Numeracy and Literacy
Numeracy: Building Confident Mathematicians
At Ōpoutere School, we are committed to building a strong and lasting foundation in mathematics for every student, aligning with the new Aotearoa New Zealand Curriculum (NZC) Mathematics and Statistics learning area. Our approach to numeracy is structured, systematic, and explicit, ensuring a coherent progression of skills and concepts across all year levels.
In the junior school, we implement the Lesley Allan scope and sequence, supported by Numicon as a key resource. Numicon provides a multi-sensory, structured imagery approach, where physical, coloured shapes help students visualise number relationships, place value, and operations. This concrete-pictorial-abstract pedagogy is central, allowing our youngest learners to develop deep conceptual understanding by first manipulating objects (concrete), then seeing pictures (pictorial), before engaging with symbols (abstract). This mastery-focused approach encourages mathematical communication, exploration of relationships, and generalising concepts for problem-solving.
As students move into the senior school, we transition to the Oxford Numeracy programme, which is specifically aligned with the new NZC and its Understand-Know-Do (UKD) progress outcomes. This programme continues the structured learning pathway, providing explicit teaching, rich tasks, and real-world problem-solving to build fluency, reasoning, and a positive relationship with mathematics. The pedagogy across the school is based on a structured maths approach, which champions a clear, consistent, and cumulative sequence of learning, deliberate teacher modelling, and frequent opportunities for both procedural fluency and conceptual understanding. This school-wide consistency ensures that every child is well-equipped to become a capable and confident mathematician.
Structured Literacy
At Ōpoutere School, we believe that structured literacy is the most effective way to teach reading and writing. This is a scientific and evidence-based approach that ensures every student builds a strong and lasting foundation in literacy.
We have implemented this approach across the entire school to ensure continuity as students progress. In the junior school, we use the Better Start Literacy Approach (BSLA), a comprehensive program that focuses on systematic and explicit phonics instruction. This provides our youngest learners with the core skills they need to decode words and begin their reading journey with confidence.
In the senior school, we extend this learning with The Code, a program that delves deeper into word origins, morphology (word structure), and etymology. This not only builds on their foundational knowledge but also helps students develop a more sophisticated vocabulary and strong spelling skills, preparing them for more complex academic work.
All our staff are committed to delivering this high-quality instruction. We dedicate time to professional development to ensure every teacher is proficient in structured literacy practices. We also have a dedicated support teacher who works with small groups or individual students two days a week, providing additional assistance to those who need it. By using a consistent, school-wide approach, we ensure that every child at Ōpoutere School has the tools they need to become a successful and confident reader and writer, in line with the expectations of the New Zealand Curriculum.
