Dramatic Mathematics

Using the power of storytelling to teach Primary School Maths

"You could see children learning as a result of doing something as well as talking about it...That's what drama and storytelling can do for children... allowing them to make connections at a deep level between mathematical language and their own experience."

Tom Deveson Journalist TES Teacher

The Dramatic Mathematics programme is aimed at pupils from Foundation Stage through to Key Stage 2. MakeBelieve Arts have developed stories that support work in number recognition, subtraction, place value, fractions, standard and non standard measurement, problem solving and many more areas of the primary school numeracy curriculum.

The Dramatic Mathematics Resources
were created in collaboration with
Creating Success EiC Action Zone, Lewisham

Practicalities

Dramatic Mathematics can be delivered in a number of ways:

Schools can choose to have a day of one off sessions from one of our many off the shelf stories

MakeBelieve Arts can work with teachers supporting them in developing their own stories to support their Numeracy lessons, using Kieran Egan's methodology

Our workshop leaders can visit schools over a period of five weeks and run sessions with a Year 1 or Year 2 class to bring to life the Dramatic Mathematic Resource Pack

MakeBelieve Arts can tailor make Dramatic Mathematics programmes to suit the particular needs of your school or of one individual class

A Resource Pack outlining the programme, and a set of five children's story books which can be used in the classroom are available. Click here for more information Resources

Some of the off the shelf programmes currently on offer...

The King and Queen of Number - Foundation Stage

When all the numbers disappear what are the things that the townspeople begin to miss and how do they communicate their quantity needs?

The Princess Bed - Foundation Stage

When the King is looking for a suitor for his daughter he sets all the princes the task of making her a bed, but all they have to measure with are some pairs of old shoes.

The Giant's Birthday - Foundation to Year 4

When the townspeople adopt a giant they have no idea how to take care of him and they only realise they are mistreating him when he retreats to cave and refuses to come out. Realising at last, the whole town joins together with the aim of creating a giant party for Bigfoot and his friends.

Farming for Fractions - Year 4

When their father dies the two siblings squabble over how they divide up the land, but how can you make sure you have an equal share when some parts of the farm are better quality than others...

Each interactive workshop introduces a maths topic and takes children through a world of fantasy and make-believe where drama and storytelling is as intrinsic to the teaching as mathematics.

MakeBelieve Arts also produce a Resource Pack outlining our first Dramatic Mathematics programme, aimed at Year 1 and 2 pupils. The resource also comprises of a set of five children's story books which can be used in the classroom. Click here for more information.

The Ethos

When MakeBelieve Arts discovered Kieran Egan's theory that it is possible to teach the whole curriculum through storytelling it instantly connected with our work. When we read that it is possible to use storytelling to teach even mathematics our curiosity increased. Something about the use of story and mathematics excited and scared us.

The Dramatic Mathematics project builds on the fact that children are born with an ability to make sense of the world through play and storytelling. By introducing a topic to children through narrative it is possible to engage their emotions and help them understand the power of the concepts being explored.

In each session, children have plenty of opportunities to be listeners, thinkers and participants.

Illustration by Lyn Stone

Synopsis of Stories contained in the Dramatic Mathematics Resource Pack

In story one, the king of Sunobia decides it's time to find out how big his army is. As he discovers a new way of counting, using pebbles and place value, the news of this magic spreads throughout the kingdom and our heroine Lily, daughter to a merchant, gets caught up in the fervour. Story two sees her stolen away to count the barrels of an evil ship owner. She soon discovers subtraction and number lines to make her job easier but accused of witchcraft she is sent back home in disgrace. Later, in the third story, Lily's father and mother are taken ill and the town rises in anger against her family realising that their cloth is now less in quantity for the same amount of money. Our heroine solves the problem, discovering that her smaller hand is at fault and introduces standard measurements to the island. Hearing of her strange magic with numbers, story four introduces a jealous sorceress who whisks her away to a tower surrounded by a maze where Lily needs to use her knowledge of directional language to send a message to Prince Zecko to rescue her. Once saved, the king agrees to divide up the kingdom to share with the happy couple, and the class, in this final story, are faced with the challenging task of sharing out the kingdom equally in an introduction to fractions.