1. Use as a starter to get students in the mood for learning? Try to get as close as you can to the target number – 250 – using these six numbers: 100 50 75 3 10 7 You can't use the same number more than once Only plus, minus, times and divide are allowed

2. Have this on the screen as students enter the room – to begin working on straight away? How would you balance these 6 weights? 5kg, 11kg, 29kg, 19kg, 7kg and 23kg

3. Have a few copies on the table for students to start working on as soon as they enter the room? How many triangles in this shape? Challenge – how many hexagons?

4. The security door at a football ground has a door code of 1966. The door can, in fact be opened by any combination of these numbers (e.g. 6196). How many different combinations are there to open the door? Brain Teaser – to start the session?

5. Could you adapt some of these Motor Vehicle examples to your subject? Prices of equipment needed – engine oil/spark plugs/filters/brake spares Working out a volume – oil that can be held in different types of containers Identifying equipment using the numerical codes – tyre types Calculations – working out the circumference of a tyre in order to find out how far the car can travel a certain speeds Reading equipment – psi on pressure gauges

7. Ideas to use/adapt Time sheets - Calculate how much certain people earned in a week Creating pie charts and graphs – to show staff pay/illnesses/cost of living/shopping bills/Facebook users/excel graphs can be created Calculating percentages – increase/decrease in internet users/news viewers/ customer invoices/VAT

8. Develop Students’ use of Time You would be amazed by how many students cannot tell the time using an analogue watch, let alone estimate timings for the purpose of efficiency at work. You may need to ensure they can. The use of time is vital in all areas of life and work – hair and beauty appointments/timing treatments – hospitality – cooking times/restaurant bookings – motor vehicle – engine timings/bookings for service/MOT – sport – timing games/activities – business – scheduling meetings – travel and tourism – time zones Can you use/adapt any of these ideas? What other applications can you think of for your subject?

9. Do you know your workplace? You (vocational staff) have the knowledge here as you understand the maths skills needed in the workplace. Integrating maths is about making connections and creating links with what is perceived as separate concepts, skills and knowledge. It helps students to make a connection with maths and the real world, not just in a classroom. Have you listed the vocational maths skills needed by your students and do you integrate these into tasks they do in your sessions?

10. How could your students develop these skills? Interpreting data – service history, graphs/charts in a report, test results, weather charts Putting schedules into a timetable – meetings, travel itinerary, work rota, appointments Calculating Ratios – food recipes, formulae, scheduling Conversions – between mm, m, inches, feet, miles, kilometres, etc. Calculating capacities – fuel tanks, swimming pools, containers Working with fractions and decimals – netball court, estimating costs