Intent
We aim to capture our children’s enthusiasm through carefully planned lessons to cover all aspects of the National Curriculum and linked to the learning in other areas of our school’s curriculum. This forms the music Curriculum Map, which ensures a structured progression to build upon children’s prior learning and develop skills and knowledge in music. We provide experiences for children to enjoy listening and responding to a wide range of music, to compose and record compositions in a range of forms and to perform and evaluate their own work and the work of others.
We believe that all children should have access to quality music teaching in every year group. The subject lead has worked with staff across the school to carefully plan a curriculum to encompass the skills and knowledge required for each year group, making links with other learning and providing a breadth of musical genres across the school.
Implementation
Our music curriculum has been designed to follow the national curriculum for music in KS1, KS2 and expressive art and design in The Early Years Foundations Stage. Each unit of music develops knowledge and skills in performance, composing, aural awareness and evaluating. These elements are woven through the curriculum and key skills and knowledge are revisited year on year to build upon prior learning. Children get to understand the different way of recording their compositions, as well as how to read basic music notation. Composing or performing using body percussion, vocal sounds and instruments are all part of the curriculum.
In Year 4 and Year 5 specialist music teachers provide the opportunity for all pupils to learn an instrument and this is continued by school staff in Year 6. Teachers use ‘Sing Up’ and other resources to support in the delivery a curriculum which links to and reinforces learning in other subject areas where possible. For example, in Year 3, pupils learn about Ancient Egypt in history, they sing songs which reinforce historical knowledge about the discovery of Tutankhamen’s tomb and Egyptian Gods, and they listen to and compose in the style of ‘The Triumphal March’ from Aida. The opportunity for children to be creative and express themselves is then embedded in weekly singing assemblies, concerts, the learning of instruments and extra-curricular choir.
Impact
At Moorhill children have access to a clearly sequenced music curriculum, which allows them to be creative and express themselves, this develops our values of self-belief, teamwork and ambition. Music also develops the children’s understanding of culture, history and mutual respect.
We measure the impact of our curriculum through the following methods:
- Pupil discussions and interviews about their learning
- An assessment of standards achieved, judged against the skills and knowledge outlined in our Curriculum map (three times per year)
- Evidence of pupils work, gathered at the end of units
By the time children leave Moorhill they will play and perform in solo and ensemble contexts, using their voices and play musical instruments with increasing accuracy, fluency, control and expression. Children will improvise and compose music for a range of purposes and listen with attention to detail. They will appreciate and understand a wide range of high-quality music drawn from different traditions and composers.
Music Gallery
