Maths early intervention programme is awards finalist in two categories
A programme which supports early years practitioners with their confidence and ability to teach maths to children in nursery settings was shortlisted for two awards.
Maths Champions is a professional development programme delivered by National Day Nurseries Association (NDNA) aimed at increasing early years practitioner skills, knowledge, awareness and confidence in supporting early mathematics.
The programme was a finalist in The Early Years Award and The Workforce Development Award at the Children and Young People Now Awards 2024. The programme narrowly missed out to the winners, The Green House, Bluestar Project and Blackpool Council Better Start Early Years Community Connector Service.
The Education Endowment Foundation (EEF) with researchers from the Universities of Durham and York analysed the results of the programme. They concluded that children in a setting that ran the programme made, on average, three months additional progress in maths and language development. This initial progress was then discovered to have longer-lasting effects, extending at least until the end of their school reception year.
The programme appeared to have even more effect on children who received Early Years Pupil Premium, giving them up to six months additional progress.
Stella Ziolkowski, NDNA’s Director of Quality and Training said: “We are delighted that Maths Champions was a finalist for both these awards. There were some amazing projects and programmes on the night so we are incredibly proud to have been nominated.
“The programme is a very effective way of boosting both practitioners’ knowledge and confidence in maths and therefore children’s learning outcomes. It has an added benefit of boosting their learning and development across other areas including broader language skills.
“We are delighted that Maths Champions continues to be recognised and successful. We are currently recruiting 800 nurseries across England to join fully funded programmes and hope that this recognition will encourage more early years settings to sign up.
“Following the Early Years Foundation Stage profile results, published on Thursday, we know that maths and literacy are the areas with the lowest proportion of children reaching expected goals. Programmes like Maths Champions can really make a difference here and set children off on the right path for a lifetime of success.”
- England
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