Music

Intent

Our intent is to engage and inspire pupils to develop a love of music and their talent as musicians, and so increase their confidence in school and at home. We want all out children to experience a wide and varied curriculum, which leaves them excited seeking opportunities to further their musical journey. Music reflects the culture and society we live in, so we want the teaching and learning of music to enable children to better understand the world they live in. It also plays an important part in helping children feel part of a community. Therefore, we aim to provide 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 aim to support this by:

Encouraging pupils to use their voices expressively and creatively by singing songs and speaking chants and rhymes
playing tuned and un-tuned instruments musically
listening with concentration and understanding to a range of high-quality live and recorded music drawn from different traditions and from great composers
enabling time to experiment with, create, select and combine sounds
developing an understanding of musical composition
organising and manipulating ideas within musical structures and reproducing sounds from aural memory
playing and performing in solo and ensemble contexts, using their voices and playing musical instruments with increasing accuracy, fluency, control and expression
encouraging pupils to improvise and compose music for a range of purposes
listening with attention to detail and recalling sounds with increasing aural memory
showing how to use and understand staff and other musical notation

Implementation

Our pupils will learn that music is a universal language that embodies one of the highest forms of creativity. They will be inspired and engaged by music education. Music lesson will engage and inspire pupils to develop a love of music and develop their talent as musicians, and in turn increase their self-confidence, creativity and sense of achievement.

Our curriculum is interlinked with music teaching in Reception class; music is an integral part of the daily routine of the school day. Nursery rhymes are taught weekly as well as designing noise makers for children to explore the dimensions of how music is created. Music is closely linked with topics linked to the community and wider world. As the Reception class is part of the Early Years Foundation Stage of the National Curriculum, we relate the musical aspects of the children’s work to the objectives set out in the Early Learning Goals (ELGs) which underpin the curriculum planning for children aged three to five. In Reception class, music is delivered through Rhythm Time which links with our school topics and Early Learning Goal objectives.

From Year 1 through to year 6 the teachers use Sing Up to focus on different musical styles and skills areas. This provides us with a classroom-based, participatory and inclusive approach to music. Our musical program takes an integrated approach to musical learning, and together the units chosen for our children represent a complete, and progressive range of skills and objectives that meets the requirements of the National Curriculum for Music.

In addition, Reception, Year 1, Year 2, Year 4, Year 5 and Year 6 also has a specialist music teacher for two half term in each year group.

We aim to deliver a curriculum which enables children to:

Perform, listen to, review and evaluate music across a range of historical periods, genres, styles and traditions, including the works of the great composers and musicians.
Learn to sing and use their voices, to create and compose music on their own and with others
Have the opportunity to learn a musical instrument
Understand how music is created, produced and communicated through the teaching of: pitch, duration, dynamics, tempo, timbre, texture, structure and appropriate musical notations.
Develop their performances through musical opportunities such as: LSMA Christmas Concerts, end of year performances, Christmas carolling in local Care Homes, singing assemblies, choir performances, peripatetic end of year performances, Harvest festivals at the Pudsey Parish Church, Nativity performances, Pudsey Light Switch on 2017, 2018 and 2019.

The school also has whole class ensemble teaching in Years 3 where children are taught a specific musical instrument for a school year. In Year 3, the pupils are currently learning the ukulele. These lessons incorporate teaching musical notation, singing, as well as learning to play an instrument.

In Key Stage 2, following on group music lessons, children also have the opportunity to continue to develop their skills and ability on a musical instrument through peripatetic music lessons with an experienced music tutor. We are proud of our emerging woodwind and brass band musicians. Opportunities are taken to perform in class, in whole assemblies, in our Christmas service at Pudsey Parish Church and also to parents.

Prior to COVID, the music Leader was delivering weekly assemblies which reinforce these music objectives and help children to recognise and recap core music vocabulary. The aim is to provide children with further opportunities to listen and appraise as well as becoming involved in the enjoyment of singing a range of songs that are linked to the moral values of our school.

Impact

Confidence in music will enable children to become competent and independent in key life skills, including logical thinking and evaluation.
Pupils will have strong communication skills, and will listen respectfully and with tolerance to the views of others.
Pupils will take pride in all that they do, always striving to do their best.
Pupils will be able to explore and critique songs and pieces of music, respectfully sharing their own thoughts and opinions whilst understanding that others critiques may differ from their own.
Pupils will demonstrate emotional resilience and the ability to persevere when they encounter challenge.
Pupils will develop an appreciation and enjoyment of music that enriches their learning experience.
Pupils will develop an awareness of the emotional impact that music has on themselves and on an audience.
Pupils will gain confidence and skill in using a variety of different instruments.
Pupils will recognise music as both an outlet for creativity and a means of positive well-being and wellness, in our ever-changing world.

Music assessment is ongoing to inform teachers with their planning, lesson activities and differentiation. Music is monitored by the subject leader throughout the year groups using a variety of strategies such as, lesson observations, staff discussions and pupil interviews.

Music Long Term Plan

Music Long Term Plan 2022

Progression

Music Progression