The maths department at Comberton Village College in Cambridgeshire uses games and number puzzles in their whole class teaching and with a range of abilities. The staff first do some maths themselves, working through enrichment tasks which might traditionally only be used with higher-attaining students or in maths clubs. Two Year 8 groups create quadrilaterals by joining points on a circle. The higher set see how many different shapes they can create, and come up with a rule involving the number of points available. The lower set class first sit in a circle and make quadrilaterals with a piece of rope before using the same activity to consolidate the names and properties of shapes they make. Year 7s try a number puzzle which encourages accurate calculations and supports a whole class investigation, while Year 9s use another number game to think about generalisations and proof.

Video Series: Secondary Maths
Release Date 2008