The Concrete Pictorial Abstract approach is now an essential tool in teaching maths at KS1 and KS2, so here the Beeches and Oaks were looking at the different aspects of this model.
Our children are introduced to a new mathematical concept through the use of concrete resources (e.g. fruit, Dienes blocks etc). When they are comfortable solving problems with physical aids, they are given problems with pictures – usually pictorial representations of the concrete objects they were using.
Then they are asked to solve problems where they only have the abstract i.e. numbers or other symbols. Building these steps across a lesson can help our children better understand the relationship between numbers and the real world, and therefore helps secure their understanding of the mathematical concept they are learning.
