Celebrating Excellence in Early Years Maths at Mount Stewart

We are incredibly proud to celebrate our Nursery Teacher, Jacqueline Keane, whose recently published blog, “From Laminated Leaves to Meaningful Maths: My Journey as a Maths Champion,” was featured by A Brighter Start: East London’s Early Years Stronger Practice Hub. The article highlights the importance of meaningful mathematical experiences in the early years and reflects the outstanding practice taking place across our federation. (strongerpracticehubs.org.uk)

 

The blog explores a powerful shift in thinking — moving away from “forcing maths” through isolated activities and instead recognising mathematics naturally within children’s play, exploration and everyday experiences. (strongerpracticehubs.org.uk) This approach strongly reflects our vision for Early Years at Mount Stewart, where children develop curiosity, confidence and deep understanding through high-quality interactions and purposeful learning opportunities.

 

Our Early Years provision is a real strength of the federation. Staff create language-rich, nurturing and highly engaging environments where children thrive academically, socially and emotionally. Through carefully planned provision and skilled adult interactions, children are encouraged to investigate, reason, problem-solve and communicate their thinking from the very beginning of their learning journey.

 

Mathematics is embedded throughout our curriculum and daily practice. In Nursery and Reception, children experience maths through practical exploration, storytelling, outdoor learning, construction, creative play and real-life problem solving. Adults expertly model mathematical vocabulary and encourage children to notice patterns, compare quantities, estimate, count and reason independently.

 

This excellent foundation continues throughout the school. Across Key Stage 1 and Key Stage 2, pupils build strong mathematical fluency, reasoning and problem-solving skills through a carefully sequenced curriculum and high expectations for all learners. Our use of high-quality approaches, including White Rose Maths and Third Space Learning, ensures children develop confidence and depth in mathematics. As a result, outcomes across the school continue to be exceptionally strong and significantly above national averages.

 

We are particularly proud that our work in Early Years is being recognised beyond the school community. The publication of this blog demonstrates the expertise, passion and reflective practice of our staff and highlights Mount Stewart’s commitment to excellence, innovation and continuous improvement.

 

Congratulations to our Nursery team for this fantastic achievement and for continuing to inspire meaningful mathematical thinking in our youngest learners every day.