Training early years practitioners in maths skills could reduce the attainment gap among disadvantaged young children and their peers, evaluation of a teaching programme suggests.
Among nurseries that took part in the Maths Champion programme, where staff are trained to teach maths, children made three months additional progress in their numeracy skills and language development.
Progress was even greater among disadvantaged children eligible for early years pupil premium funding involved in the study.
On average they made up to six months additional progress in maths. But the evaluation of the programme adds that these results involved a relatively small number of disadvantaged children and the impact of additional maths teaching on their development needs further research.
