Why I helped create structured maths practice books for the new Maths and Statistics Curriculum in NZ
Jackie Andrews discusses the challenges primary schools face with the new Maths and Statistics Curriculum NZ, and why she felt the need to help.
How to Teach Collection
Practice activities to support the NZ Maths Curriculum in primary classrooms
A new curriculum and a practical way forward
The Maths Practice collection has been developed specifically to support New Zealand primary teachers as they implement the new Mathematics and Statistics Learning Area (Te Mātaiaho). Working systematically through the Year 4 teaching sequence, it provides structured practice activities that complement and strengthen classroom teaching programmes.
Written by experienced New Zealand teachers with deep curriculum knowledge, these resources give teachers a practical, curriculum-aligned tool they can use straight away. It reduces planning time and helps students build the mathematical understanding, fluency, and confidence they need to succeed.
A strong maths foundation changes everything
When students have secure mathematical knowledge, they can access learning across all subjects. Foundational skills like place value, number structure, and pattern recognition don’t just support maths. They build the logical thinking, problem-solving, and confidence that underpin success across the curriculum and into adult life.
Maths Practice helps teachers build those foundations with clarity, consistency, and purpose. When foundational maths is taught well and practised regularly, students are far less likely to experience the gaps that widen over time and hold them back later.
Helping teachers deliver with confidence
The new maths curriculum presents real challenges. Teachers need to understand updated achievement objectives, plan coherent programmes across the year, and support student progression, all without increasing their workload. It eases that pressure by providing structured, systematic activities that are already curriculum-linked. Teachers can see exactly how what students are practising connects to what they are expected to learn.
Designed for New Zealand classrooms – aligned to Te Mātaiaho
Each book in the Year 4 series is built around the structure of the new Mathematics and Statistics curriculum, which is organised around five strands: Number, Algebra, Measurement, Geometry and Statistics. Every activity is explicitly curriculum-linked, so teachers can use the books knowing that what students practise aligns with what they are expected to learn in Year 4.
Flexible enough to fit the way you teach
Whether you’re using the books for whole-class consolidation, targeted small-group work, or independent practice, the activities are designed to work with your teaching programme rather than alongside it. Use them to supplement a lesson, support revision, or provide structured follow-up for students who need additional practice. The books adapt to your classroom. Not the other way around.
Clearly aligned practice activities
Browse by curriculum strand and find the right activities for your classroom.
The new maths curriculum asks a lot of primary teachers. Understanding the updated achievement objectives, planning a coherent programme across the year, and supporting student progress all take time and confidence. For teachers who are still getting to grips with the new content, that pressure is real.
When students don’t get the structured practice they need, gaps appear quickly and are hard to close. Confidence drops, and learning becomes harder to build on.
That is exactly what these books are built for. Each title works through the Year 4 teaching sequence in order, with a clear focus on a specific curriculum strand. The activities are ready to use, clearly connected to what you are expected to teach, and built to fit into your programme rather than add to it.
These are not just activity books. They are curriculum-support tools developed in New Zealand, by New Zealand teachers, for New Zealand classrooms.
These books will help teachers with the massive learning curve of the new curriculum and the changes that have been bought in. They will help them increase their knowledge and show how the content is linked to the new achievement objectives.”
Jackie Andrews, AUTHOR
What makes this collection of NZ Maths curriculum practice activities so effective
Curriculum-aligned from the very first page
Every activity connects directly to the new Mathematics and Statistics Learning Area (Te Mātaiaho) and the teaching sequence. Teachers can use the books knowing that every practice task aligns with what students are expected to learn, giving them confidence in their curriculum coverage without additional planning.
Structured, sequential practice that builds over time
The books work through the curriculum progressively, building in complexity as students develop their understanding. This supports genuine fluency and retention over time, rather than isolated, one-off tasks that don't connect to a wider learning journey.
Organised by curriculum strand
Each book is organised around one of the five curriculum strands: Number, Algebra, Measurement, Geometry and Statistics. This strand-by-strand structure gives teachers a clear framework for balanced practice across the full curriculum. It also makes it easy to find the right resource for the right moment in their teaching programme.
Reduces teacher workload
Ready-to-use activities mean teachers spend less time building practice material from scratch and more time focusing on high-quality teaching. The books slot into existing programmes with minimal preparation, saving time without compromising on curriculum alignment or rigour.
Flexible for every classroom context
Activities can be used for whole-class consolidation, targeted small-group instruction, or independent practice. This makes it easy to meet the needs of diverse learners within the same classroom. The books work with your teaching, not against it.
Written by experienced New Zealand teachers
Developed by practising New Zealand teachers with deep expertise in the new curriculum, every activity is grounded in real classroom experience and reflects the realities of New Zealand primary teaching, making the resources immediately applicable, relevant, and trustworthy.
Explore the Math Practice collection of activities for the NZ Maths Curriculum
Number Structure, Operations (Rounding) and Algebra
Targeted practice activities to support teachers in developing students’ understanding of place value, number structure, and rounding within the Year 4 teaching sequence. Curriculum-aligned and classroom-ready.
Operations (Addition and Subtraction)
Structured activities that build student fluency and confidence in addition and subtraction strategies, with a clear focus on the Year 4 achievement objectives. Designed to complement and reinforce classroom teaching.
Operations (Multiplication and Division)
Practice activities focused on building multiplicative thinking and division strategies at Year 4. Supports progression from early multiplication concepts through to more complex problem-solving.
Rational Numbers (Fractions)
Targeted activities to strengthen student understanding of fractions at Year 4, including part-whole relationships, equivalent fractions, and simple operations. Curriculum-linked and flexibly structured.
Measurement
Targeted practice activities covering measurement concepts at Year 4 – including length, area, volume, and time. Curriculum-linked and ready to use alongside your teaching programme.
Geometry and Statistics
Practice activities covering shape, space, and data at Year 4. Students develop knowledge and skills across geometry and statistics through structured, curriculum-aligned activities.
Supporting teachers through curriculum change
Practical tools for confident maths teaching
These books offer more than practice pages. Built for teachers navigating the shift to the new Mathematics and Statistics curriculum, they keep student outcomes front of mind. Each book provides clear, structured activities that slot directly into existing teaching programmes, making the transition to new expectations manageable without adding to your workload.
Whether you are new to the curriculum, refining your approach, or building a stronger whole-school maths programme, it gives you a reliable, structured foundation to work from. Practical, curriculum-aligned, and built for New Zealand classrooms.
Looking for more year levels?
We’re working hard on expanding the Maths Practice collection. If you’d like to hear when new year levels are released, leave your details and tell us which year levels would be most useful for your school.
Read about how Maths Practice will transform your students maths skills
How Structured Maths Practice Builds Confidence and Fluency in Year 4 Maths NZ Students
You know the six strands and the phases of learning – but how do you turn that into a Year 4 maths programme that sticks? This post unpacks how structured, curriculum-aligned practice bridges gaps in fluency, basic facts and confidence.
Why I helped create structured maths practice books for the new Maths and Statistics Curriculum in NZ
Jackie Andrews discusses the challenges primary schools face with the new Maths and Statistics Curriculum NZ, and why she felt the need to help.
How Structured Maths Practice Builds Confidence and Fluency in Year 4 Maths NZ Students
You know the six strands and the phases of learning – but how do you turn that into a Year 4 maths programme that sticks? This post unpacks how structured, curriculum-aligned practice bridges gaps in fluency, basic facts and confidence.