St Matthew's Primary School
St Matthew’s Primary School is in a suburban part of Kilmarnock and has around 210 pupils.
Headteacher Maureen Davidson discusses the whole-school programme
Maureen Davidson’s vision of problem solving is to give pupils another skill for life. She believes in a ‘can do’ approach - instilling in pupils a mindset that they can achieve. The fact that pupils stand up and speak on stage in school assemblies and represent the school at East Ayrshire and national conferences is evidence of the success of this vision.
Problem solving at St Matthew’s Primary School begins in the early stages with practical activities using, for example, Compare Bears. As they move up the school, pupils are taught different strategies so that they have a range to choose from by the time they reach the top of the school. The main resources used are On the Track and ‘invaluable’ materials from Lesley Martin, East Ayrshire’s coordinator.
Maureen monitors problem solving teaching closely. All teachers fill in a yearly curriculum overview, plus a termly plan that they submit to Maureen for her comments. She also sees the daily planners in which teachers make evaluation and assessment notes.
| Maureen Davidson discusses the whole-school programme | |
|---|---|
| Description | Maureen Davidson talks about the school's vision of problem solving, the resources used and the observable results. |
| Duration | 2 minutes 17 seconds |
| Windows version |  Windows Media video: Maureen Davidson discusses the whole-school programme |
| Mac version |  QuickTime movie: Maureen Davidson discusses the whole-school programme |
| Transcript | Maureen Davidson discusses the whole-school programme |
Stages at St Matthew's Primary School
- P1, St Matthew’s Primary School
Structured problem solving for P1 pupils.
- P4, St Matthew’s Primary School
P4 pupils using super solutions boards.
- P6, St Matthew’s Primary School
P6 pupils discuss problem solving.