When it comes to maths learning, it’s not just about how many questions children answer correctly or how fast they move through levels. It’s about the quality of their practice — the rich, thoughtful ‘doses’ of maths thinking they take each day. Think of every bit of maths practice as a dose of learning. The bigger and more meaningful each dose, the stronger the growth in understanding.

Let me share a quick story about Jamie, a Year 4 child I worked with. During a maths session, Jamie didn’t rush to the answers. Instead, he made lots of decisions: Should I break this number apart? Would a drawing help me? Is mental maths quicker here? Each choice was like taking a powerful dose of maths thinking. Jamie’s learning wasn’t measured by speed or immediate right answers, but by how often and deeply he engaged with these decisions.

This is the key—increasing the dosage means giving children more chances to make their own mathematical decisions. When children choose strategies, explore different ways to represent problems, and test patterns themselves, they aren’t just memorising facts—they’re building a web of understanding that sticks (1).

Unfortunately, many tasks are too tightly scaffolded (2), limiting children’s opportunities to take these rich doses. Instead, as teachers, we can design activities with multiple ways in (3), where children decide their own approach. This way, every bit of practice becomes a stronger dose that builds autonomy, resilience, and true mathematical insight.

So, the next time you think about arithmetic practice, remember: it’s not about rushing through questions. It’s about increasing the dosage of thoughtful decision-making—the real medicine for deep and lasting learning.

(1) Buccella, A. (2022, March 28). How to help students build deep understanding of math concepts. Great Minds. https://greatminds.org/math/blog/eureka/how-to-help-students-build-deep-understanding-of-math-concepts

(2) Meyer, D. (n.d.). Math class needs a makeover [Video]

(3) Way, J. (2011, February 1). Problem Solving: Opening up problems. NRICH. https://nrich.maths.org/articles/problem-solving-opening-problems