Key principles of teaching for mastery include:

• A rejection of the idea that some people just cannot do maths.
• Whole class teaching, where the focus is on all pupils working together on the same lesson content – leaving no pupil behind.
• Use of early intervention to ensure that pupils who struggle to grasp a concept are ready to move on in subsequent lessons.
• Lesson design ensures that learning is built in small steps, while learning is clearly sequenced and identifies key points and areas which pupils are more likely find difficult.
• Procedural fluency and conceptual understanding are developed in tandem because each supports the development of the other.
• The structure and connections within the mathematics are emphasised, so that pupils develop deep learning that can be sustained. This is supported by the use of well-chosen manipulatives and representations.
• A central element, which underpins Teaching for Mastery, are the Five Big Ideas. The diagram below shows how these ideas are bound together.

More information can be found on the NCETM website.