Music
Subject Lead: Mr D.Lockwood (B.Ed Hons)
Intent
Here at Haslam Park Primary School, our intention is first and foremost, to make our children feel they are successful musicians and to develop a life long love of music . Our curriculum will create independent, creative, curious, resilient and reflective learners.
All pupils (particularly disadvantaged pupils and pupils with SEND) are entitled to experience the vast array of positive benefits music can offer them to develop their confidence, listening, social and team skills. They are entitled to experience professional performers and musicians, make their own music with others, opportunities to learn a musical instrument, learn to sing and a chance to progress to the next level of excellence if they so wish.
Music is a wonderful medium for facilitating communication between people of different cultures, ages and social backgrounds. Our music curriculum aims to develop all pupil’s musical skills, concepts, levels of understanding, knowledge, and talents through a rich and diverse range of musical opportunities. We intend for children to gain a firm understanding of what music is through listening, singing, playing, evaluating, analysing, and composing across a wide variety of historical periods, styles, traditions, and musical genres. We are committed to developing a curiosity for the subject, as well as an understanding and acceptance of the validity and importance of all types of music, and an unbiased respect for the role that music may wish to be expressed in any person’s life. We are committed to ensuring children understand the value and importance of music in the wider community and are able to use their musical skills, knowledge, and experiences to involve themselves in music, in a variety of different contexts.
Implementation
Haslam Park Primary School’s approach to music, takes a holistic approach in which the different stands are woven together to create an engaging and enriched learning experience.
The main 5 areas of music are:
Performing
Listening
Composing
The history of music
And the inter-related dimensions of music.
Each unit is designed to combine these strands with a cross-curricular topic designed to capture pupils’ imagination and encourage them to explore music enthusiastically. Over the course of their school career, the children will be taught how to sing fluently and expressively, and play tuned and untuned instruments accurately and with control.
They will learn to recognize and name the different, interrelated dimensions of music of pitch, duration, tempo, timbre, structure, texture and dynamics. They will learn to use these in their own improvisations and compositions.
The school will use the Kapow Scheme of work, which uses the spiral model of a curriculum, where knowledge and skills are built up each year. Children progress in terms of tackling more complex tasks and doing more simpler tasks better as well as developing an understanding and knowledge of music, staff and other musical notations as well as the inter related dimensions of music and more.
In each lesson, pupils will actively participate in musical activities drawn from a range of styles and traditions, developing their musical knowledge and skills and their understanding of how music works. In light of the current situation and the recovery of a global COVID pandemic, lessons will incorporate some aspects of previous year groups or terms where children have missed key aspects of knowledge or understanding. Lessons will use a range of teaching strategies including, independent activities, group and paired activities, as well as teacher led performances. Lessons are ‘hands – on’ and incorporate movement, dance as well as making cross-curricular links to other subjects.
Differentiated guidance is available for every lesson to ensure that lessons can be accessed by all pupils and opportunities to stretch pupils' learning are available when required. Knowledge organisers for each unit support pupils in building a foundation of factual knowledge by encouraging recall of key facts and vocabulary.
Strong subject knowledge is vital for staff to be able to deliver a highly effective and robust music curriculum . Each unit of lessons with Kapow includes multiple teacher videos to develop subject knowledge and support ongoing CPD, aiding teachers in their own acquisition of musical knowledge and skills.
Haslam Park Primary School has chosen to use Kapow for its' music curriculum as many teachers do not feel confident delivering the music curriculum and every effort has been made to ensure that they feel supported to deliver lessons to a high standard that ensure pupil progression. In some cases, Teaching Assistants will be delivering Music, while covering staff Planning Preparation and Assessment sessions. The same rationale has been applied in supporting them in delivering high quality provision for all pupils.
In Year 3, the school has made links with Bolton Music Service, whereby children are taught by a music specialist, once a week. They will also have the opportunity to learn an instrument.
Music is timetabled once a week and taught discreetly, according to current government guidance. This allows children to review and revisit knowledge and skills each week, as well as learning new ones. The school is always committed to raising the profile of music within school. This is completed by the school providing opportunities for the children to listen to a wide range of live music. Activities are shared with parents through the school website, the school Twitter account and Class Dojo. End end of year assessment is shared with parents in the annual end of year school report.
Under current government guidance, school has put a temporary halt to shows and productions, although, when these are lifted, children will be encouraged to learn songs and perform concerts for all parents and carers.
Impact
The impact of Haslam Park Primary School’s curriculum can be monitored through both summative and formative assessments. Each session includes guidance for teachers to assess children’s learning against the learning objectives. At the end of each unit there is a performance element where teachers can make a summative assessment of pupil’s learning.
After the implementation of Haslam Park Primary School’s music curriculum, pupils should leave school equipped with a range of skill and knowledge to enable them to succeed in their secondary school education and be able to enjoy and appreciate music throughout their lives.
The expected impact of following the Kapow scheme will be:
That children will be confident performers, composers and listeners and will be able to express themselves musically at and beyond school.
That children will be able to show an appreciation and respect a wide range of musical styles from around the world and will understand how music is influenced by the wider cultural, social and historical contexts in which it is developed.
That children will understand the ways in which music can be written down to support performing and composing activities.
That children will demonstrate and articulate and enthusiasm for music and be able to identify their own personal musical preferences.