The music curriculum is rich in opportunities exploring, understanding and respecting diversity as well as participating and responding to cultural capital activities. Pupils study music from a range of countries, genres and time periods. Pupils also participate in singing, performing, listening and composing activities relating directly to these cultures, genres and time periods. This gives pupils an appreciation of the range of cultures in modern Britain and the World. These experiences enable pupils to identify and understand their own cultural values. As a school we follow the Kapow scheme of work for our music curriculum.
Music is a unique way of communicating that can inspire and motivate children. It is a vehicle for personal expression and it plays an important part in personal development. The teaching and learning of music enables children to better understand the world they inhabit. Participating in musical experiences can help children to feel part of a community. Music is a wonderfully creative and enjoyable activity. It can also be a highly academic and demanding subject. At Adderley Primary School we provide purposeful opportunities for all children to create, play, perform and enjoy music, to develop the skills, to appreciate a wide variety of musical forms, and to begin to make judgements about the quality of music.
We encourage children to participate in a variety of musical experiences through which we aim to build up the confidence of all children. Our teaching focuses on developing the children’s ability to sing in tune, developing their expression and ability to listen to others. Through singing songs, children learn about the structure and organisation of music. We teach them to listen to and appreciate different forms of music. Children develop descriptive skills in music lessons when learning about how music can represent feelings and emotions. We teach them the disciplined skills of recognising pulse and pitch, how to make music together, to understand musical notation or symbols and to compose pieces using a range of tuned and untuned instruments, body percussion and vocal effects. The children will be given the opportunity to practice, rehearse and perform composition in an ensemble to different audiences, including other children, teachers, parents and governors.
Children will be given the opportunity to listen and critique a variety of world music to ensure familiarity of music from different cultures, commenting on the mood, feelings and subject they can relate to. Children will also explore throughout the year the use of different musical instruments from a variety of countries around the world. Children will also learn about different composers and explore the history of music and how it developed across time. They will be given at least one opportunity to see an orchestra live and visiting musicians will be invited to the school to share their musical talents with the children and teach them relevant skills to play the instruments that they play.
Our intent in the teaching of music is:
- to explore how sounds are made, and can be organised into musical structures;
- to show how music is produced by a variety of instruments;
- to teach how music is composed and written down;
- to examine the relevance of when, where and why a given piece of music was written;
- to develop the interrelated skills of composition, performance and appreciation;
- enjoy and appreciate a wide variety of musical styles;
- make and quantify judgments about the quality of music;
- to develop imagination and creativity;
- to help children of all abilities develop positive attitudes and to experience success and satisfaction in music.
Implementation
In order to meet the requirements of the national curriculum, children will be taught according to the level descriptions and differentiation will be by outcome and age/gender expectations related. The level of content will be delivered to the children through a variety of activities including listening, performing, appraising, composing, and participating in musical games and singing songs.
Music forms an integral part of a child’s life. The teacher works with the children to fully develop their potential, to build on their confidence and self-esteem and to introduce them to a variety of Musical experiences. A child centred, philosophical approach ensures that a child’s centred approach respecting the rights/views and opinions of the children.
At Adderley Primary School, we teach music using the Kapow scheme of work alongside a cross-curricular approach to learning. Music is taught weekly to ensure a deep understanding is embedded of the skills and knowledge. We have a Music Progression of skills and knowledge document across the school to ensure that whilst there are opportunities for children of all abilities to develop their skills and knowledge in Music, the progression means that the children are increasingly challenged as they move through the school. Resources are distributed throughout the school. A central store is kept and maintained in the music cupboard.
The music curriculum provides the children with opportunities to listen to music, respond emotionally, compose and perform to the rest of the class. There are opportunities for the children to move to music to express feelings and also to use their voice to sustain vocal sounds. Cross-curricular links are made to correspond with year group themes to provide continuity and familiarity between subjects.
During their music sessions, the children will partake in singing a variety of different songs in unison and in two parts. They will be taught to sing with clear diction and control of pitch, phrase and musical expression. The children will experience playing tuned and untuned percussion instruments and will be made aware of other tuned instruments in the Orchestra. They will be taught to play simple and more complex rhythms with control and accuracy and will be expected to apply skill and expression. They will also be encouraged to listen to each other and keep to a steady beat.
The implementation is reviewed annually and any additional notes or adaptations are added throughout the year. The school intends to take a flexible approach in the delivery of music, in that the planning is continually developed and improved to ensure a fresh new approach with each new academic year.