Alf discusses how connecting to children’s ‘powers’ is not only possible but necessary for quality maths education; simply put, if a pupil doesn’t understand step 7, 8 and 9 should not mean that they shouldn’t not be allowed to explore step 10. “We learnt to walk by running.” Learning doesn’t have to be vertical building block in order for it to be successful, there is no set of rules that can be applied to learning. Alf is a Professor of Mathematics Education at the University of Bristol. He joined the University in 2010, having spent thirteen years teaching in schools in England. In that time he engaged in practitioner-research, focusing on how classroom cultures develop and the role of listening and hearing in the teaching of mathematics. His research since joining the University has centred around teacher learning and his main teaching responsibilities are on a teacher education course. Alf was educational consultant on the development of government-endorsed professional development materials for primary school teachers of mathematics in England. His current interests include how to support curriculum innovation so that learning in schools has relevance to socio-ecological concerns. He has recently co-authored a book with Professor Nathalie Sinclair “I can’t do maths: why kids say it and what you can do about it”, published by Bloomsbury. This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at www.ted.com/tedx