Multiplication and division - Multiple by 3 - Planning

The curriculum for Year 3 students during Autumn includes a focused week on Multiplication and Division, specifically honing in on the skill of multiplying by 3. The National Curriculum objectives set the stage for students to count in multiples of various numbers, recall and use multiplication and division facts for 3, 4, and 8 times tables, and to write and calculate mathematical statements for these operations. Students are also encouraged to solve problems, including those with missing numbers and scaling issues. The key vocabulary for the unit encompasses terms such as 'equal groups', 'repeated addition', 'arrays', and 'commutative law', providing a linguistic foundation for understanding the mathematical concepts.

In one of the lessons, students recap their knowledge of counting in threes and apply this to multiplying by 3 using concrete and pictorial methods. The lesson starts with oral counting and identifying patterns in the sequence of threes, supported by a hundred square representation. Students then engage in practical partner work with Numicon, using stem sentences to articulate their understanding of equal groups and repeated addition. As the lesson progresses, activities introduce bar models to visually represent equal groups, and children begin to use multiplication vocabulary such as 'multiplier', 'multiplicand', and 'product'. The lesson aims to build fluency in multiplying by 3 through a variety of methods, including cubes and bar models, and culminates with students writing multiplication expressions. Differentiated tasks cater to varying levels of understanding, from working towards expected levels to achieving greater depth, ensuring that all students can progress in their multiplication skills.