Day on 14 March. Becky explains the origins of the number π, how ancient Babylonians and Egyptians approximated it thousands of years ago, and how Archimedes later developed more precise methods for calculating it. The Greek letter π was first used to represent the number by Welsh mathematician William Jones in the early eighteenth century. Becky also explores some fun facts about π, including the world record for memorising its digits.

Jon highlights that even though π is not formally taught in the primary curriculum, sharing mathematical curiosities like this can help create a sense of wonder and show pupils that mathematics extends far beyond the classroom.

Towards the end of the episode Jon announces that Twinkl’s PlanIt Maths scheme of work is being completely refreshed, with every lesson rewritten to reflect current research and pedagogy. The new scheme builds problem solving, scaffolding and greater depth thinking throughout lessons rather than adding them as optional extras. A free taster pack is now available for teachers who would like to explore the new materials.

If you enjoy the podcast, remember to subscribe so you never miss an episode. Jon also invites listeners to continue the discussion on LinkedIn and through the podcast Substack.

Links mentioned in this episode

Listen to the previous interview episode with Will McLoughlin (Episode 59)

https://primarymathspodcast.substack.com/

Download the free PlanIt Maths taster pack

https://www.twinkl.co.uk/resource/free-planit-maths-taster-pack-t-m-1691485779

Follow Jon Cripwell on LinkedIn

https://www.linkedin.com/in/joncripwell

Subscribe to The Primary Maths Podcast Substack

https://primarymathspodcast.substack.com/

Contact the show

primarymathspodcast@twinkl.co.uk

The conversation explores what direct instruction or explicit instruction actually means in practice — and what it doesn’t.

Will shares how his thinking has evolved over time, from procedural teaching to a more deliberate, structured approach rooted in clarity, retrieval practice and independent practice. Together, Jon and Will unpack:

1. What “I do, we do, you do” should look like in a maths classroom
2. The difference between procedural fluency and conceptual understanding — and why they’re not opposites
3. Why silent, focused independent practice matters (especially in a world of constant distraction)
4. Retrieval practice as more than memory — including its role in deepening understanding
5. The importance of modelling with clarity and purpose
6. How atomising explanations can strengthen mathematical sense-making

They also explore where direct instruction can go wrong — when it becomes performative, overly procedural or passive — and how dialogue, questioning and attention to structure keep pupils doing maths, not just watching it.

This is a thoughtful and balanced conversation for teachers and leaders reflecting on lesson design, cognitive science and mathematical thinking.

About the Guest

Will McLoughlin is a secondary maths teacher in Abu Dhabi and the developer of AddvanceMaths.com. He is currently studying for an Education Doctorate, with research interests including conceptual understanding, animated instruction and cognitive science.

Connect with Will:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/will-mcloughlin-a2898ab6/

Twitter/X: https://x.com/MrMac_Math

YouTube (Mathematical Pedagogy Videos): https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLCG7Y8fJFRr-1tfgc6g0HXkoumj41wQUN&si=ay8kO2H2rQc-nPXF

Favourite research on conceptual understanding: https://addvancemaths.com/conceptual-research/

Stay Connected

If you enjoyed this episode, please consider leaving a quick review or sharing it with a colleague — it really helps the podcast reach more teachers.

Email: primarymathspodcast@gmail.com

LinkedIn (Jon Cripwell): https://www.linkedin.com/in/jon-cripwell/

Substack: https://primarymathspodcast.substack.com

Becky and Jon will be back on Friday with an Aftermaths episode, reflecting further on direct instruction, retrieval and what this means for primary classrooms.

Thanks for listening — and as ever, keep doing the maths.

The episode begins with Jon and Becky recounting their first in-person meeting as colleagues after a slightly confusing start involving two similarly named hotels in Southampton. From there, the discussion turns to the power of storybooks in maths lessons following Tuesday’s interview with Hannah Allison. Jon and Becky explore how narrative can support mathematical thinking and engagement, helping pupils notice patterns, make connections and develop curiosity about number.

Becky shares one of her favourite mathematical picture books, Bean 13 by Matthew McKelligott, a story that provides a brilliant context for exploring factors, sharing and prime numbers. The conversation highlights how storybooks can offer low-threshold, high-ceiling entry points into mathematical ideas and why picture books can be just as powerful with older primary pupils as they are in the early years.

Jon also reflects on recent work with teachers and raises an important professional discussion about the role of schemes of work. Schemes can be incredibly helpful in planning progression, representations and tasks, but they should be treated as a resource rather than a script. The conversation explores how teachers can adapt schemes thoughtfully to meet the needs of the pupils in front of them while still benefiting from the structure they provide.

In Becky’s Etymathsology segment, the pair explore the origins of the word algebra. The term traces back to the Arabic word al-jabr, meaning restoration or reunion, and was used by the ninth-century mathematician Al-Khwarizmi in his work on solving equations. The discussion also challenges the common misconception that algebra only begins in secondary school, highlighting how children begin working algebraically from the earliest years through missing number problems and generalisations.

The episode finishes with a piece of mathematical magic: the classic 1089 number trick. Jon walks Becky through a short sequence of calculations using a three-digit number, which always results in the number 1089. Listeners are invited to try the trick themselves and think about how algebra might help explain why it works.

If you enjoyed the episode, please consider leaving a rating or review to help other teachers discover the podcast. We also love hearing from listeners.

You can send questions, ideas or favourite maths storybooks to

primarymathspodcast@twinkl.co.uk

Subscribe to the podcast newsletter on Substack:

https://primarymathspodcast.substack.com

Connect with Jon on LinkedIn:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/joncripwell/

In this episode of The Primary Maths Podcast, Jon Cripwell is joined by Hannah Allison from Maths Outside the Box to explore the role of stories in primary maths teaching. Drawing on her background in the arts and her experience as a maths leader, Hannah explains how narrative, character and context can help pupils engage more deeply with mathematical ideas.

Together, Jon and Hannah discuss what maths through stories actually looks like in practice, and how storybooks can be used as a meaningful starting point, a way to deepen understanding, or a reflective consolidation lesson rather than a bolt-on activity. They explore the difference between maths picture books and true maths storybooks, and why that distinction matters for learning.

The conversation also looks at engagement beyond entertainment, including how stories support talk, oracy and mathematical sense-making, particularly for pupils who feel anxious or disconnected from maths. Hannah shares practical classroom examples, including how storybooks can create low-threshold, high-ceiling tasks that invite curiosity, discussion and sustained thinking.

Jon and Hannah also grapple with real-world constraints such as time, workload and schemes of work, discussing how story-based maths can sit alongside structured programmes without becoming an additional burden for teachers.

This episode is a thoughtful exploration of how stories can help move maths lessons from something pupils watch to something they actively do.

Guest Bio

Hannah Allison is a primary school teacher and Maths Lead, who founded Maths Outside The Box in 2024 to support other leaders who wanted to find creativity in their Maths delivery. Since launching as a resource-based platform specialising in teaching Maths through stories, she now delivers CPD & INSET sessions in teaching Maths through stories, cross-curricular Maths planning and financial education both online and in-person. Her mission is to engage more children in the subject through creative and exciting lessons, connection to 'real-life' maths and through a problem-solving approach.

Links

website: MathsOutsidetheBox.com

email: Hannah@mathsoutsidethebox.com

instagram, tiktok and facebook: @mathsoutsidethebox

The episode includes a listener question from Priya, a maths lead who has invested in new manipulatives but is finding that they are sitting unused or being used without clear purpose. Jon and Becky discuss how CPD can help teachers understand what each manipulative is designed to reveal, including the difference between base ten equipment and Cuisenaire rods, and how to move beyond a tick-box approach to concrete resources.

In Maths of Life, Becky explores the mathematics behind Lego, including the 0.002mm manufacturing tolerance of each brick, the 3,700 different brick shapes, the 915,103,765 possible combinations of six identical 2x4 bricks, and the approximate 1:40 scale of Lego minifigures. The conversation highlights how building blocks can be used to explore arrays, ratios, scale and structure in the classroom.

Jon also shares a research summary on maths anxiety among UK primary teachers, based on a recent cross-national study highlighted by Dr Thomas Hunt. While overall levels of maths anxiety are relatively low, UK generalist primary teachers report higher anxiety about maths and teaching maths than colleagues in some other countries, raising important questions about confidence and professional development.

The episode concludes with a short maths magic segment that demonstrates how algebraic structure sits behind a simple number trick and how manipulatives can be used to make that structure visible.

Jon also references his new Substack article responding to the Education White Paper and its implications for SEND and early numeracy, which you can read here: https://substack.com/@joncripwell.

You can join the ongoing discussion on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/joncripwell/.

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Next week features an interview with Hannah Allison on Storybook Maths, followed by an Aftermaths episode exploring whether teaching structures genuinely support professional judgement or risk becoming scripts.

Language sits at the heart of mathematics, but the way pupils talk about maths often remains unnoticed or is tidied up too quickly. Together, Jon and Kate explore why mathematical thinking so often stays invisible, and how children communicate their ideas in many ways beyond written answers.

A central focus of the episode is the idea of “porridge words”. These are the imprecise, catch all or emerging terms children use when they are still forming their understanding. Kate explains where the concept comes from, how it connects to Edward de Bono’s work on thinking, and why these words are not a problem to fix but evidence of thinking in motion.

The conversation explores how pupils use language, gesture, drawings, manipulatives and symbols to express mathematical ideas, and why privileging only written or verbal explanations can limit what teachers notice. Kate shares insights from her research and teaching experience, including why rushing to correct vocabulary can shut down thinking, and how deeply listening to pupils helps teachers make better formative assessment decisions.

Jon and Kate also discuss the balance between valuing emerging language and moving pupils towards accurate mathematical terminology. They consider the importance of consistency, the risks of children disengaging when language is unclear, and how teachers can introduce precise vocabulary without undermining confidence or curiosity.

This episode is a reminder that mathematical thinking often sounds messy before it becomes precise, and that noticing how children talk about maths can tell us far more than whether an answer is right or wrong.

If you enjoyed this conversation, join Jon and Becky for the Aftermaths episode, where they reflect on the key ideas and classroom implications. You can also get in touch with the show at primarymathspodcast@twinkl.co.uk

Guest bio

Dr Kate Quade is a Senior Lecturer in Mathematics Education and Program Director for the Master of Teaching (Primary) at the University of Adelaide. She is a former primary teacher and maths leader, with experience as a curriculum advisor, textbook contributor and coordinator of the Questacon Maths Centre. Kate’s research focuses on mathematical thinking, language and inclusion, particularly how children make their thinking visible through talk, drawing, gesture and other multimodal forms. Her recent work on porridge words explores how imprecise or everyday language can act as a cognitive tool that supports reasoning and sense making in primary maths classrooms.

You can connect with Kate on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/kate-quane-7084b797/, on Bluesky at @kateqmaths.bsky.social, or by email at kate.quane@adelaide.edu.au

The conversation begins in the classroom, exploring how we define prime numbers and why 1 and 2 are both special cases. They reflect on how primes frustrate our desire for neat patterns, how children often assume odd numbers are prime, and how the Sieve of Eratosthenes gives us a beautifully systematic way of uncovering them.

From there, the episode takes a historical journey. Jon revisits the work of Euclid, who proved over 2,000 years ago that there are infinitely many prime numbers. The discussion touches on the mind-bending nature of infinity and how powerful it is to share with pupils that maths is still unfinished.

They then explore the work of Eratosthenes, whose famous sieve remains one of the most elegant algorithms for identifying primes. Along the way, Becky shares her fondness for teaching prime factorisation and even introduces her favourite palindromic prime.

The episode moves into the 19th century and the still-unsolved Bernhard Riemann hypothesis about the distribution of primes, one of the great Millennium Prize Problems. Yes, there really is a million dollars waiting for someone who can crack it.

Finally, the discussion lands firmly in the modern world. Prime numbers underpin the encryption systems that keep online banking, shopping and government communication secure. The episode introduces RSA encryption, developed by Ron Rivest, Adi Shamir and Leonard Adleman, and explains why multiplying large primes is easy but reversing the process is extraordinarily difficult.

Key themes in this episode include:

• Why prime numbers are the “atoms” of arithmetic

• The Fundamental Theorem of Arithmetic and prime factorisation

• Infinity as a classroom conversation starter

• The beauty and mystery of unsolved problems

• How prime numbers quietly protect our digital lives

This episode is a reminder that even the most familiar Key Stage 2 content can open doors to big ideas, rich history and genuine mathematical mystery.

If you enjoyed this deep dive, leave a rating or review and let us know what topic you would like explored in a future Aftermaths episode. There are still plenty of mathematical rabbit holes to fall down.

And if you’re listening over half term, we hope you’ve had at least a little rest.

From Gregorian calendar cycles to cultural superstitions across Europe and Asia, they unpack the mathematics behind how often Friday the 13th actually occurs and what the data really says about risk and coincidence.

There is also a wonderfully elegant maths problem to enjoy. If 128 players enter a knockout tennis tournament, how many matches are played? What begins as a procedural halving exercise turns into a beautiful example of structural thinking and the idea that the best mathematicians often do the simplest maths.

To round things off, Becky brings some Winter Olympics maths of life. From moguls and big air to 360s and 720s, they explore how angles, turns and even scaled scoring systems appear in freestyle snow events and what that might mean for the way we think about comparison and ranking.

There is no interview episode next week due to half term, but Aftermaths will return as usual. If you have a mathematical mystery, historical deep dive or classroom curiosity you would like explored, email primarymathspodcast@twinkl.co.uk or send a message on social media and Jon and Becky will happily fall down the rabbit hole for you.

Like and subscribe so you never miss an episode, and if you enjoyed this one, please do leave a rating or review.

In this episode of The Primary Maths Podcast, Jon is joined by Dr Sam Parkes for a thoughtful and practical conversation about games, play and digital learning in primary mathematics. Together, they explore the difference between games that allow pupils to show how strong they already are and games that actually help them get stronger mathematically.

The discussion moves beyond surface level engagement to focus on task design, feedback, time pressure, inclusion and the role of the teacher in making games meaningful. Sam shares insights from research and classroom experience on why some games support reasoning, decision making and resilience, while others risk becoming little more than tests in disguise.

They also examine common misconceptions about play based learning, including the idea that play is only about free choice or early years provision. Instead, Sam reframes play as an attitude towards learning that involves curiosity, exploration, safe experimentation and meaningful choice, all of which have a place across the primary age range.

The conversation tackles difficult but important questions about digital maths games, including the use of speed, competition, rewards and leaderboards. Jon and Sam consider who these features benefit, who they may disadvantage, and how teachers can make more deliberate, informed choices when selecting and using games in time poor classrooms.

There is also a thoughtful discussion about inclusion, SEND and the risks of games being used as a holding activity rather than a scaffold for learning. Throughout the episode, the emphasis remains on professional judgement, clarity of purpose and the idea that games are never a replacement for good teaching, but can be a powerful tool when used well.

If you have ever wondered when maths games can help, when they might hinder, and how to evaluate them through a learning focused lens, this episode will give you plenty to think about.

As always, Jon and Becky will be back on Friday with an Aftermaths episode to reflect on the conversation and draw out key themes for classroom practice.

Guest bio

Dr Sam Parkes has over twenty years’ experience in mathematics education as a teacher, subject leader, school leader, lecturer and school improvement specialist. She holds a Doctorate in Education from the University of Reading and has a strong research interest in mathematics teaching and evaluation, inclusive learning cultures, communities of practice and playful pedagogy. Sam is currently working in EdTech in a Community Engagement role with NumberClub, where she continues her work to support meaningful, accessible and connected maths learning for all children and teachers.

You can find out more about NumberClub at https://numberclub.com

Sam can be contacted by email at sam@numberclub.com

The conversation begins with a light hearted look at memorable school trips, from soggy outdoor museums to luxury coaches that were wildly unsuited to Year 6 energy. From there, the discussion turns to something more serious: how tightly prescribed lesson structures and non negotiables can squeeze out curiosity, autonomy and meaningful thinking for both teachers and pupils.

Jon shares reflections on recent classroom visits and raises questions about identikit lessons, box ticking and whether every lesson really needs the same checklist of features. Becky explores how these pressures can limit opportunities to truly know pupils and respond to them as individuals.

Following last week’s episode, Jon also unpacks a lively LinkedIn discussion about engagement. He reflects on comments that challenge engagement as a proxy for learning and introduces a more nuanced view, distinguishing between behavioural, emotional and cognitive engagement. The episode explores what engagement really looks like in maths lessons, from pupils talking, noticing patterns and making connections, to experiencing those moments where ideas suddenly fall into place.

In Maths of Life, Becky explores the relationship between dance, music and number, explaining why dancers often count in eights while musicians tend to work in fours, and what this reveals about memory, chunking and structure.

The episode closes with research in 60 seconds ish, where Jon summarises a newly published meta analysis on gamification in mathematics education. The research suggests that while gamification can boost motivation, it works best when it emphasises cooperation, mastery and feedback rather than competition, points or leaderboards. Engagement, the study suggests, is often poorly defined and difficult to measure.

If you have a memorable school trip story or want to join the conversation about engagement and lesson design, you can get in touch at primarymathspodcast@twinkl.co.uk.

You can read the research discussed in this episode here:

https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10648-025-10108-1

As ever, thank you for listening. If you’re enjoying the podcast, please consider subscribing, leaving a review, or sharing the episode with a colleague.

In this episode, I am joined by Jo Austen for a practical conversation about manipulatives, models, and professional judgement. Rather than treating resources as interchangeable or decorative, Jo helps us think carefully about what different manipulatives do mathematically, and what they quietly emphasise or obscure.

We explore how manipulatives fit within the CPA approach, why different models foreground different mathematical structures, and how physical properties such as loose parts, fixed parts, colour, and layout shape what pupils notice. We also discuss when virtual manipulatives can add real value, and where physical resources still play an essential role.

Along the way, Jo makes a compelling case for forward-facing maths: choosing representations not just to get through today’s lesson, but to build understanding that will support pupils later on. This is a conversation about preparation rather than performance, and about making deliberate choices that support thinking rather than replace it.

In this episode, we discuss:

1. Why CPA is not a checklist, and how manipulatives support movement between representations
2. How different manipulatives highlight different mathematical structures
3. Why physical properties such as fixed or loose parts, colour, and layout really matter
4. Common pitfalls, including choice overload and random variation
5. When virtual manipulatives can do things physical resources cannot
6. What it means to choose manipulatives with pupils future learning in mind

If you have ever wondered why a particular resource works, or does not work, in your classroom, this episode will help sharpen your thinking.

The conversation begins with Jon sharing an experience from a recent maths education conference, where extended time spent grappling with puzzles led to deep engagement, productive struggle and genuine mathematical thinking. Together, Jon and Becky explore why lessons that look slower on the surface can often be richer, more meaningful and more memorable for learners. They discuss the tension teachers feel between pace, coverage and allowing pupils the time they need to think, fail, notice and try again.

Becky then takes us on a fascinating whistle-stop tour through the history of the calculator. From fingers and pebbles, to abacuses, human computers and early mechanical machines, the discussion highlights how tools for calculation have always existed and how technological change challenges us to think carefully about why we teach maths at all. The conversation reinforces the idea that maths is not just about getting answers, but about developing the skills to reason, problem solve and make sense of unfamiliar situations.

The episode finishes with Jon sharing recent research into maths anxiety, focusing on age, gender and cultural differences. The discussion unpacks how anxiety can limit working memory and performance, why high attainment does not necessarily mean high confidence, and how a simple strategy such as expressive writing before tests could help pupils manage anxiety more effectively.

As always, this episode blends classroom reality, research and reflection, offering plenty of food for thought for teachers, leaders and anyone interested in how pupils experience maths.

If you enjoy the episode, please consider liking, subscribing or leaving a review, as it really helps other listeners find the podcast.

Dominique shares her own journey from academic success through memorisation to realising, at university level, that understanding matters far more than recall. Together, Jon and Dominique unpack how early classroom experiences shape long-term confidence, why maths anxiety sticks for decades, and how cultural attitudes make it socially acceptable to opt out of maths altogether.

The conversation digs into the power of representations, colour, and visual thinking, drawing on Sums of Anarchy’s distinctive approach to making abstract ideas tangible. They explore times tables, fractions, curriculum sequencing, and the fine line between helpful shortcuts and hollow “tricks”.

Crucially, the episode reframes maths not as a set of procedures to follow, but as a way of thinking – a tool for knowing what to do when there isn’t a rule to apply. For teachers, leaders, and parents alike, this is a thoughtful discussion about how maths can become something learners participate in, rather than something they endure.

Guest Bio

Dominique Miranda is the cofounder of Sums of Anarchy, a platform dedicated to making maths fun and accessible to learners of all ages. Through their videos on social media and their range of books, courses and resources, they’re on a mission to kindle positive relationships with maths. Dominique has a Masters degree in Maths and Languages from UCL, and over ten years of tutoring experience, from early years to A-Level, as well as coaching teachers for the maths element of their teacher training exams. She now brings that experience to millions of people around the world, sharing fun tips and tricks for calculation, demystifying mathematical concepts, and telling the stories behind the numbers.

https://www.sumsofanarchy.com/

https://www.instagram.com/sumsofanarchy

In this episode

1. Scaffolding vs adaptations: what scaffolding is (temporary, for everyone, faded), and what it isn’t (a permanent crutch or a euphemism for tiered tasks).
2. A construction-site analogy for scaffolding — and why “for all” matters if we care about access and equity.
3. Money follow-up: three listener stories that reveal how children can misunderstand money in a contactless world (“Santa pays for the expensive stuff”, “just tap your phone”, and “free cash”).
4. History of maths / time mystery: how Britain ended up going to bed on 2 September 1752 and waking up on 14 September 1752 — and why it links back to Julian vs Gregorian calendars (and a March New Year).
5. Problem solving takeaways from this week’s interview episode (Tom Manners & Steve Lomax): mindset, collaboration/communication before “strategies”, and the power of noticing and wondering — even when it’s hard to “evidence” in the moment.

Key takeaways

1. Scaffolding should help learners reach the maths — then be removed. If the support becomes the method, we’ve stolen the thinking.
2. Not all support is scaffolding. Some needs require specific adaptations, but that’s different from whole-class scaffolds designed into instruction.
3. Children’s money misconceptions are completely rational given what they see: money as a tap, a beep, or a sign that literally says “free cash”.
4. Problem solving grows from culture as much as content: curiosity, talk, and collaborative habits aren’t bolt-ons — they’re prerequisites.

Mentioned / coming up

1. Next Tuesday’s interview: Dominique from “Sums of Anarchy” on engaging pupils in maths — worth checking out her content ahead of the episode.

Get in touch

Share your best child logic (money or otherwise), or tell us what “scaffolding” looks like in your school: primarymathspodcast@twinkl.co.uk (Twinkl without the “e”).

If you enjoyed the episode…

Follow/subscribe, leave a rating, and (on YouTube) like the video — it really helps more teachers and leaders find the show.

Too often, it becomes shorthand for a set of word problems at the end of a lesson, or a Friday afternoon activity once the “real maths” is done. But what if problem solving isn’t a type of task at all? What if it’s a way of thinking, behaving, and approaching mathematics – something that needs to be explicitly taught, modelled, and valued every day?

In this episode of The Primary Maths Podcast, I’m joined by Steve Lomax and Tom Manners for a wide-ranging conversation about what problem solving really is, and why so many pupils struggle with unfamiliar problems even when the maths content itself is secure.

We explore:

• the difference between giving children problems and teaching them how to be problem solvers
• why problem solving cannot be reduced to word problems or strategy posters
• the role of mathematical habits such as noticing, conjecturing, visualising, tinkering, and pattern spotting
• how metacognition and teacher modelling shape pupils’ willingness to have a go
• why curriculum design, classroom culture, and time allocation matter more than quick fixes
• how SATs, fluency, and mastery are often misunderstood in relation to problem solving

We also discuss resilience, safe classroom environments, cognitive diversity, and why struggle, when handled well, is not something to be avoided but something to be taught through.

About the guests

Steve Lomax has worked with headteachers, subject leaders, teachers, and pupils for over thirty years. He has held roles including Senior Lead for the GLOW Maths Hub, SCITT Maths Lead, Mathematics Adviser for Gloucestershire, AST, and SLE. Steve is also an NPQ and ECF Facilitator for the Balcarras Teaching School Hub. He co-founded CanDoMaths and is passionate about fostering inclusive “can do” attitudes so that all children can enjoy and achieve in mathematics.

Tom Manners works in school improvement across several roles, including Trust Maths Lead and Evidence Lead in Education for the Education Endowment Foundation. He is an NCETM PD Lead and Teaching for Mastery Specialist through the Central Maths Hub. Alongside this, Tom trains new teachers as a PGCE Tutor at Arthur Terry SCITT and Associate Lecturer for Birmingham City University. He also supports schools on a freelance basis and shares his writing and resources online.

Get in touch

If you have thoughts on this episode, questions you would like us to explore, or ideas for future guests or themes, email the show at primarymathspodcast@twinkl.co.uk

🎒 Money in the modern classroom

Jon and Becky take a light-hearted but thoughtful look at how money is taught in primary schools, and why it’s become trickier in recent years. With children encountering less physical cash in everyday life, money has become more abstract — even as it remains one of the richest areas of maths for problem solving.

They explore:

• Why British coins form a non-linear system
• How money quietly introduces additive, multiplicative, decimal, and equivalence structures
• Why money lessons need to be hands-on, not worksheet-heavy
• How school trips, chaos and all, create some of the most memorable maths learning moments

Along the way, expect stories involving mint Matchmakers, ice lollies, and burning holes in pockets.

💷 Money and financial education

The conversation broadens into financial education, touching on fairness, budgeting, and decision-making — and why a secure understanding of money is foundational. Jon and Becky highlight the value of discussion-rich resources, including Twinkl’s work with Santander, that prioritise justification, talk, and real-world choices.

📚 Curriculum drafters: what we know so far

The newly announced maths curriculum drafters are discussed, with reflections on:

• Familiar names from maths education
• The scale and complexity of the task ahead
• The importance of consultation with the profession
• What teachers might hope to see as the process unfolds

🧮 SATs tips from the classroom

Listeners share practical (and reassuring) SATs insights, including:

• Why children don’t have to answer arithmetic questions in order
• How reading questions aloud can boost confidence and outcomes
• Ways schools reduce stress through flexible test arrangements
• A tongue-in-cheek reflection on the “magic week” of teaching long division

🔤 Etymathsology: words we use, meanings we forget

Becky dives into the origins of words like integer, digit, numeral, and figure, revealing how small language choices can cause big confusion — especially in tests — and why using precise vocabulary regularly really matters.

🧠 Research in 60-ish seconds

Jon summarises new research exploring whether pupils learn more by speaking or writing learning journals. The headline finding?

Spoken reflection may support deeper understanding and better retention — especially for learners who find writing a barrier.

🔍 Big takeaway

Across money, language, SATs, and research, one message keeps resurfacing:

Maths lessons are at their best when pupils are actively doing maths - thinking, talking, noticing, and exploring - rather than watching it happen.

Recorded in January, this episode focuses on what really matters from now until May, and why SATs should be seen as a culmination of a key stage, not a last-minute scramble owned by Year 6 teachers alone.

In this episode, we explore:

• Why SATs are a Key Stage 2 assessment, not a Year 6 curriculum
• What to prioritise from January onwards (and what not to panic about)
• How to use arithmetic practice strategically without narrowing teaching
• When and how to use past papers effectively — and when to avoid them
• The importance of question-level analysis, not endless test practice
• Teaching test technique without undermining good maths habits
• How to support pupils currently working below expected standard
• Making intervention purposeful, human, and confidence-building
• Why “greater depth” in SATs isn’t about different content
• Supporting pupils’ wellbeing and confidence alongside preparation
• Common mistakes schools make — and what to do instead

Jon also shares reflections from over a decade of teaching Year 6, including what he would (and wouldn’t) do differently, while Becky brings the perspective of intervention, marking insight, and secondary readiness.

Recommended resources mentioned:

• Twinkl’s SATs Survival Hub
• Half-length and topic-specific maths practice papers
• Concept videos and structured intervention programmes
• Test technique guidance and revision planning tools

Get involved

Have you found something that works particularly well in your school during the run-up to SATs?

Jon and Becky would love to share community wisdom in a future Aftermaths episode.

📩 Email: primarymathspodcast@twinkl.co.uk

💬 Or leave a comment on YouTube — tips welcome!

The episode also features a Maths of Life moment inspired by a freezing trip to Weston-super-Mare, leading into a fascinating discussion about tides, lunar days, and why the sea sometimes feels impossibly far away.

Finally, Jon and Becky debrief this week’s interview with secondary maths teacher Emma Lockhart, unpacking ideas about maths identity, gender, confidence, and how early classroom experiences shape long-term attitudes to maths.

Key themes covered

• Why Quitter’s Day exists – and what the data tells us about resolutions
• How teachers’ resolutions differ from national trends
• Health, wellbeing, and boundaries in a profession under pressure
• Work–life balance: emails, notifications, and protecting time
• Maths of Life: tides, lunar days, and extreme tidal ranges
• Maths identity, confidence, and who feels “allowed” to be good at maths
• Why primary classrooms matter so much for long-term maths attitudes

Maths of Life

A winter trip to the coast sparks a deep dive into:

• Tidal ranges and why Weston-super-Mare looks so different at low tide
• The concept of a lunar day (24 hours 50 minutes)
• Why tides don’t follow our neat 24-hour clock

Also discussed

• Reflections on the interview with Emma Lockhart
• Gender, confidence, and internalising mistakes in maths
• How classroom culture influences whether pupils persist with maths

Get involved

Have you ever kept (or spectacularly abandoned) a New Year resolution?

We’d love to hear your stories.

📧 Email: primarymathspodcast@twinkl.co.uk

👍 Subscribe, rate, and review to help us reach more teachers

In this episode of The Primary Maths Podcast, Jon is joined by Emma Lockhart, Head of Maths at Mill Hill School, to explore what really sits behind that narrative and why it disproportionately affects girls.

Together, they unpack how maths so quickly becomes framed as something you are either “good at” or “bad at”, and how confidence, belonging and belief often matter just as much as content knowledge or exam technique. The conversation looks at what happens to pupils who are capable but quietly opt out, how classroom language and expectations shape mathematical identity, and why maths anxiety is often rooted in culture rather than ability.

Although this is the Primary Maths Podcast, the discussion moves into the secondary classroom and beyond, offering insights that are just as relevant for Key Stage 2 teachers, maths leads and school leaders as they are for those working at GCSE level.

In this episode, we explore:

• Why maths attracts such strong negative identities compared to other subjects
• The idea of the “quiet opt-out” and how capable pupils disengage without being noticed
• Gender, confidence and why girls are more likely to internalise “I’m just not a maths person”
• How right-and-wrong classroom cultures can undermine belonging
• What primary teachers can take from secondary insights to protect confidence earlier
• Practical reflections on language, expectations and mathematical identity

This is a thoughtful, reflective conversation about maths as a social experience, not just an academic one.

If you enjoyed this episode, please consider liking, subscribing, and leaving a review. It really helps more teachers and leaders find the podcast.

Get in touch with the show. Email primarymathspodcast@twinkl.co.uk

Get in touch with Jon Cripwell: https://www.linkedin.com/in/joncripwell/

Get in touch with Emma Lockhart: https://www.linkedin.com/in/emma-lockhart-74755431b/

There’s no interview this week, no school talk, and absolutely no mention of lesson objectives.

Instead, Jon and Becky settle in for a festive Aftermaths special — a lighter, reflective end-of-term episode full of Christmas maths, curious statistics, questionable guesses, and the kind of conversations you can happily listen to while wrapping presents or hiding in the kitchen for five minutes of peace.

From debating whether Die Hard really is a Christmas film, to exploring how many calories we might consume on Christmas Day, this episode is a gentle reminder that maths has a habit of sneaking into life — even when school is firmly off the table.

Along the way, Jon shares festive statistics on charity giving, travel, food, drink, and Christmas traditions, while Becky brings some Christmas-themed world records, including the most successful Christmas movie of all time, the best-selling festive song ever, and one spectacularly tall Christmas tree.

There’s plenty of laughter, a few wild guesses (especially involving measurement), and more than enough festive maths to fuel a Christmas quiz or two.

As we wrap up the year, it’s also a chance to say a huge thank you to everyone who’s listened to the podcast in 2025 — with one final roundup episode still to come before we head into 2026.

🎄 Merry Christmas from The Primary Maths Podcast.

⏱️ In this episode:

• Is Die Hard actually a Christmas film?
• Festive generosity and charity by the numbers
• Christmas Day calories, timing, and traditions
• Travel maths at the busiest time of year
• The highest-grossing Christmas film ever
• The best-selling Christmas song of all time
• One extremely tall Christmas tree (and some extremely bold guesses)

⭐ Enjoying the podcast?

If you’re feeling generous this Christmas, a quick rating or review on your podcast platform would be the perfect festive gift.

This week’s Aftermaths dives into fractions — why they’re such a sticking point for pupils (and adults), and how misunderstandings often stem from losing sight of the whole. Jon shares reflections from a full day of fractions work with SCITT students, exploring why fractions feel so different from whole numbers, how notation can trip learners up, and why conceptual understanding matters far more than memorised procedures.

The conversation then turns to a worrying headline: AI and remote “virtual teachers” being used to teach maths. Jon and Becky unpack the implications, questioning whether specialist knowledge can ever compensate for the loss of relationships, responsiveness, and human presence in the classroom.

Finally, they reflect on key takeaways from this week’s interview with Mike Gardner on oracy — including purposeful talk, thinking aloud, effective talk partners, and the importance of creating classrooms that are safe spaces for both pupils and teachers to make mistakes.

A thoughtful, end-of-term episode that blends pedagogy, policy, and perspective — just as everyone heads into a well-earned break.

In this episode, we explore:

• Why fractions feel fundamentally different from whole numbers
• Common misconceptions caused by notation and procedures
• Conceptual understanding vs “doing the same to the top and bottom”
• Whether AI and remote teaching are solutions — or warning signs
• Why relationships sit at the heart of effective maths teaching
• Key oracy insights from Mike Gardner’s interview
• The value of purposeful talk, mistakes, and teacher confidence

📩 Get in touch:

Share your thoughts or your festive Maths of Life moments at primarymathspodcast@twinkl.co.uk

⭐ Enjoying the podcast?

A quick rating or review really helps others find the show — and we appreciate it more than you know.

Together, they deconstruct a lesson from start to finish, showing how purposeful talk can strengthen learning at every stage, not as an add-on, but as a core part of effective maths teaching.

Mike draws on over 13 years of classroom experience across Nursery to Year 6, as well as his current role supporting teachers across 13 schools, to share practical, low-effort strategies that teachers can use immediately.

In this episode, we explore:

• Why oracy matters in maths
• How talk supports thinking, reasoning and understanding, and why it is increasingly prominent in curriculum reform.
• The warm-up and starter
• Using short, verbal routines to engage pupils, build fluency and transition productively into maths learning.
• Retrieval through talk
• Moving beyond hands-up questioning to strategies like odd one out, partner explanation and shared reasoning.
• Teacher modelling and thinking aloud
• Making mathematical thinking visible by verbalising decision-making, misconceptions and self-correction.
• Stem sentences and choral repetition
• How repeated language builds schema, confidence and mathematical precision.
• Pupil practice with purpose
• Using structures such as Rally Coach to deepen understanding without increasing workload.
• Formative assessment through listening
• Why hearing pupils explain their thinking often tells us more than written answers alone.
• Exit tickets that reveal understanding
• Creative approaches such as misconceptions, forbidden words and verbal reflection.

Throughout the episode, Mike and Jon return to a central idea: the goal is not more talk, but better talk. Talk that helps pupils organise their thinking, use mathematical language accurately, and understand the “why”, not just the “how”.

About the guest

Mike Gardner is an experienced primary teacher and Teaching and Learning Lead across the Maritime Academy Trust. Having taught across the full primary age range, he now works alongside leaders and teachers in 13 schools to develop high-quality classroom practice, with a particular focus on oracy and its impact on learning, wellbeing and social mobility. Mike is also the author of Voices of Opportunity, published by Routledge in 2026.

🎧 In This Episode

• A listener question on probability, independence and why a coin can land heads 999 times in a row… yet still be 50/50 on the next flip.
• Jon explains just how unlikely it is to flip 1,000 heads in a row (spoiler: think “finding one specific grain of sand on Earth”).
• Becky revisits probability misconceptions and why humans find long-term averages so counterintuitive.
• The pair explore the curious joys of Quality Street ratios, shrinking tubs, and the mathematics of Christmas preparation.
• Jon reveals the podcast’s Spotify Wrapped results — including top 10 fans, surprising crossover audio-book choices, and what the stats say about teacher listening habits.

They dig into the Santander global report on financial education, discussing:

• Why financial education now ranks just below maths in perceived importance
• How early money habits begin forming
• The tension between PSHE, time pressures and curriculum expectations
• What the Curriculum & Assessment Review might mean for schools

Finally, Jon and Becky reflect on Jon’s interview with Patrick Renouf, including:

• Patrick’s journey from maths-traumatised pupil to maths specialist
• The power of coaching models and non-evaluative PD
• Concept-based inquiry (“stop telling pupils the end of the movie”)
• The importance of curiosity, struggle and the learning pit
• Why pedagogical approaches shouldn’t be siloed by subject

🧠 Key Takeaways

• Short-term independence vs long-term distribution is where probability often trips people up — and pupils too.
• The podcast had a standout debut year on Spotify, reflecting strong engagement, long listening times and lots of shares.
• Financial education is increasingly seen as essential, but many teachers feel underconfident and under-resourced.
• Maths pedagogy connects across subjects — good inquiry, oracy and mastery principles support learning everywhere.
• Struggle isn’t a failure state — for pupils or teachers. It’s the work.

📣 Join the Christmas Episode!

Jon and Becky want your festive Maths of Life examples and classroom Christmas maths stories.

Email primarymathspodcast@twinkl.co.uk or drop a comment/DM on social media.

📅 Coming Up Next Week

Jon interviews Mike Gardner on what oracy looks like in every stage of a maths lesson — a practical walkthrough packed with classroom-ready ideas.

Patrick now works with schools around the world helping teachers rebuild their relationship with maths, shift towards teaching for understanding, and create classrooms where thinking — not performing — is the centrepiece of maths learning.

Together, Jon and Patrick explore:

🔍 What’s Inside This Episode

• Patrick’s early experiences of maths anxiety and streaming — and how this shaped his later work.
• Why traditional teaching left him “adrift” and almost caused him to fail his NQT year.
• The pivotal moment a maths coach walked into his classroom and asked, “What do you want to work on?”
• How Number Talks, introduced by Sherry Parrish, completely reframed his understanding of number, fluency, and strategy use.
• Why conceptual understanding isn’t a ‘nice to have’ — it’s the anchor for long-term learning.
• The difference between deductive (“Here’s the objective, now do examples…”) and inductive learning (“What patterns do you notice?”).
• How concept-based inquiry helps children generalise, connect ideas and think like mathematicians.
• Why productive struggle, the Learning Pit, and carefully crafted questions level the playing field for all learners.
• The cultural problems that fuel maths anxiety in adults and children — and why fast answers are not the goal.
• How teachers can regain confidence in maths, even if they’ve never felt strong at it.

🧠 Key Takeaways

• Maths anxiety often stems from performance-driven environments, rote learning, and fragile early foundations.
• Teachers frequently carry their own maths trauma — and it silently shapes classroom practice.
• Mathematical fluency is about being accurate, flexible and efficient — not just fast.
• Letting pupils invent strategies develops deeper number sense than teaching algorithms too early.
• Concept-based inquiry gives children ownership over the mathematics and levels out the power dynamic in class.
• Confusion isn’t failure — it’s the entry point into real learning.

📚 Mentioned in This Episode

• Number Talks – Sherry Parrish
• The Learning Pit – James Nottingham
• Mindset & Mathematical Mindsets – Jo Boaler
• Concept-Based Inquiry – Lynn Erickson, Lois Lanning, Carla Marshall, Rachel French

🌍 Where to Find Patrick

• Website: patrickrenouf.com
• LinkedIn: Just search Patrick Renouf (there aren’t many!)

After a pupil requested a “cheese square” during snack time — while pointing out that Dairylea “triangles” aren’t truly triangles at all — Jon and Becky go down a joyful rabbit hole of everyday maths errors. From curved-edged cheese sectors to supermarket statistics, they explore the misconceptions we see “in the wild” far more often than we’d like.

This week’s highlights include:

🧀 When a Triangle Isn’t a Triangle

Sam’s pupil correctly notes that Dairylea “triangles” have a curved edge — making them not triangles at all. Cue a debate about polygons, sectors, and whether “Dairylea Cylindrical Sectors” will ever catch on.

🎲 Probability Problems: The Gambler’s Fallacy

Becky’s first maths misuse: believing that something is “due” to happen simply because it hasn’t happened yet. From dice rolls to roulette wheels to lottery numbers, the misunderstanding is everywhere.

📊 Averages That Mislead

Jon unpacks how mean and median can tell very different stories — and why politicians love using whichever version suits them best. If you've ever wondered why the “average salary” feels inflated… this segment will speak to you.

🔗 Correlation ≠ Causation

Becky explores how easily people mistake coincidence for cause — from homework to exam results, leafy diets to lifestyle habits, and even the old myth about storks bringing babies.

📈 Misleading Percentages

Jon rounds things off with the problem of tiny samples, big headlines, and percentages designed to impress rather than inform. (“Burglaries up 200%!” doesn’t mean what you think.)

🎧 Interview Debrief: Rob Eastaway

Becky shares her takeaways from Jon’s interview with Rob Eastaway, including:

• Why written methods rarely feature in “real-world maths”
• How puzzles inspire genuine mathematical thinking
• The importance of estimation
• Making space for curiosity, conjecture and open-ended exploration

💌 Listener Call-In

Got a favourite maths error you’ve spotted in the wild? Email: primarymathspodcast@twinkl.co.uk — Jon and Becky would love to feature it.

Rob shares stories from Maths Inspiration, his nationwide programme of interactive theatre shows for teenagers, and talks about the importance of connecting maths to real life, real surprises and real joy. They also discuss how puzzles, games and magic tricks can open doors for pupils (and parents!) who may not think maths is “for them”.

With reflections on AI, problem solving, cognitive load, and why estimation is still one of the most powerful skills we can teach, this is a wide-ranging, warm, and genuinely inspiring conversation.

In this episode:

• How Rob first got hooked on maths puzzle
• Why everyday maths matters more than written methods
• Linking curiosity, surprise and mathematical understanding
• The real story behind Roman numerals and old clocks
• What makes Maths Inspiration so powerful
• Supporting parents with maths anxiety
• Why puzzles need to be pitched carefully
• The problem with exam “problem solving”
• How maths — and maths assessment — might evolve in an AI world

https://robeastaway.com/

https://mathsinspiration.com/

Get in touch: primarymathspodcast@twinkl.co.uk

Jon kicks things off with a brilliant history of maths segment — the surprisingly dramatic story of the equals sign, invented in 1557 by Welsh mathematician Robert Recorde, whose parallel-line insight eventually won out over some frankly bizarre early alternatives.

Then it’s time for this week’s feature: the top three trickiest things to teach in primary maths. Jon and Becky each bring their own lists, comparing everything from comparing fractions to converting imperial units, angles to long division, with plenty of shared pain and professional empathy along the way. (Spoiler: teaching time on an analogue clock gets a lot of airtime — and for good reason.)

They also dive into the key takeaways from Phil Hurd’s episode on problem solving, exploring the role of struggle, what real problem solving looks like, and why resilience can’t be taught without experiencing difficulty.

Finally, Becky brings a Maths of Life segment all about memory: why we remember some numbers forever (childhood phone numbers!) and instantly forget others — with a detour into blindfolded speed-cubing. Naturally.

Together they explore why problem solving is far more than a final question on a worksheet, why pupils struggle to get started on unfamiliar tasks, and how teachers can build a classroom culture where getting stuck is expected rather than feared.

This conversation goes deep into the practicalities: the curriculum pressures, misconceptions about “challenge”, and how to elevate reasoning, conjecture, and strategic thinking so that pupils become flexible, resilient mathematicians.

✨ What We Cover

• What problem solving is (and what it absolutely isn’t)
• Why routine and non-routine problems demand different kinds of thinking
• How current curriculum structures shape pupils’ approaches to unfamiliar tasks
• Creating lessons where success is defined by learning, not just correct answers
• Strategies that build resilience, metacognition, and “stickability”
• How to explicitly teach problem-solving strategies without turning them into a checklist
• The role of discussion, conjecture, and classroom talk in deepening understanding
• Why procedural fluency, reasoning and problem solving must be seen as connected but distinct
• What assessment can (and can’t) tell us about a child’s problem-solving capability
• How to design lessons and tasks that invite exploration rather than anxiety

🔑 Key Takeaways

• Problem solving is central to mathematical thinking, not an add-on.
• Confusion between routine tasks and genuine problem solving leads to poor classroom practice.
• Pupils need explicit modelling of strategies — and lots of opportunities to try them.
• Resilience is not fixed; it grows when classrooms normalise “being stuck”.
• Conceptual understanding is the foundation for true independence in problem solving.
• Assessment needs to reflect problem-solving behaviours, not just recall and speed.
• Non-routine problems must appear regularly, not once a term as a novelty exercise.
• The aim of a lesson should be about learning something mathematical, not scoring a correct answer.

Share your thoughts on today's episode by emailing primarymathspodcast@twinkl.co.uk

This week’s conversation pulls together classroom practice, national trends, early years pedagogy and variation theory in the way only an Aftermaths episode can.

⭐ What We Talk About

• The new Twinkl Maths App on iOS

What’s inside it, how it helps with fluency, MTC practice, SEND-friendly settings, and why the Skills Safari is grounded in the Ready-to-Progress criteria.

• Why multiplication and division deserve more curriculum time

Jon reflects on a full-day session with SCITT students and why multiplicative thinking underpins fractions, scaling and upper KS2 success.

• Insights from the latest maths education report

Including:

– Why reception pupils begin with overwhelmingly positive attitudes towards maths

– A surprising link between attitudes and month of birth

– Why most primary teachers feel under-prepared due to workload

– The Key Stage 2 → Key Stage 3 transition problem

– Why early attainment predicts GCSE outcomes far more than we’d like

– Maths anxiety in Year 7 (40% reporting high anxiety)

• The EYFS problem for maths leads

Most maths leads teach in Year 6 — and feel least confident about early years. Jon gives a shout-out to Twinkl PD’s EYFS maths course.

• Maths of Life: How big is a trillion?

Following Elon Musk’s headline-grabbing pay deal, Jon explores the staggering scale of a trillion using comparisons involving seconds, sand, cornflakes, blades of grass and Welsh geography.

– 1 trillion seconds = 31,709 years

– 1 trillion grains of sand = a small bucket

– 1 trillion cornflakes = 55 Olympic swimming pools

– 1 trillion blades of grass = would cover Wales 12 times

– UK long-scale vs US short-scale number names

• Key takeaways from Jon Bee’s interview on variation theory

Sally and Jon unpack:

– The difference between variation and variety

– Procedural vs conceptual variation

– Jon Bee’s “procedural shock” example

– Why representation choices matter

– How schema-building across key stages keeps children engaged

– The importance of teaching what multiplication means, not just how to execute it

Together they explore variation theory: what it is, what it isn’t, and why it is often misunderstood in primary classrooms. John breaks down the difference between conceptual variation and procedural variation, shares practical examples teachers can use tomorrow, and explains how careful task design can reveal the underlying structure of the mathematics rather than simply repeat the same procedure.

This conversation is packed with insights for classroom teachers, maths leads and anyone interested in teaching for mastery, curriculum design or improving pupils’ mathematical understanding.

What We Cover

• Why variation is one of the most powerful but least understood ideas in the mastery approach
• The difference between conceptual and procedural variation
• What teachers should highlight when they ask pupils “What’s the same and what’s different?”
• Why showing too many representations can tip into variety rather than variation
• How careful sequencing helps pupils make connections instead of relying on tricks
• The role of intelligent practice in deepening familiarity without mechanical repetition
• How variation links with representations, structure and lesson design
• Common pitfalls when using variation in the classroom
• How schemes can help (and sometimes hinder) real understanding
• Why subject knowledge is crucial when adapting tasks and modelling
• Practical examples that reveal commutativity, place value structure, decimals and more

About Our Guest

John Bee is a maths adviser for a large Multi Academy Trust, a Primary Mastery Specialist, and the author of Teaching Maths for Mastery. He holds a Master’s degree in Education and runs mrbeeteach.com, where he shares resources, reflections and CPD for teachers and maths leads.

Website: mrbeeteach.com

Book: Teaching Maths for Mastery (2025)

The discussion ranges from conceptual understanding in early maths to the role of practice, memorisation and fluency in Key Stage 2. Michelle explains why deep number sense in the early years is essential before pupils ever attempt multiplication. Ash offers a secondary perspective on how much groundwork primary teachers cover before pupils reach Year 7, and shares reflections on recall, formula sheets and what really matters when preparing pupils for problem solving.

Jon then unpacks why primary schools in England teach times tables up to 12, tracing the history back to pre decimal British currency and noting the return of 12 × 12 in the 2014 National Curriculum. The group consider whether competition based times tables approaches help or hinder learning, with personal experiences of public leaderboards, chanting and high pressure classroom quizzes.

This week’s Maths of Life segment takes an unexpected turn into the world of professional golf. Jon explains why LIV Golf is called LIV and how Roman numerals quietly sneak into watches, architecture, TV credits and now sporting brands. The conversation leads to surprising links between modern maths teaching, ancient number systems and even Rolex design choices.

Listeners will enjoy a mix of humour, practical insights and honest reflections on maths education across the primary and secondary phases.

In this episode:

• What Cate Fearn gets right about teaching times tables

• Why understanding must come before memorising

• How EYFS number work sets the foundation for all future maths

• Why times tables go up to 12 in the English curriculum

• The impact of competition, pressure and public recall

• Secondary perspectives on recall, fluency and real maths learning

• The story behind LIV Golf’s name and Roman numerals in daily life

• Why watches, films and the BBC still use Roman numerals

• Confidence, cognitive load and helping all learners succeed

Mentioned in the episode:

• The Primary Maths Podcast interview with Cate Fearn

• STEM Conversations podcast with Ashleigh Morris and Sarah Hudson

• Curriculum and Assessment Review and times tables expectations

• EYFS approaches to number sense and early fluency

We all agree they matter, but how pupils develop fluency, understanding and confidence is still up for discussion.

In this episode, Jon Cripwell talks to Cate Fearn — primary educator, maths specialist and creator of Table Stick, a classroom tool designed to make multiplication practice more engaging and sticky.

Together they explore:

• Why early experiences of times-table teaching can shape maths attitudes for life
• What true fluency means beyond rapid recall – and how efficiency, accuracy and flexibility all play a part
• The importance of teaching multiplication conceptually, not just testing it
• How manipulatives such as counting sticks, Numicon and ten-frames can deepen understanding
• Why little-and-often conceptual teaching beats weekly chanting or random testing
• How landmark facts, patterns and connections (like doubles and square numbers) help pupils build lasting recall
• Practical strategies for teachers to model quick reasoning without fear or pressure
• Cate’s story of transforming her own struggles with maths into a passion for helping others, and the journey behind the Table Stick resource

Whether you’re a maths lead, class teacher, or TA, this conversation will help you rethink how pupils learn their times tables — not just memorise them.

🔗 Links mentioned

• Table Stick – Official Website

They also reflect on the Curriculum and Assessment Review and Twinkl’s new Curriculum & Assessment Review Hub, which summarises the 197-page report (plus appendices!) and the Government’s response for every subject — including a must-read summary for maths.

👉 Explore the Curriculum and Assessment Review Hub

Later in the episode, Becky’s Maths of Life takes a theatre-themed turn, revealing how ticket discounts and Halloween offers show why calculators aren’t the answer to every maths problem. And Jon reflects on why conceptual understanding beats procedural fluency — especially when pupils (and adults) reach for technology to “do the maths” for them.

They also look back on the EYFS Maths episode with Michelle Windridge, discussing the lessons older year groups could learn from play-based, curiosity-driven learning in Reception. From “joyful chaos” to task design and continuous provision, they highlight why EYFS maths is anything but easy — and why it matters more than ever.

🔑 Key Topics

• The Curriculum and Assessment Review: implications for the new curriculum landing by September 2028
• Why division is conceptually harder than addition, subtraction, or multiplication
• Understanding the difference between partitive (sharing) and quotative (grouping) division
• How inconsistent mathematical language (divide by, goes into, shared between) confuses pupils
• The role of times tables fluency in supporting division
• How subject knowledge and models & representations impact teaching success
• Remainders, flexibility, and efficient written or mental methods
• Division as a gateway to fractions, ratio, and algebraic thinking
• The misconception that calculators replace understanding
• Lessons from EYFS maths and what KS1–2 can learn from early conceptual play

💬 Questions for Listeners

• What’s the biggest barrier to children mastering division in your classroom?
• How do you define success in division — getting the answer right, or understanding the process?
• Are your pupils more confident with sharing or grouping models?

Get in touch at primarymathspodcast@twinkl.co.uk

🧠 Maths of Life

Becky reflects on the maths behind ticket discounts and why a calculator can’t replace mathematical reasoning. From Halloween theatre offers to shopping deals, it’s a real-life reminder that fluency isn’t just speed — it’s knowing what calculation to do, and why.

🪜 Related Episodes

• EYFS Maths with Michelle Windridge – Episode 27
• Curriculum and Assessment Review: Emergency Episode
• AI and Maths Education with Simon Bond – Episode 25

Together, they explore:

• Why the review was commissioned and what it aims to achieve
• The key takeaways for primary maths – from number fluency and multiplicative reasoning to problem solving
• What might move from Key Stage 2 to 3 (and why)
• Changes to assessment, including the MTC, KS1 and KS2 SATs
• The growing role of financial education and citizenship in primary schools
• Whether this review represents evolution or revolution for the curriculum

💭 Have thoughts on what the new maths curriculum should include? Email primarymathspodcast@twinkl.co.uk or message us on social media.

Even the most confident maths leads can find EYFS a bit of a mystery, so Jon and Michelle unpack the Early Years Foundation Stage framework, explore the importance of talk and play, and discuss how to spot great mathematical learning in the mess and magic of a reception classroom.

They talk about:

• Why the EYFS framework changed and why “numbers to 10” is such a big deal
• The balance between adult-led input and child-led exploration
• How maths happens everywhere — not just in a “maths area”
• The importance of consistent language and confident support staff
• What assessment really looks like in EYFS (and why it’s not about tick boxes)
• The dangers of chasing Good Level of Development (GLD) scores instead of good practice

Whether you’re a maths lead wanting to understand EYFS, or an early years teacher hoping to connect more with the rest of your school, this episode is full of practical insights and friendly reassurance.

Resources mentioned:

• Twinkl EYFS Maths Course
• Twinkl TeachMeets for Teaching Assistants
• QE Insights and Twinkl news for curriculum updates

🎧 Subscribe and share with a colleague who could use a confidence boost in early maths.

Jon unpacks what number sense really means, why it underpins everything else in maths, and how fragile number sense can often go unnoticed until it becomes a barrier to progress. They discuss what teachers can look out for, from over-counting and weak part-whole relationships to over-reliance on formal methods, and share practical classroom routines to help strengthen number sense — including number talks, subitising games, estimating, and developing mathematical vocabulary.

Becky’s Maths of Life segment takes an unexpected turn, starting with the Battle of Hastings and ending with data on the world’s most common PIN numbers. Along the way, she reveals what our number choices say about us and why probability makes the world more surprising than we think.

Jon then wraps up with a Research in 60 Seconds(ish) segment, sharing a new study from the British Educational Research Journal on how peer and self-assessment shape motivation, metacognition, and resilience. The findings suggest that peer assessment, in particular, helps pupils clarify their own thinking — and why talk and reflection are central to real learning.

Next week, Jon is joined by early years specialist Michelle Windridge to discuss what effective early maths looks like in practice and why every phase can learn something from EYFS.

They then debrief Jon’s conversation with Simon Bond, Twinkl’s National Education Lead for AI, exploring how artificial intelligence might support teachers with planning, differentiation and the never-ending battle against admin.

Whether you’re interested in meme maths, word origins or the future of AI in classrooms, this episode has you covered.

In this episode, Jon is joined by Simon Bond, Twinkl’s National Education Lead for AI, to unpack what AI really is, how it works, and what it might offer teachers: particularly in primary maths. They discuss why large language models struggled with basic calculations at first, how that’s improving, and where AI could genuinely save time or enhance professional learning.

Simon also shares his thoughts on personalisation, workload, reflection, and what schools need to know about data and safety when using AI tools.

If you’ve ever wondered how AI could help (or hinder) your classroom practice, this episode will give you plenty to think about.

You can follow Simon on LinkedIn to keep up with his work in AI and education.

They also turn their attention to a fascinating concept from educational research: porridge words. Drawing on the work of Kate Quaid and Edward de Bono, Jon introduces the idea that children’s imprecise mathematical language can still offer valuable insights into their thinking. Becky connects this to her love of etymology and to the importance of recognising the “mess in the middle” of learning, where understanding develops before precision in vocabulary.

The episode links back to Jon’s recent Substack article on mathematical language, Porridge Words and the Path to Mathematical Thinking, which expands on the research discussed here.

Read it here: https://joncripwell.substack.com/p/porridge-words-and-the-path-to-mathematical

In the second half of the episode, Jon and Becky reflect on their conversation with Dr Kirsten Fenton and Holly Drummond about maths journaling. They discuss how journaling can capture the full learning journey, support reasoning and assessment for learning, and help pupils see themselves as mathematicians. From anchor charts to brain dumps, they consider practical ways teachers can make thinking visible without adding to workload.

Listeners are invited to share how they are using maths journaling in their own classrooms by emailing primarymathspodcast@twinkl.co.uk.

Kirsten and Holly are co-creators of the PACE framework and their research on oracy, curriculum design and maths journalling has been featured in The Herald, TES, Enlighten and Tom Sherrington’s Classroom Voices Blog. Between them, they bring over 25 years of experience across schools and universities, united by a shared passion for high-impact pedagogy rooted in reflection, equity and learner voice.

The conversation begins with their own contrasting experiences of maths at school—Holly’s early confidence giving way to later challenges, and Kirsten’s journey from maths anxiety to passionate advocacy. Together they share how these experiences shaped their belief that every child can develop a positive maths identity.

They explain what maths journalling really is—and what it isn’t. It’s not an add-on or a plenary task, but a pedagogical approach that integrates thinking, talk and written reflection throughout every maths lesson. From “brain dumps” at the start of a unit to “stop and jots” during teaching, the process helps children make their thinking visible, connect ideas and take ownership of their learning.

Jon, Kirsten and Holly discuss how journalling supports metacognition, oracy and reasoning, as well as how it can help to reduce maths anxiety by shifting classroom culture away from right-or-wrong answers towards curiosity and creativity. They explore how this approach builds inclusive learning environments and strengthens pupils’ confidence, self-esteem and enjoyment of maths.

There’s also discussion of practical strategies for getting started, how to respond to misconceptions in real time, and how to embed journalling without creating extra workload.

Kirsten and Holly share examples of how journalling looks in practice—from anchor charts and worked examples to real-life projects like planning a Halloween party. They explain how pupils use drawings, diagrams and sentence stems to express their reasoning and how this fosters a deeper understanding of mathematical ideas.

They end by reflecting on pupil voice, teacher collaboration, and the simple power of asking children to show us what you’re thinking.

Connect with Holly and Kirsten

Email: holly.drummond@highland.gov.uk

kafenton@esms.org.uk

Recent publications:

• Show me what you think: Maths Journalling and the Case for Oracy in Scottish Primary Schools – Teacherhead
• Reimagining Primary Maths Education in Scotland Through Journaling – Enlighten
• Maths journaling is giving students control over lessons – The Herald
• How journalling can alleviate pupils’ maths anxiety – TES

The discussion ranges from curriculum overload to the role of problem solving, exploring whether maths could ever follow pupils’ interests in the same way as history or science. Jon argues that the current focus on calculating with fractions in Key Stage 2 comes too soon, while Becky calls for a rethink on topics like Roman numerals and imperial units. Both agree that depth of understanding and real-world application should take priority over coverage.

From there, they touch on geometry, progression, and the importance of not narrowing the curriculum just because some concepts feel difficult or less “useful.” As Jon puts it, schools should expose children to a broad and inspiring range of mathematical ideas — even those that may not have an obvious everyday purpose.

The Maths of Life segment takes a theatrical turn as Becky explores the Erdos–Bacon number — a surprisingly mathematical connection between film stars, mathematicians, and networks of collaboration. Jon discovers his own surprisingly low Bacon number and issues a challenge to listeners to beat it.

Finally, they revisit Jon’s interview with Leonie Briggs, unpacking the links between maths and science, the importance of cross-curricular learning, and how practical, hands-on experiences can make abstract ideas come alive. Becky highlights Leonie’s passion for showing pupils the real-world value of maths — from veterinary science to construction — while Jon reminds us that sometimes it’s okay to learn simply for the joy of knowing something new.

Highlights include:

• Should the maths curriculum focus more on skills than content?
• Why we rush fractions — and what we could teach instead
• Is it time to retire Roman numerals and inches?
• The joy (and challenge) of geometry
• How the Erdos–Bacon number connects maths and movies
• Why integrating maths and science matters more than ever

Get involved:

Email your thoughts to primarymathspodcast@twinkl.co.uk, leave a YouTube comment, or message Jon and Becky on social media.

Leonie shares how her career journey from veterinary practice to education shaped her practical approach to teaching, why she believes science should be colourful and creative, and how teachers can build pupils’ confidence by connecting learning across the curriculum. The conversation explores simple, memorable ways to integrate maths into science lessons (and vice versa) while keeping activities manageable and meaningful in a busy classroom.

In This Episode

• Leonie’s journey from veterinary and orthopaedic practice to science education
• How real-world applications of maths strengthen scientific understanding
• What “STEAM” means, and why adding the Arts can help break down barriers to learning
• Ways to embed maths naturally within science investigations
• How cross-curricular links can make learning more memorable and inclusive
• The importance of teacher collaboration and reflection when planning integrated lessons
• Leonie’s experience as a National Numeracy Champion and how to get involved
• Practical ideas to make STEM and STEAM hands-on without adding workload

Resources and Links Mentioned

• Make Your Own Rainbow: A Colourful Approach to All Things STEAM by Leonie Briggs
• AmazeLab : www.amazelab.co.uk
• National Numeracy – information about becoming a National Numeracy Champion: www.nationalnumeracy.org.uk
• Previous Episode: Supporting Pupils with SEND in Maths with Georgina Durrant
• The Aftermaths (Friday episodes) – reflections, takeaways, and The Maths of Life segment:

Key Quotes

“Nothing works without maths. From pulleys and catapults to chromatography and colour, every part of science depends on mathematical thinking.”

“If we want children to see maths as useful and meaningful, we have to let them experience it through the world around them.”

“Creativity isn’t separate from STEM. The arts help us make ideas visible, tangible and memorable.”

About Leonie Briggs

Leonie Briggs is an award-winning educator, author and founder of AmazeLab, a science and STEAM education company that creates hands-on, practical learning experiences for schools. She has taught across primary, secondary and post-16 settings and is a passionate advocate for creative, accessible STEM education. Leonie is also a National Numeracy Champion, supporting initiatives to build confidence with numbers for learners of all ages.

Find Leonie on LinkedIn or visit www.amazelab.co.uk.

About the Host

Jon Cripwell is the National Education Lead for Primary Maths at Twinkl. He works with schools, trusts, and maths hubs to support high-quality teaching and learning, and hosts The Primary Maths Podcast, exploring the big ideas and everyday realities of teaching maths in primary schools.

Follow Jon on LinkedIn.

Subscribe and Get Involved

Don’t miss future episodes. Subscribe to The Primary Maths Podcast on Spotify or Apple Podcasts.

We’d love to hear your stories from the maths classroom. Send them to primarymathspodcast@twinkl.co.uk, and you might hear them featured in an upcoming episode of The Aftermaths.

This week, Jon starts with an unexpected sideline into baby growth charts after overhearing a throwaway comment at his daughter’s netball match. What exactly does it mean to be on the 90th centile for length at birth? Behind that neat statistic lies a story stretching from 19th-century statisticians to American infant studies, British research in the 1960s, and the World Health Organization’s huge international project in the early 2000s. We trace the surprising history of how babies came to be measured against global charts, and why these centiles have become such an everyday part of parenting.

From there, the conversation turns to language. Becky introduces her latest instalment of etymathsology with a dive into the Latin roots of those tricky mathematical terms we all know but sometimes muddle. Ever wondered why we talk about a minuend, a subtrahend, or a dividend? It turns out the endings are not arbitrary at all. They come from the Latin gerundive form, meaning “that which must be done.” Suddenly a minuend is “that which must be made smaller,” and the subtrahend is “that which must be subtracted.” With this lens, the technical vocabulary of calculation makes far more sense, and even offers a neat way of helping children understand which number is which in a subtraction or division.

Along the way, Jon and Becky share listener questions, practical classroom strategies, and plenty of reflections on maths talk, pupil confidence, and the value of experiences like Forest School in developing spatial reasoning. They discuss why not every activity needs to end in the classroom to have mathematical value, and how contextual experiences outside can quietly boost attainment inside.

In this episode you’ll hear:

• The surprisingly recent history of baby growth charts and why the WHO stepped in
• How understanding Latin roots makes calculation vocabulary far easier to grasp
• Practical strategies for supporting children who freeze when asked to explain their maths out loud
• A discussion on mixed groupings, flexible pairings and why seating plans can be a tool for inclusion as well as behaviour
• Why memorisation without understanding can catch children out in the long run

If you are new to The Aftermaths, think of it as the companion piece to our Tuesday interviews. On Fridays Jon and Becky step back, reflect on the week’s themes, and share classroom-ready insights for primary teachers, maths leads and anyone who wants to think more deeply about maths in everyday life.

As ever, we would love to hear your thoughts. Email us at primarymathspodcast@twinkl.co.uk or drop a comment on YouTube.

We start with some fun listener feedback on non-standard units of measurement. Michelle and Karen measure their runs in songs, Dave introduces us to the “Sheppey” (the distance at which sheep still look picturesque), and Eleanor points us towards the “Smoot” – the length of Oliver Smoot, immortalised when MIT students used him as a human ruler across Harvard Bridge in 1958. We talk about how these quirky measures still crop up in culture and what they reveal about the way we make sense of the world.

From there we move into more serious ground, exploring research from the Turner Kirk Centre for Spatial Reasoning in Glasgow. Their findings show that short, additional lessons in spatial reasoning can lead to significant improvements in maths, particularly for girls and disadvantaged pupils, and in some cases can close attainment gaps. We consider how activities like puzzles, junk modelling, Lego and outdoor play connect to these ideas, and how schools might bring more of the strengths of early years provision into Key Stage 1 and 2.

Finally, we reflect on this week’s interview with Tom Isherwood. Together we draw out practical strategies for teachers:

• Collaborative planning as professional development rather than everyday expectation.
• Dual coding with coloured pens to strengthen links between calculations and representations.
• Flipping “I do, we do, you do” to “you do, we do, I do” so pupils are led to discover ideas without leaving it to chance.
• Planning starters at the end of lesson design to ensure they connect directly to the key learning.

This is an episode that combines humour with substance, moving from measuring time in Bluey episodes to the serious potential of spatial reasoning, and finishing with classroom strategies you can try straight away.

If you enjoyed this conversation, please share it with a colleague and leave a quick rating or review. You can get in touch with us at primarymathspodcast@twinkl.co.uk (remember Twinkl is without an “e”), or leave a comment if you are listening on YouTube.

Together, Jon and Georgina explore how we can make maths lessons more inclusive for every child. The conversation covers:

• Why maths anxiety can persist long after school years, and what this means for the way we teach
• The difference between memorising and understanding in mathematics, and why it matters for learners with SEND
• The challenges SENDCOs and teachers face, including funding, training and EHCP delays
• How maths leads and SENDCOs can work together more effectively to support staff and pupils
• Practical strategies for making lessons more accessible, from using manipulatives and visuals to framing language positively
• The importance of high expectations and recognising the “spiky profile” many learners have in maths
• The role of parents as experts in their children’s needs and how schools can learn from them

This episode is full of practical takeaways as well as bigger questions about what truly inclusive maths teaching looks like. Whether you are a classroom teacher, SENDCO, or maths lead, you will come away with ideas you can use straight away and insights that will spark reflection in your practice.

If you enjoy the show, make sure you subscribe so you never miss an episode. Please share it with a colleague who would find it useful, and leave a quick rating or review on your podcast app to help us reach more listeners.

We would also love to hear from you. If you have a question about SEND or inclusive practice, email us at primarymathspodcast@twinkl.co.uk

(that is Twinkl without an e), and Jon and Becky will address it in Friday’s episode. And if you have a funny or unusual maths classroom moment to share, send that in too – we love featuring your stories.

That’s exactly the journey my guest, Tom Isherwood, has been on. Tom is the Lead Practitioner for Maths at the Flying High Trust, as well as Assistant Maths Hub Lead with East Midlands West. In short, he’s seen it all: from lesson design in a single classroom to supporting schools through 20 Ofsted inspections in one year.

In this episode, Tom and I get stuck into:

• Why lesson design is about thinking not templates, and how planning one lesson for two hours can transform every lesson that follows
• The power of collaborative planning and why teachers clutch those “magic bean” lesson plans like gold dust
• How to balance consistency across a trust with giving teachers genuine autonomy
• Why the “I do, we do, you do” model makes Tom nervous (and what he suggests instead)
• The secret weapon of maths teaching that every school should invest in (hint: it’s not a new scheme of work)
• How to prepare for Ofsted without losing the soul of your maths curriculum
• And what it really means to be “up to something” as a maths leader

We also manage to squeeze in conversations about Shanghai exchanges, the joy of coloured pens, and why the number 27 is the most three-ish number of them all.

Whether you’re a classroom teacher, a maths lead, or a leader of leaders, this episode will give you practical insights, some healthy challenges to your current thinking, and a reminder of why lesson design matters more than any single scheme or structure.

Tune in, reflect, and maybe rethink your next maths lesson plan.

Get in touch: primarymathspodcast@twinkl.co.uk

#twinklmaths

Lewis sat down with us to talk about the joys and challenges of teaching and leading maths in primary school. We cover:

• What makes maths lessons engaging for both pupils and teachers
• Why a noisy classroom can actually be a productive one and how purposeful talk builds mathematical thinking
• How collaborative planning can transform professional development for teachers, and Lewis’ top tips for making a session truly effective
• The importance of doing the maths yourself first and how it helps uncover misconceptions before pupils face them
• The four golden questions Lewis always comes back to when planning lessons (and why they work for every subject, not just maths)

We also get into why pupils need to hear that getting things wrong is not only inevitable but essential, how to avoid staff meetings where everyone is laminating instead of listening, and why “accidental teaching” is sometimes the most powerful kind.

Lewis has started sharing his thinking in a new blog series called Plan Maths, hosted by Derby Research School. You can find the first instalment here: Plan Maths – Derby Research School. Keep an eye out for part two coming soon.

As always, Becky and I unpack the key takeaways in our debrief after the interview. From purposeful talk to remembering the value of doing the maths yourself, there’s plenty here to spark reflection and maybe even change what you do in class tomorrow.

If you enjoy the show, don’t forget to follow or subscribe on your podcast app of choice, and share it with a colleague who loves (or maybe needs to love) maths as much as we do. You can also leave us a rating or a review — it really helps others to find the show.

And finally, we’d love to hear from you. What are your favourite non-standard units of measurement in everyday life? Drop us a message at primarymathspodcast@twinkl.co.uk or in the YouTube comments.

#twinklmaths

Jon is joined by his Twinkl colleague Pete Mattock: teacher, leader, prolific speaker, and author of Visible Maths, Conceptual Maths, and Leading Maths. As National Education Lead for Secondary Maths, Pete brings the secondary perspective on why the step into Key Stage 3 can be such a tricky one, and what practical steps could help bridge the gap.

We discuss:

• Why Year 7 often feels like a reset button and whether that’s always necessary
• The role of baseline tests, schemes of work, and different representations in fuelling the sense of “starting again”
• What stronger collaboration between primary and secondary teachers could look like in practice
• Why information should flow both ways between schools
• How the Key Stage 2 curriculum might need “thinning out” to ensure depth over coverage

As ever, Jon and Becky also bring you a Maths of Life detour: this time exploring the bizarre history of BBC maths sitcoms (yes, really), and imagining what a 2020s revival might look like, with a possible cameo for Carol Vorderman…

Whether you’re a Year 6 teacher preparing pupils for the big step, a subject leader writing action plans, or a secondary colleague wondering how best to build on Key Stage 2, this episode is packed with insights, challenges, and ideas to take forward.

To get in touch, contact us at primarymathspodcast@twinkl.co.uk

Becky recounts her weekend at the Rubik’s Cube UK Championship, where maths hides in everything from official timing rules to the mysterious “God’s Number.” Jon takes us from the beach (counting grains of sand!) to the history of charity singles, comparing Band Aid’s millions in the 1980s with LadBaby’s record-breaking - yet surprisingly modest - fundraising totals.

We also launch a brand-new feature: Ety-math-ology. Becky digs into the origins of shape names like polygon, rhombus, and diamond, uncovering some surprising stories about the language of geometry and how it can trip us up in the classroom.

It’s been a fun run of summer specials, but from next week the Primary Maths Podcast returns to its usual format: interviews with experts in maths education. Don’t forget to subscribe and share the podcast with a colleague as the new term begins.

#twinklmaths

Jon and Becky swap holiday stories and uncover the surprising maths that follows you everywhere – even when you’re meant to be switching off. From suitcase scales gone wrong (pounds versus kilos, anyone?) to crazy golf “unitising,” estimating watermelons, and the enduring mystery of why the furthest you can get from the sea in the UK is only ...(spoilers!), it turns out that holidays are full of mathematical moments.

Jon also introduces a new segment: Research in 60 Seconds (ish), sharing a fresh study about how young children represent quantity and order in their early notations – and why we should never dismiss unconventional jottings.

Expect classic British seaside nostalgia, a dash of self-deprecating humour, and plenty of practical ways you can bring real-world maths (and early maths research) into your classroom.

If you enjoy the show, please share it with a colleague and leave us a rating or review – it really helps other teachers find us.

#twinklmaths #twinklprimarymaths

Jon shares his own journey of unexpectedly becoming a maths lead during his NQT year, while Becky reflects on her experiences leading maths in a large junior school. Together they consider how subject leaders can shape school culture, raise the profile of maths, and drive meaningful change in teaching and learning.

This week’s Maths of Life takes us on a journey from Ancient Rome to Renaissance Italy to uncover the origins of percentages, why we use them instead of fractions in shops, and why “25% off” feels like more of a bargain than “a quarter off.”

Topics covered include:

• Why percentages became the language of bargains
• The commutative property of percentages (and why it matters)
• First steps for new maths leads in September
• Building a positive maths culture in your school
• Practical ideas for parental engagement
• Where to find support, training, and inspiration

If you’re stepping into maths leadership this year, or simply want to reflect on your own practice, this episode offers encouragement, practical strategies, and a reminder that you are not alone in the role.

#twinklmaths #twinklprimarymaths

They discuss:

• Why telling the time is more cognitively demanding than many realise
• The case for introducing digital time first and why it might make life easier for everyone
• How language, fractions, and number line concepts all come into play when learning analogue clocks
• What other education systems (like Singapore and Shanghai) do differently
• Why developmental readiness matters more than curriculum speed

Plus, in this week’s Maths of Life, Jon dives into the fascinating history of temperature scales from Celsius and Fahrenheit to Kelvin and why zero means very different things depending on the thermometer you’re looking at.

Whether you’re teaching EYFS pupils to recognise o’clock, guiding Year 2s through quarter past, or still wrestling with 24-hour conversions yourself, this episode is packed with practical insights and a few laughs along the way.

If you’ve enjoyed this summer series, follow the show, leave a review, or share it with a colleague.

Listen now and make your next ‘time’ lesson a little less stressful.

#twinklmaths #twinklprimarymaths #primarymathspodcast

This week, Sally Cole joins Jon as guest co-host while Becky continues her well-earned beach break. Sally is an Education Content Lead at Twinkl, working on digital maths resources including the Twinkl Maths app.

In this second summer special, Jon and Sally explore two big ideas:

The Maths of Life

How big is a billion? Inspired by a question from Jon’s daughter, we unpack the history, scale and meaning of this often misunderstood number. From how long it takes to count to a billion, to what it would look like built out of base ten cubes, this is a place value conversation that starts with curiosity and ends with a cube the size of a school building.

Main Discussion

Can teachers follow a scheme and still teach responsively?

We explore the benefits and challenges of using teaching for mastery schemes in schools, and ask:

• What do maths schemes of work do well?
• When might they restrict professional judgement or pedagogical flexibility?
• How can we make sure that teachers remain confident, responsive and well-supported?

If you're planning for September, reflecting on your maths curriculum, or thinking about teacher subject knowledge, this is an episode for you.

Get in touch: primarymathspodcast@twinkl.co.uk

Follow Jon on LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/joncripwell/

Leave a review, share with a colleague, or let us know where you’re listening from!

#twinklmaths #twinklprimarymaths #primarymathspodcast

The Primary Maths Podcast is designed for teachers, maths leads and school leaders working in UK primary schools. Each episode explores research-informed approaches to maths teaching, subject leadership, curriculum planning and classroom practice. Hosted by Jon Cripwell, with regular guests and special segments including the Maths of Life. Ideal for CPD on the go.

I’m digging into the history of school summer holidays – where they came from, how they’ve changed, and whether they were really designed so children could help with the harvest. (Spoiler: not quite.) Along the way, I explore the rise of seaside holidays, the Grand Tour, and what steam trains had to do with it all.

Then, I tackle a great listener question: how do we balance fluency with problem solving in maths? Should one come before the other – or is it more complicated than that? I explain how fluency, reasoning and problem solving each play a distinct role in effective maths teaching, and why they’re best taught in tandem.

Whether you're listening from a sun lounger or sorting out your September plans, I hope you're having the best time – and that this episode keeps you company.

In this episode:

• The surprising origins of the school summer break
• Why fluency isn’t just about speed
• The case for teaching problem solving early and often
• How to connect reasoning, fluency and real-world maths

Chapters:

00:00 – Introduction to Summer Special Episodes

01:21 – The History of the School Summer Holidays

09:20 – Balancing Fluency and Problem Solving in Maths Education

In this episode of the Primary Maths Podcast, Jon Cripwell and Becky Brown explore the surprisingly powerful concept of metacognition and what it looks like in real classrooms, from early years to upper Key Stage 2.

Jon also explains why a 12-inch pizza is nearly four times the size of a six-inch one, and how that misconception links directly to our work as teachers.

Later, Jon is joined by Nathan Burns, also known as Mr Metacognition, to discuss:

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• Why it is not just for older or high-attaining pupils
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• How to model thinking in maths lessons without overwhelming your students
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• Practical ways to build mathematical resilience and reflection into your teaching
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The conversation also covers curriculum pressures, classroom talk, and the small changes that can make a big difference to mathematical understanding.

A quick note: There was a slight issue with Nathan's sound during the recording, which we have tried to clean up as much as possible. Apologies, and thank you for bearing with it.

Key takeaways

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• Metacognition is more than a buzzword – it is a powerful tool for learning in maths
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• Modelling your thinking out loud helps pupils develop their own strategies
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• Resilience is built by teaching children what to do when they do not know what to do
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• Metacognitive strategies can be used from the early years upwards
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• Classroom talk and exploration matter just as much as correct answers
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• Relying solely on PowerPoint may limit modelling opportunities
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• Real-world contexts, such as pizza pricing, can help make abstract maths meaningful
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Featured guest

Nathan Burns – Mr Metacognition

Author of Inspiring Deep Learning and Teaching Hacks, Nathan is a teacher, writer and national trainer specialising in metacognition, curriculum design and making cognitive science practical for schools.

Find him on X: @MrMetacognition

Resource of the Week

This week’s recommended resource is place value strips – simple, effective and ideal for developing early number sense and reasoning.

Episode chapters

00:00 – Welcome to the Primary Maths Podcast

01:30 – What is metacognition really about

03:20 – Pizza pricing and the maths of area

09:48 – Decimal separators around the world

15:08 – Interview with Nathan Burns

46:00 – Modelling thinking and building independence

55:00 – Visualisers versus PowerPoint in maths lessons

1:01:30 – Where early career teachers should start

1:08:00 – Quickfire round: resource picks, favourite number, and a small thing that makes a big difference

Keywords

Primary maths, metacognition, maths education, teaching for mastery, curriculum design, real-world maths, cognitive science, maths misconceptions, teacher CPD, UK primary teaching, Nathan Burns, Mr Metacognition, Primary Maths Podcast

Kate shares how her “Mrs Frood Maths” lessons became a model for coaching and inclusion, why stealth differentiation works better than labels, and how to reclaim joy and challenge in problem solving.

Plus, in Maths of Life, Jon investigates why a 1/3 pounder burger failed in 1980s America – and what it teaches us about common fraction misconceptions. Becky takes us into the world of speedcubing, synchronised diving, and complex averages.

It’s a jam-packed episode with stories, laughs and powerful reflections on leadership, subject knowledge and classroom culture.

We explore:

✔️ What Number Talks are and why they matter

✔️ How they boost fluency, reasoning and oracy

✔️ Practical tips for rolling them out across your school

✔️ The importance of vocabulary (yes, even in EYFS!)

✔️ Why strong pedagogy matters more than any scheme

✔️ Embedding sustainable change in maths teaching

✔️ The power of relationships, looping, and knowing your pupils

If you're a maths leader, classroom teacher or head looking for evidence-informed, practical ways to improve maths teaching across your school, this episode is packed with insight and inspiration.

📥 Get the free companion guide (key takeaways, resources, CPD video): https://www.twinkl.co.uk/resources/twinkl-podcasts/primary-maths-education-podcast-twinkl-podcasts

Mentioned in this episode:

• Making Number Talks Matter by Humphreys & Parker
• Designing Groupwork by Elizabeth Cohen
• Visible Learning for Maths by John Hattie
• Making Thinking Visible (Harvard Project Zero)
• NCETM resources, and more

👥 Our guests:

• Aimée Tinkler has been a teacher and school leader for over 20 years, including 8 years as a headteacher in Derbyshire. She is President-elect of the Chartered College of Teaching, engaged in doctoral research at UCL Institute of Education, and the author of Small and Mighty – Conversations about Small Schools (publishing this autumn).
• Helen Bowen has over 13 years of experience in primary education, including roles as class teacher, lead practitioner, and headteacher. A passionate maths educator, she is a Primary Mastery Specialist and Local Leader in Maths Education with the GLOW Maths Hub and is now Director of Mathematics at Excelsior Multi Academy Trust.

🧠 Topics covered include:

• How to adapt the mastery approach for mixed-age classrooms
• The power of oracy and reasoning talk in maths
• Structuring consistent maths teaching without rigid schemes
• The vital role of teaching assistants in small schools
• Leadership and collaboration in multi-role staff settings

🔍 Also in this episode:

• 🧩 Becky’s deep dive into competitive speed jigsaw puzzling (yes, it’s a thing!)
• 🔢 Maths of Life: Why we count in base 10—and what other number bases you're secretly using every day

🛠 Resource of the Week:

The Twinkl Maths App – a gamified fluency tool aligned with the Ready to Progress criteria. Great for interventions, rewards effort, and works brilliantly in small school settings.

📥 Free downloadable PDF with key takeaways, CPD clips and resources:

Search for Primary Maths Podcast at twinkl.co.uk.

📧 Feedback or questions?

Email us at primarymathspodcast@twinkl.co.uk

🔜 Next week’s episode:

Jon speaks to Omar Jennings, headteacher at Nightingale Primary in London, about how Number Talks are transforming oracy and conceptual understanding.

John brings decades of educational leadership and classroom experience to an insightful conversation about the true essence of great teaching and learning. He shares his "10 principles of great teaching," drawing from extensive observations and research across primary and secondary classrooms.

Key Topics Covered:

• The core principles that define truly exceptional teaching.
• How to balance rigorous frameworks with teacher autonomy and creativity.
• Building strong, meaningful relationships with pupils.
• Insights into misconceptions in maths education and how teachers can effectively address them.
• Real-life stories illustrating the profound impact great teachers can have.

Key Questions Explored:

• What makes lessons genuinely engaging for pupils?
• How can teachers balance consistency with creativity and enthusiasm?
• What critical skills and practices define outstanding teaching?

Resources Mentioned:

• The Hidden Lives of Learners by Graham Nuthall
• WalkThrus by Tom Sherrington and Oliver Caviglioli
• John Tomsett's books, including forthcoming titles on primary and secondary teaching

Connect with John Tomsett:

• John Tomsett’s Blog
• Twitter: @johntomsett

Listen & Subscribe:

Remember to subscribe to The Primary Maths Podcast wherever you get your podcasts and leave us a review if you enjoyed this episode!

We chat about:

• Why self-belief matters more than ability
• What anxiety might look like in a maths lesson (spoiler: not always what you expect)
• The role of language, teacher behaviour, and culture in shaping confidence
• How to build a classroom where all learners feel safe to think, try and talk about maths
• Heidi’s experiences of teaching abroad and launching her platform, Mindful Maths

🧮 The Maths of Life

Jon and Becky explore real-world maths moments: booking holidays abroad, dodging dodgy exchange rates, and working out the perimeter of the Isle of Wight while stuck in a ferry queue.

🛠️ Resource of the Week

This week’s pick: Mastering the Mountain – a Twinkl Originals picture book for KS2, designed to open up conversations about maths anxiety through storytelling.

📚Visit ‘Mastering the Mountain’ on Twinkl to read the ebook and access accompanying resources.

💬 Join the Conversation

Have a maths anxiety story or a question for Heidi, Jon or Becky? Email us at: primarymathspodcast@twinkl.co.uk

🔗 Links

Find Heidi on LinkedIn

Her website, mentioned on the episode: Mindful Maths

📅 New episodes every Tuesday during term time, brought to you by Jon Cripwell (Primary National Education Lead for Primary Maths and Becky Brown, Educational Content Lead at Twinkl Educational Publishing.

Subscribe wherever you get your podcasts.