Music

"Where words fail, music speaks." - Hans Christian Andersen

 

Our Intent

 

We believe all pupils can be musicians. Our curriculum units of work are carefully sequenced to be cohesive through the school. This enables all pupils to learn an instrument, be taught to sing, and acquire the knowledge and understanding to compose, perform and appreciate various genres of music.

 

For pupils with a particular interest, enthusiasm or ability, we also provide music tuition to develop their skills further and provide the opportunity to progress through nationally graded assessments.

 

Equally, we believe the opportunity to perform is essential in developing confidence and proficiency. Therefore several performances are strategically scheduled throughout the year, where pupils can play and sing before an audience.

Planning

Essential Knowledge: 

Cohesion Strategy: 

 

Coherence in Music is strengthened through our five essentials: Acquisition & Retention of Knowledge (developing fluency in rhythm, pitch and musical vocabulary to secure recall and progression), Enriching Experiences (live performances, instrumental tuition, singing opportunities and exposure to diverse musical traditions), Independence (composing, practising and performing with growing confidence), Oracy (evaluating music through discussion and explaining musical choices using subject-specific language) and Understanding (applying skills creatively across composition, performance and listening). Our curriculum ensures all pupils develop both musical competence and confidence, fostering creativity and an appreciation of music that lasts beyond the classroom.

Implementation

Units of work are based around the ukulele. Engaging and fun lessons are delivered by enthusiastic specialists who also provide our classroom teachers essential CPD. In each unit, pupils build on knowledge weekly and then yearly, enhancing their skills. Lessons are characterised by pupils listening, discussing, critiquing, playing, performing, singing and composing. Where possible cross -curricular links enrich their learning both in music and other subjects.

 

All pupils receive ukulele tuition. This facilitates learning and progress over an extended period of time and embeds a skill that we hope will enrich their lives and develops an understanding of achieving long-term goals and perseverance. Many pupils even invest in their own ukuleles such as their enthusiasm for learning.

 

Enthusiastic pupils are also able to access extra provision including our school choir, band or additional instrument tuition for free. We strongly believe all pupils should be able to access these regardless of background or circumstances.

 

Enriching experiences are planned for each year group and for those with a particular talent or interest. Termly performances by soloists, ensembles, choir and the school band culminate in a whole-school performance at a professional theatre, giving pupils the opportunity to showcase their talents and develop self-belief and character.

Impact

We use a number of ways to measure and assess the impact of our intent and implementation. This helps us refine and adapt our planning further which, in turn, improves the quality of teaching and learning. The impact of teaching and learning in Music is measured and assessed in various ways:

•  Music teachers will use on-going formative assessment to assess musical understanding, underpinned by high levels of aural perception and memory, knowledge of music and both performance and composition skills. Formative assessment follows school policy and is recorded in an accessible way to class teachers. 
• Termly summative assessment is carried out by our Music teacher in collaboration with our Music teacher to ensure consistency and high-expectations. This discussion allows the subject lead to capture the overall progress of Music in the school and  identify talented musicians to provide them with further opportunities. 
• Termly pupil interviews by the Music subject lead demonstrate children’s understanding and awareness of different musical traditions and genres as well as their enjoyment of Music.
• Annual lesson observations by the Music coordinator determine the level of technical expertise demonstrated and ensure lessons remain at a high level that is consistent with current school initiatives.
• Termly analysis of recorded evidence from lessons and regular dialogue between Music teachers and the Subject Lead allow for reliable judgements to be made on pupil progress. 
• Termly impact reviews are carried out by the Music coordinator in order to ascertain the quality of music teaching, pupil progress and ascertain pupil voice. These reviews are used to adapt our Music curriculum as necessary. 

Impact Presentation: 

This presentation shows the standards and progress of pupils from Y3 to Y6 via our identified "Golden Threads" of Performance, Ukulele, Composition & Listening in Music.

Music Data

 

At entry, all pupils complete a low-stakes baseline in each subject, assessing baseline knowledge and understanding. Throughout the year, pupils revisit and revise key content using the same format. A final end-of-year/topic assessment evaluates retention.  Results inform teacher judgements and subject leader evaluations of curriculum impact. Scores are used to monitor the effectiveness of the curriculum, identify gaps in key components and support accurate teacher assessment of attainment and progress.