Music

Intent

At Harpole Primary School, 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 aim to provide children with the opportunity to progress to the next level of their creative excellence.

We aim to:

  • create a musical atmosphere, through the use of music in class and during collective worship to ensure that all children get several opportunities to learn a musical instrument and give performances to others.
  • provide a curriculum where children cover different elements of music, learn important vocabulary and develop a good understanding and appreciation of how music has changed through history and across a range of different cultures.
  • promote opportunities for children to be motivated by musicians, both recorded and live compositions, in order to inspire children to become future musicians. To ensure children have an awareness of good musical experiences and improve their knowledge, understanding and creativity.
  • provide and promote individual music lessons to develop children’s musical talents.

At Harpole Primary School, our intention for special educational and/or disabilities (SEND) is to ensure that all our children receive a high quality and ambitious education regardless of need, disability or disadvantage. We believe that it is vital our pupils are equipped with the tools needed to become independent, inquisitive learners both in and out the classroom in order to be prepared for life. Lessons are adapted to meet the needs of all levels of musical ability with opportunities available for pupils who are learning an instrument to demonstrate their talent.

Our topic-based curriculum allows pupils to build a body of knowledge and skills which has links and connections to lots of other types of learning about the world around them. Through promoting enquiring minds and a thirst for knowledge in a structured cross curriculum style there will inevitably be things that the children wish to learn about that are not pre-planned and scripted. Our curriculum is specifically designed to enable the class teachers to take up pupil-initiated learning and to embrace opportunities for child-initiated lines of investigation and enquiry that can never be planned for.

Our topic-based curriculum is designed to enable children to initiate and drive their own learning. The potential for overlap and revisiting topics should never be seen as a hinderance in responding to the direct opportunities presented by our pupils. By allowing teachers to have the freedom to embrace the pupil voice in their classrooms, learning is a fluid and dynamic process that blends with direct teaching of new content skills and knowledge and actively promotes curiosity and exploration of ideas and facts.

The Harpole Music Curriculum ensures that our Music Golden Threads of Listening, Singing, Composing and Performing are interlinked and used throughout all units in all year groups. This is done not only through our music scheme, but also through our performances at Harvest and Christmas time, singing assemblies, Rocksteady and our Musician of the Month.

Early Years Foundation Stage

The Harpole Music Curriculum builds on the early learning goals taken from the EYFS statutory framework. Further details can be found below in the outline of the curriculum.

Implementation

The music curriculum ensures children sing, listen, play, perform and evaluate. This is embedded in the classroom activities as well as the weekly singing assemblies, various concerts and performances and the learning of instruments.

The elements of music are taught in 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. Children are encouraged to use specialist music vocabulary in order to explain views and opinions during the evaluation stage of different genres of music.

Each year group has at least one unit of music that is dedicated to learning an instrument. In the classroom, children learn how to play the recorder, glockenspiel and a variety of percussion instruments. Playing various instruments enables children to use a range of methods to create notes, as well as how to read basic music notation. 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.

Impact

Music enables children to 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. Children have the opportunity to discuss and share their own thoughts, opinions and ideas, acknowledging and respecting that these may vary and that this is positive. They can dissect music and comprehend its parts. They can sing as well as identify and feel a pulse.

At Harpole Primary School, children are provided with opportunities beyond the National Curriculum to further and support their understanding. These include having visitors from NMPAT, visiting productions and school performances at Harvest and Christmas, Rocksteady, singing assemblies, as well as the opportunity to take music lessons on an instrument of their choice. External interests and talents are also encouraged and showcased in class and through collective worship, ensuring that everyone is challenged regardless of previous musical experience. Children have an understanding of how to further develop skills less known to them, should they ever develop an interest in their lives.