Bernie Westacott
@berniewestacott.bsky.social
Full time 1973-2012 Head of Maths. Now Part time intervention teacher. Introduced Singapore Maths in school 2006. Independent consultant 2012 - current. Oxford University Press maths consultant 2015-2020. Teach Monster game maths consultant 2020 - current.
..I mentioned that bar models in helping UK children to solve word problems are often undervalued because the problems are too easy and do not need bar models. However, these below (first two are Primary 2/UK Y3 age and the second two are Primary 3/UK Y4 age) from Singapore maths competition might!
August 1, 2025 at 3:37 PM
..I mentioned that bar models in helping UK children to solve word problems are often undervalued because the problems are too easy and do not need bar models. However, these below (first two are Primary 2/UK Y3 age and the second two are Primary 3/UK Y4 age) from Singapore maths competition might!
Made me chuckle!
July 21, 2025 at 7:24 PM
Made me chuckle!
View of the Victoria Nile from the Black Lantern restaurant, Bujagali, Uganda. An evening of relaxation after a full-on week with schools out here.??
July 13, 2025 at 3:52 PM
View of the Victoria Nile from the Black Lantern restaurant, Bujagali, Uganda. An evening of relaxation after a full-on week with schools out here.??
1/n Thought we had done our last Jinja Educational Trust (JET) trip, but they persuaded me and Karen to go again. We have spent the week travelling into JET schools, some 'off road' a long way from Jinja. Lots to share: children are stunning - so calm, focussed and well-behaved.
July 13, 2025 at 9:50 AM
1/n Thought we had done our last Jinja Educational Trust (JET) trip, but they persuaded me and Karen to go again. We have spent the week travelling into JET schools, some 'off road' a long way from Jinja. Lots to share: children are stunning - so calm, focussed and well-behaved.
Using algebra tiles app to help Y10 understand what 'completing the square' looks like as we work on calculating intercepts on axes and turning points.
July 5, 2025 at 11:03 AM
Using algebra tiles app to help Y10 understand what 'completing the square' looks like as we work on calculating intercepts on axes and turning points.
This is still one of my favourite videos I have made. A presentation I did for @lasalleed.bsky.social in 2023. Using @mathspadjames.bsky.social Decimals Blocks app. Fractals in action. I love apps that enable users to zoom in and out and to appreciate scale and connections.
June 30, 2025 at 2:27 PM
This is still one of my favourite videos I have made. A presentation I did for @lasalleed.bsky.social in 2023. Using @mathspadjames.bsky.social Decimals Blocks app. Fractals in action. I love apps that enable users to zoom in and out and to appreciate scale and connections.
Huge shout out to @draustinmaths.com for her resources free online. These were so useful for Y10 consolidation and practice this week. They are so well constructed 😍
June 28, 2025 at 10:25 AM
Huge shout out to @draustinmaths.com for her resources free online. These were so useful for Y10 consolidation and practice this week. They are so well constructed 😍
Great question from a Singapore Maths competition for Primary 6. Requires a careful and systematic approach and also has triangular numbers within that analysis.😍
June 18, 2025 at 3:10 PM
Great question from a Singapore Maths competition for Primary 6. Requires a careful and systematic approach and also has triangular numbers within that analysis.😍
It has been interesting helping some of our Y3 and Y4 pupils look at ways of solving these sorts of problems - this one is taken from a Grade 3 international maths competition.
May 31, 2025 at 4:04 PM
It has been interesting helping some of our Y3 and Y4 pupils look at ways of solving these sorts of problems - this one is taken from a Grade 3 international maths competition.
(1) When we first introduced the Singapore maths pedagogy into our school in 2006, we realised very quickly how we needed to concretise the 'groups' in 'groups and items' as bits of paper. This made the groups something distinct from the items and they could be manipulated.
May 19, 2025 at 7:07 PM
(1) When we first introduced the Singapore maths pedagogy into our school in 2006, we realised very quickly how we needed to concretise the 'groups' in 'groups and items' as bits of paper. This made the groups something distinct from the items and they could be manipulated.
Using MS Whiteboard to make interactive prepared online apps to model directly content in the WRMH scheme. This unit from Y3 Autumn has the the videos, the workbook pages and links to app boards I have already set up and stored via links/codes.
May 15, 2025 at 9:22 AM
Using MS Whiteboard to make interactive prepared online apps to model directly content in the WRMH scheme. This unit from Y3 Autumn has the the videos, the workbook pages and links to app boards I have already set up and stored via links/codes.
Working with Y3 and Y4 Maths Clubs this week: as well as some UK First Maths Challenge questions, I will also share some Grade 2 and 3 problems from Singapore Maths competitions such as these: Grade 2 then Grade 3 - medium difficulty from the middle section of the papers. #UKMathsChat #MathsToday
May 13, 2025 at 10:29 AM
Working with Y3 and Y4 Maths Clubs this week: as well as some UK First Maths Challenge questions, I will also share some Grade 2 and 3 problems from Singapore Maths competitions such as these: Grade 2 then Grade 3 - medium difficulty from the middle section of the papers. #UKMathsChat #MathsToday
Working with some of our Y2 pupils this week on problem solving. Used some questions from the
@mathematicala.bsky.social First Maths Challenge. We could have used the answers given, or trial and improvement, but instead we built on their knowledge of bar models, and number rods. Polypad app.
@mathematicala.bsky.social First Maths Challenge. We could have used the answers given, or trial and improvement, but instead we built on their knowledge of bar models, and number rods. Polypad app.
May 9, 2025 at 2:38 PM
Working with some of our Y2 pupils this week on problem solving. Used some questions from the
@mathematicala.bsky.social First Maths Challenge. We could have used the answers given, or trial and improvement, but instead we built on their knowledge of bar models, and number rods. Polypad app.
@mathematicala.bsky.social First Maths Challenge. We could have used the answers given, or trial and improvement, but instead we built on their knowledge of bar models, and number rods. Polypad app.
Love using mathsbot.com Bar Modelling app from the mighty @studymaths.bsky.social for quickly making bar models. Perfect for this @mathematicala.bsky.social First Maths Challenge question I am doing with some Y2 pupils. Shines a light on the underlying connections. #UKMathsChat #MathsToday
May 6, 2025 at 12:35 PM
Love using mathsbot.com Bar Modelling app from the mighty @studymaths.bsky.social for quickly making bar models. Perfect for this @mathematicala.bsky.social First Maths Challenge question I am doing with some Y2 pupils. Shines a light on the underlying connections. #UKMathsChat #MathsToday
A colleague in school wrote this down to share with me today. What are the odds! 😮 #UKMathsChat #MathsToday
April 30, 2025 at 8:16 AM
A colleague in school wrote this down to share with me today. What are the odds! 😮 #UKMathsChat #MathsToday
The Interim Report does not say much about KS1 maths, but it does note that the curriculum at KS1 and 2 can 'lead to a struggle to cover all content with sufficient depth and negatively affects pupils’ ability to master foundational concepts' assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/67e6b4...
April 26, 2025 at 6:47 AM
The Interim Report does not say much about KS1 maths, but it does note that the curriculum at KS1 and 2 can 'lead to a struggle to cover all content with sufficient depth and negatively affects pupils’ ability to master foundational concepts' assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/67e6b4...
I use this in conjunction with various ranges of this scrollable number line, also from
@mlcmath.bsky.social #UKMathsChat #MathsToday #iTeachMath #EduSky
@mlcmath.bsky.social #UKMathsChat #MathsToday #iTeachMath #EduSky
April 25, 2025 at 1:34 PM
I use this in conjunction with various ranges of this scrollable number line, also from
@mlcmath.bsky.social #UKMathsChat #MathsToday #iTeachMath #EduSky
@mlcmath.bsky.social #UKMathsChat #MathsToday #iTeachMath #EduSky
How contentious will this one be? My favourite 100-square set up (this one doesn't go as far as 100, but you'll get the idea). #UKMathsChat #MathsToday #iTeachMath #EduSky
April 25, 2025 at 1:26 PM
How contentious will this one be? My favourite 100-square set up (this one doesn't go as far as 100, but you'll get the idea). #UKMathsChat #MathsToday #iTeachMath #EduSky
Following on from my recent post, an X post of mine from 2021 regarding connections between ratios, fractions as relationships, and expressing those in equations. I think this approach from a Singapore Y6 book gives pupils a great grounding #UKMathsChat
April 21, 2025 at 4:15 PM
Following on from my recent post, an X post of mine from 2021 regarding connections between ratios, fractions as relationships, and expressing those in equations. I think this approach from a Singapore Y6 book gives pupils a great grounding #UKMathsChat
Some Y9-Y11 pupils I'm working with (not our school) seem to struggle with converting a proportion into an equation e.g. c:t = 5:9. They are uncertain how to end up with 9c=5t through logic/model/expressing as equivalent fractions. Is this common? #UKMathsChat
April 19, 2025 at 12:58 PM
Some Y9-Y11 pupils I'm working with (not our school) seem to struggle with converting a proportion into an equation e.g. c:t = 5:9. They are uncertain how to end up with 9c=5t through logic/model/expressing as equivalent fractions. Is this common? #UKMathsChat
Having played around with this, thanks to a proposition from @noffaloffa.bsky.social, I came up with this series that satisfies the condition that when each is multiplied by 1.75 a new number is created with the digits in reverse order to the original:
April 6, 2025 at 3:04 PM
Having played around with this, thanks to a proposition from @noffaloffa.bsky.social, I came up with this series that satisfies the condition that when each is multiplied by 1.75 a new number is created with the digits in reverse order to the original:
This B Section question, from an old UKMT Junior Olympiad paper I’ve just posted to pupils, is a nice example of a problem where pupils can use the general form of numbers eg a 2-digit number ab is expressed as 10a+b.#MathsToday
April 5, 2025 at 11:03 AM
This B Section question, from an old UKMT Junior Olympiad paper I’ve just posted to pupils, is a nice example of a problem where pupils can use the general form of numbers eg a 2-digit number ab is expressed as 10a+b.#MathsToday
Although this is not a new @drfrostresource.bsky.social @drfrostlearning.bsky.social MathsPowerPoint, I have found it really useful when helping a Year 10 student to work through this topic in detail. More 'huge thanks' to the Dr Frost team🙏
March 30, 2025 at 2:00 PM
Although this is not a new @drfrostresource.bsky.social @drfrostlearning.bsky.social MathsPowerPoint, I have found it really useful when helping a Year 10 student to work through this topic in detail. More 'huge thanks' to the Dr Frost team🙏