Online learning tools marketplace now live

Schools can now purchase online learning tools (OLT) for mathematics and other KLAs via a new online learning tools marketplace (staff only).

Schools can be confident that the products are quality-assessed by the department’s primary and secondary curriculum teams and also comply with data confidentiality, cyber security and privacy standards.

A product catalogue (staff only) is now available, with purchasing completed using EdBuy. Additional products will be added to the OLT marketplace over time.

If there is an online learning tool you’d like to see included on the OLT marketplace please email marketplace@det.nsw.edu.au.

Recommend the Everyday Maths Hub these holidays!

For students looking for some fun ways to revise mathematics concepts over the summer holidays, the Everyday Maths Hub is a great place to visit.

Popular with parents and carers looking to explore mathematics activities and resources at home, the Everyday Maths Hub has materials for children from Kindergarten to Year 10 as well as translated materials. From fractions to temperature, working with money, and volume and capacity, the Everyday Maths Hub has a range of activities to show the important role mathematics plays in everyday life.

Following the success of the #MathsTrainsBrains campaign in 2021, another phase of the campaign is currently in development so watch this space in 2022!

Join professional learning in 2022 to explore the big ideas and core concepts in mathematics

Mathematics professional learning throughout 2021 has gone from strength to strength despite COVID.

The NSW Mathematics Strategy’s Professional Learning Team was able to successfully pivot to deliver ‘Starting strong’ and ‘Working with the big ideas’ under very challenging circumstances for teachers.

'Starting strong' for K-2 and 'Working with the big ideas' for 3-8, are designed to explore the big ideas and core concepts in mathematics. The professional learning is flexible to accommodate needs of participants with online, self-paced modules released throughout the year. Join the team in 2022 who will be doing it all again starting in Week 7, Term 1.

More information on registration will be released in early Term 1. Keep an eye on the Staff Noticeboard (staff only) in early 2022 to find out how you can join the 2,900+ teachers of mathematics from K to Year 8, who developed a deeper understanding of the big ideas and core concepts in mathematics.

Will you be a Primary Mathematics Specialist Teacher in 2022?

Our Primary Mathematics Specialist Teachers (PMST) had a successful first year building on their mathematics expertise alongside a network of colleagues across the state delivering engaging and effective mathematics lessons for their students.

Thirty NSW public schools participated in 2021 with positive feedback received from PMSTs. One teacher was excited to share “[that the initiative] has ignited my love of mathematics and now it is something I want to specialise in.”

The NSW Mathematics Strategy Professional Learning team is now focused on recruiting more schools and up to 60 additional teachers from the start of Term 1. This new cohort of PMSTs will commence at the beginning of Term 2.

The PMST initiative is a two-year program that:

• builds teaching expertise in mathematics within primary schools
• enhances the mathematical knowledge of teachers
• enhances the use of effective practices in the teaching of mathematics
• builds teacher confidence and dispositions in the teaching and leading of mathematics
• supports sustainable impact in the teaching and learning of mathematics
• increases student engagement and achievement in mathematics
• provides 0.5 FTE for up to 2 PMSTs per school
• delivers professional learning designed and led by the NSW Mathematics Strategy Professional Learning team
• is structured around cycles of inquiry and is sustained, responsive and evidence-based for PMSTs and their school mathematics teams.

The recruitment for the new cohort will involve Directors, Educational Leadership (DELs) being invited to nominate up to 2 schools per network with a K–6 enrolment and the nominated schools are then invited to respond through an expression of interest.

More information will be shared with DELs at the start of Term 1, 2022. Principals may like to talk with their DEL about their interest in this initiative.

For you and your school to be involved in this initiative, go to the Staff Noticeboard (staff only).

How would you solve 25 x 8?

There’s more than one way! For the answer to this and many other mathematics challenges go to the Thinking Mathematically website.

The site features a large collection of K-6 tasks, lessons and investigations grouped into targeted teaching and contexts for practice sections. Targeted teaching includes tasks that explicitly explore mathematical ideas, skills and capabilities while the contexts for practice section provides rich games and investigation tasks where students can deepen their understanding and knowledge, practise skills and develop fluency.

These resources continue to be developed by the NSW Mathematics Strategy Professional Learning and Curriculum Early Years Primary Learners-Mathematics teams. To challenge you and your students go to the Thinking Mathematically website.

New numeracy course to commence in Term 1, 2022

After a successful pilot with almost 200 schools, Year 11 students across the state have taken the opportunity to enrol in the new Numeracy course to commence Term 1 2022.

The new Numeracy syllabus helps students to build practical numeracy and mathematics skills necessary for everyday life and work in the 21st century. It also focuses on depth of knowledge and skills rather than a breadth of topics. Problem solving applied to real-world contexts and the increased use and application of digital technologies are also a key feature.

To find out more and to access the syllabus and support materials go to the NSW Education Standards Authority (NESA) website.

New release of English and mathematics K-2 syllabus resources

Following the recent release of the new K-2 English and mathematics curriculum, the department has released the first resources to support teachers and leaders.

Now available on MyPL (Staff only), school staff have access to the initial microlearning module of the Quality curriculum implementation K-6 professional learning which provides an introduction to curriculum reform in NSW. More microlearning modules will be released progressively throughout 2022. A short video explaining microlearning can be viewed on the department’s website. Many more resources are in the pipeline and will be released regularly.

Accelerated Adopter and self-selected schools will test and trial some of these resources, such as scope and sequences, and units of work, so that these are continually improved.

For further information and resources go to the NSW Curriculum Reform webpage.

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