Subject Leaders: Mr P Floyd and Mrs A Knott

“Music is the universal language of mankind”

– Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

Our definition for Foundation and KS1 – Music is a collection of sounds that have been arranged in a pleasing or meaningful way.

Our definition for KS2 – Music is sound that has been organized by using rhythm, melody or harmony.

What is Music?  

Music is a universal language that embodies one of the highest forms of creativity. A high-quality music education should engage and inspire pupils to develop a love of music and their talent as musicians, and so increase their self-confidence, creativity and sense of achievement. As pupils progress, they should develop a critical engagement with music, allowing them to compose, to listen and most importantly find the music they enjoy.

Music helps to develop creativity, imagination, good listening skills, constructive criticism and the ability to express personal thoughts and feelings. Music develops children’s ability to take part in practical activities, both individually and in groups, that encourages and cultivates an enjoyment of different genres of music. The Music curriculum provides breadth and balance, is relevant and engaging and is differentiated to match needs and abilities. 

Intent

The National Curriculum for music aims to ensure that all children:

• perform, listen to, review and evaluate music
• be taught to sing, create and compose music
• understand and explore how music is created, produced and communicated

At North Somercotes CE Primary School, we ensure children 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

To ensure the best precision for our children based on our context we sought the specialist advice of Lincolnshire Music Service. As a result we trach all our music through the Music Express Scheme.

Music Express provides access to a comprehensive, engaging and ambitious digital whole-school scheme for teaching curriculum music. It has everything needed to teach a coherently planned music curriculum from Reception to Key Stage 2, from fully resourced lessons and planning documents to warm-ups, skill builders and songs. It also supports schools in meeting the aims of the 2019 Ofsted Framework with skills progression and curriculum mapping documentation.

The music curriculum ensures children sing, listen, play, perform and evaluate. The elements of music are taught in the classroom lessons so that children are able to use some of the language of music to dissect it, and understand how it is made, played, appreciated and analysed. In the classroom children learn key aspects of music through cross-curricular links. They also learn how to compose, focusing on different dimensions of music, which in turn feeds their understanding when listening, playing, or analysing music. Composing or performing using body percussion and vocal sounds is also part of the curriculum, which develops the understanding of musical elements without the added complexity of an instrument.

This is embedded in the classroom through the structured music programme Music Express (1 hour per week) as well as the weekly singing assemblies (30 minutes per week). As part of our enhanced music provision we purchase a ‘Silver Membership’ from Lincolnshire Music Service – this enables children in Year 1 to participate in an additional 6 week Infant Music Programme and children in Year 4 to engage in a 12 week whole class provision programme learning a specific instrument.

Inclusion

Further information can be found in our statement of equality information and objectives, and in our SEND policy and information report:

• The school’s music curriculum, lessons and materials will support equality of opportunity and an inclusive attitude to all learners. We will ensure that children are provided with a broad and balanced curriculum.
• All pupils will have equal opportunity to reach their full potential across the music curriculum regardless of their race, gender, cultural background or ability
• We will ensure our Bottom 20% readers are able to fully access all aspects of the music curriculum through adapting of resources, additional adult support and other means of quality first teaching support.

Impact

“I don’t sing because I’m happy; I’m happy because I sing.” – William James

Whilst in our school, children have access to a varied programme, which allows them to discover areas of strength, as well as areas they might like to improve upon. Every child will have an opportunity ‘to let the light shine.’ The integral nature of music and the learner creates an enormously rich palette from which a child may access fundamental abilities such as: achievement, self-confidence, interaction with and awareness of others, and self-reflection. Music will also develop an understanding of culture and history, both in relation to children individually, as well as ethnicities from across the world. Children are able to enjoy music in as many ways as they choose – either as listener, creator or performer. They can dissect music and comprehend its parts. They can sing and feel a pulse. They have an understanding of how to further develop skills less known to them, should they ever develop an interest in their lives.