Music Curriculum

Music is a universal language that embodies one of the highest forms of creativity. As pupils progress, they should develop a critical engagement with music, allowing them to compose, and to listen with discrimination to the best in the musical canon. (The National Curriculum)

Intent

Our aim for the teaching of music at St Oswald’s C of E Academy is to inspire creativity and self-expression and to encourage our children on their musical journey as well as giving them opportunities to connect with others. We hope to foster a life-long love of music by exposing them to diverse musical experiences and igniting a passion for music. By listening and responding to different musical styles, finding their voices as singers and performers and as composers, this will enable them to become confident, reflective musicians.

Implementation

At St Oswald’s we agree that music teaching and learning in our school is successful when lessons are practical, building on prior knowledge, and children are happy, inquisitive, and enthusiastic. This is embedded in classroom teaching, using the online music programme ‘Charanga’. The music curriculum ensures children sing (where they also learn about the structure and organisation of music), listen, play, perform and evaluate. This is supported through singing assemblies, concerts, performances, whole class singing tuition provided by our local music hub and the learning of instruments, taught by peripatetic staff. The elements of music are taught in classroom lessons so that children are able to use the language of music to discuss it (such as volume, pitch, beat and rhythm) and they understand how music is made and played, appreciated and analysed. The children learn how music supports other areas of the curriculum such as dance and drama. Children develop descriptive language skills in music lessons when learning about how music can represent different feelings, emotions and narratives. As pupils progress, they develop a critical engagement with music, allowing them to compose and to listen with confidence. In the classroom children learn how to play untuned and tuned percussion instruments. By doing so they understand the different principles of creating notes, as well as how to devise and read their own musical scores and basic music notation. This is introduced in the Early Years with graphic notation moving onto traditional scoring of music as the children move through the school. Composing and performing using body percussion, vocal sounds and technology is also part of the curriculum, which helps develop the understanding of musical elements and the diversity of music.

Impact

Whilst in school, children have the opportunity to travel on their own musical journey which allows them to discover areas of strength, as well as areas they might like to improve upon. Children develop their self-confidence, and realise that they can achieve, whist interacting with their peers. Through their musical activities children gain an awareness of others and develop their ability to self-reflect. Music will also develop an understanding of culture and history in relation to each child as well as enabling our children to gain an understanding of ethnicities from across the world. Children are able to enjoy music in many ways, either as a listener, composer or performer. They can discuss music and comprehend its parts. They can sing, feel a pulse, add rhythms and create melodies in a group as well as appraise music they may hear in different contexts and parts of their lives. They can further develop these skills in the future and continue with a life-long love of music in all it’s different forms.

SEND/Vulnerable pupils

At St Oswald’s C of E Academy we are committed to ensuring that music is fully inclusive for all children in our school. We use first quality teaching to ensure that lessons are accessible for everyone and pupils are provided with the tools they need to access all parts of the music curriculum. Support for identified pupils is provided through modelling, questioning, interventions where appropriate and extra adult support when this has been identified. We ensure that children feel fully inclusive and are confident to access the support they need and that they achieve to the very best of their ability.