Diving Deep into Numicon: A Journey to Enhance Maths Learning
During the recent term break, I had the privilege of attending the inaugural New Zealand Numicon Conference in Auckland. This was a particularly exciting opportunity as our school has adopted Numicon as our Structured Literacy approach for Years 0-3, thanks to a Ministry of Education resourcing project. My attendance was self-funded, driven by a personal commitment to deeply understand this approach and elevate my mathematics teaching. An added bonus was sharing this experience with my daughter, who is in her first year of teaching and whose school kindly arranged her registration – I simply couldn't miss out!
Unpacking the Power of Maths Talk
The conference featured an inspiring keynote by Louise Pennington from Oxford University Press, who opened both days. Her initial presentation brilliantly highlighted the crucial role of "Maths Talk".
The Numicon Approach itself is designed to foster a rich and comprehensive understanding of mathematics. It moves learners from hands-on experiences to abstract concepts, allowing them to see and feel numbers. This approach aims to increase deep understanding by revealing patterns and connections, ultimately helping students grasp the very structure of numbers. A core tenet is to ignite joy and excitement in Mathematics, following the well-established Concrete-Pictorial-Abstract (CPA) framework.
Why Language is Key in Mathematics
Louise Pennington delved into the compelling research behind the importance of talk in mathematics, especially considering low language skills post-COVID. Key takeaways included:
Centrality of language to thinking and remembering: Articulating mathematical ideas solidifies understanding.
Verbalizing errors and misconceptions: Talking through mistakes helps in identifying and correcting them.
Difficulty of specific vocabulary: Technical mathematical terms are best learned within context.
We also explored various ways we communicate – physically, linguistically, cognitively, and socio-emotionally – and practical structures for facilitating communication:
Nest: Encouraging thinking time and oral rehearsal.
Pairs, Trios, Transverse, Circle, Fishbowl: Collaborative grouping strategies.
The profound message was clear: ways of thinking and ways of talking develop together, hand in hand.
The Enduring Value of Manipulatives
Crucially, for new mathematical words to be understood and used, children need to hear them between 4 and 20 times. This is why Numicon lessons thoughtfully include 'key words' for teachers to incorporate into their planning, ensuring consistent exposure and mastery.
Attending this conference truly reinforced the power of a structured, language-rich, and hands-on approach to teaching mathematics. It's exciting to see how Numicon will continue to transform maths learning for our youngest students!
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