Keyham Barton’s Music Curriculum Statement
Intent
At Keyham Barton, we intend to make music an enjoyable learning experience. 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 understand rhythm and follow a beat. Through singing songs, children learn about the structure and organisation of music. We teach them to listen and to appreciate different forms of music. Children develop descriptive language skills in music lessons when learning about how music can represent different feelings, emotions and narratives. We also teach technical vocabulary such as volume, pitch, beat and rhythm and encourage children to discuss music using these terms.
Implement
At Keyham Barton, 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 lessons 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. 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 Charanga scheme of work is used from Year 1 - 6 to ensure a wide exposure to different genres of music, with lots of practical opportunities to explore and develop as musicians and singers. The scheme provides teachers with week-by-week lesson support for each year group in the school. It is ideal for specialist and non-specialist teachers and provides lesson plans, assessment, clear progression, and engaging and exciting whiteboard resources to support every lesson. The Scheme supports all the requirements of the national curriculum.
In line with the curriculum for music and guidance from Ofsted, this Scheme moves away from the previous levels and learning objective/outcome concepts to an integrated, practical, exploratory and child-led approach to musical learning.
Ofsted have stated that “We will not always know the learning outcomes” so segregated learning objectives at the start of each lesson are not appropriate. Instead the interrelated dimensions of music weave through the units to encourage the development of musical skills as the learning progresses through listening and appraising, differing musical activities (including creating and exploring) and performing.
The school also has whole class ensemble teaching in Year 4 where children are taught a specific musical instrument for a school year - currently, the ukulele. These lessons incorporate teaching musical notation, singing, as well as learning to play an instrument. Opportunities are taken to perform in class, in whole assemblies and also to parents and the wider community.
Additional opportunities are offered in music, such as the KS22 choir, which performs regularly in school and at events in the local community. Prayer and Praise assemblies also help to promote singing across the school, with older children teaching and supporting younger children.
Impact
Music assessment is ongoing to inform teachers with their planning, lesson activities and differentiation. Summative assessment is completed at the end of each unit to inform leaders of the improvements or skills that still need to be embedded. Music is monitored throughout all year groups using a variety of strategies such as lesson observations and pupil interviews.