I agree with Sheila Henderson (18 February) that we should “promote maths as a connected whole”. However, at the heart of this connected whole is an understanding of number. Without this understanding, children and adults will not be able to engage with the rest of mathematics, or with much of the world.

Helping children to build an understanding of number is, along with helping them to learn to read and write, one of the most important challenges for teachers in our primary schools. There is still work to be done in ensuring that they all have a good grasp of how that understanding can be nurtured and grown.

Trevor Leach, maths teacher, Comely Bank, Edinburgh.