Building Mathematics Confidence,
One Fact at a Time

How did you learn your number facts when you were at school? Maybe you remember reciting times tables out loud, writing them in exercise books, or having a timetable poster on the back of the toilet door. However you learned them, those basic facts were beneficial to build the foundation that allowed you to tackle more complex mathematics problems with confidence.

At Northern Christian School, we want to give students the same strong foundation in ways that are fun, engaging, and meaningful. This year, we have introduced two programs to help students develop number fluency, which is the ability to recall and use basic maths facts quickly and accurately. When children build these skills, they grow in confidence. Instead of feeling worried or stuck, they can enjoy mathematics and approach it with success.

Growing Confidence with NumBots and Times Tables Rock Stars

NumBots: helps students understand numbers step by step, using fun activities that build skills such as counting, number facts, and recognising patterns.

Times Tables Rock Stars: turns learning multiplication and division facts into a game, encouraging students to improve their speed and accuracy.

These programs are used in school and can be used at home. If your child is in Prep to Year 6, please ask their teacher for login details so they can practise regularly. For Kindergarten students, Mathematics is more play-based. Children explore maths through counting games, sorting, building, and hands-on activities that help them see how maths is part of everyday life.

Why Basic Facts Knowledge Matters

Our brains have two memory systems: working (short-term) memory and
long-term memory. Working memory has limited space, and if it becomes overloaded, children can feel confused or frustrated.

In Mathematics, solving multi-step problems takes up a lot of working memory. If students already know basic facts, they can focus on solving the problem rather than stopping to figure out each step.

For example, to solve 7 + 5 + 8 +10:

• A student who knows automatically that 7 + 5 = 12 can then focus on the next step, 12 + 8 = 20.

• Finally, they can complete 20 + 10 = 30 without becoming stuck.

This process is called ‘automaticity’, recalling facts without effort. It allows children to approach more complex problems with confidence and success.

“Fluency in computation provides a foundation on which students can build their understanding of mathematics.” (Kilpatrick et al., 2001, p. 121) Fluency helps by ensuring students can recall facts automatically, which frees up brain space so they can focus on higher-order thinking, reasoning, and
problem-solving.

NumBots and Times Tables Rock Stars are fun and effective ways to build this fluency. Just five to ten minutes of practice each day makes a significant difference over time.

Connecting Mathematics and Faith

Mathematics is part of God’s good creation. It reflects His order, beauty, and purpose. This term, our teachers have been planning how we intentionally teach Mathematics from a biblical perspective, showing that numbers are more than just facts on a page. For example, our students might explore how small loans can help farmers in developing countries buy seeds or tools, bringing hope and opportunity to others.

These learning experiences for our students show that God gives us mathematics not just for our enjoyment, but so that we can use it to bless others. We want our students to know that Mathematics becomes a way to love God and love others.

Partnering Together

Families play a vital role in building maths confidence. Short, regular practise at home helps children become fluent and confident.

By working together, home and school can help children enjoy Mathematics, think deeply, and see how God’s world is full of patterns, order, and purpose.

Bethany Armstrong - Principal

Term 3 has been a wonderful time of learning and creativity for Year 5.

In our integrated English and HASS unit, students have been exploring how our economy works. Ideas such as supply and demand, sharing and bartering, resources, and production have sparked some rich and thoughtful classroom discussions. A highlight was the visit from Shalom Devenish and the Estro Coffee Van, which provided students with an inspiring, real-world look at what it takes to start and run a small business.

Year 5 has also been busy in the Visual Arts with Miss Ling. With so many talented young artists in our cohort, the class has thoroughly enjoyed recent lessons on portrait drawing. Students have been learning new processes and techniques to create self-portraits, which have quickly become a favourite part of our week.

Year 5 have also been starting an adventure in the FIRST LEGO League, marking their first steps into this robotics competition. Embracing the core values of Discovery, Innovation, Impact, Inclusion, and Teamwork, these young innovators are learning to collaborate, solve problems creatively, and contribute positively to their communities. This competition consists of two parts: the innovation project and the robot game. The Innovation project is where students tackle real-world problems; this year, this problem will be related to archaeology. The Robot Games is where students design and build robots to complete as many challenges on the games table in under 3 minutes. We are excited to see how our teams will do in the competition later in Term 4.

This term, we have been lucky enough to take part in gymnastics at the Hobart Gymnastics Academy. Students have been working on building their core strength, practising balance, and developing confidence in movement. Some of the exciting activities we’ve enjoyed include mat tricks and rolls, swinging and hanging from bars, and, of course, the favourite activity of jumping into the foam pits!  

We look forward to finishing the year well!

Jackie Baines and Peter Humphrey - Year 5 Teachers

Footy Colours Day - Friday 26th September

Fight Cancer Foundation’s ‘Footy Colours Day’ is a national fundraising campaign that helps kids with cancer.

Students are invited to wear their favourite footy team colours, and there will be fun activities held throughout the day.

Students are also welcome to wear their free dress or their favourite sport team if they do not wish to dress in footy attire

We encourage families to make a fundraising donation to the Fight Cancer Foundation via QKR! before 3.00pm on Friday, 26th September.

No Hat, No Play

As detailed in our Uniform Policy, and in line with our recognition as a SunSmart School, all students and staff must wear a hat when outside during Term 4. If students aren’t wearing a bucket hat, they will be asked to sit on the undercover deck.

The School’s bucket hat must be purchased from the Uniform Shop either via the Qkr! App or from the Office for $15.