“Maths…well, it’s just life isn’t it?” – Nargis Aziz Maths teacher Connect2Education
In this blog we catch up with Nargis Aziz, Maths teacher & Safer Recruitment Manager at Connect2Education in Stokesley.
“I often meet children and young people who tell me they are worried about Maths and may feel anxious about re engaging with their learning after a period of absence from the classroom.” Nargis has over 10 years’ of teaching with the last six years experience in working with children and young people who have additional needs & often low confidence around maths. At Connect2Education, Nargis creates a different program suitable for each child she works with either in centre, in the family home or in school.
“ Improving confidence is key; I have children myself and I know that just getting them involved with new or creative thinking can be enough to create a bridge to new learning opportunities.”
Nargis often talks about building analytical thinking skills and every day problem-solving efficiency.
“Every day can bring new challenges, so it is logical to teach everyday concepts such as measuring ingredients or working how to increase quantities. Applying maths to everyday tasks help children and young people feel more confident in their mathematical skills – what better place to start than the kitchen?’
Cooking is a perfect amalgamation of art, science, and mathematics. Students at Connect2Education can learn about a variety of mathematical topics in our kitchen, from ordering recipes to pantry organization by keeping products in containers of varying sizes and measuring quantities for different meals.
“Children understand the value of maths when they see how it is used in everyday situations to perform the most basic calculations.” Nargis Aziz
Here are some Top Tips from Nargis using maths in the kitchen:
- You can teach how to read and understand a scale to measure and weigh out ingredients.
- You can use ratios to halve/ double/triple your recipe depending on how much you need.
- We can show how to set an alarm or use the clock to monitor the cooking/baking times.
- We can teach the concept of money and budgeting in day-to-day life e.g. when we go shopping for ingredients.
- Also using percentages to work out prices of items when they are in a sale or on offer. Is it an actual saving or just an illusion?
- Teaching how to convert between the different units e.g., grams and kilograms, millilitres & litres.
At Connect2Education we create timetables to suit our students many of whom are neurodivergent and prefer an alternative way of working with the curriculum. Some of our Year 11 students are more suited to Entry Level Maths which helps them gain certification as a stepping stone to college.
At GCSE we mix the delivery to include practical maths and different multi-sensory strategies to help our students embed the knowledge and the strategies they need to achieve their expected levels. Our success is evidence based and we work integrally with our schools and local authorities to help students with their post 16 pathways.
For more information or to arrange a visit to our centre please call Julie on 01642 961230
