Music at Westfield
At Westfield, we follow the National Curriculum and use Sing Up! scheme of work, to ensure skills coverage and progression. We aim to develop a sense of curiosity about music, to explore different genres and experience music in different ways. We aim to encourage our pupils to see music as a form of self-expression.
Our intent is to deliver a Music curriculum:
- So that pupils develop as performers (PERFORMING)
- To ensure pupils listen to and comment on music from different styles and cultures (APPRAISING)
- To encourage children to see the world in a different way, and to express this through music and creativity (COMPOSING)
- For pupils to build and apply their knowledge of the elements of music: beat, pitch, rhythm, tempo, timbre, dynamics, duration, structure and texture.
- That teaches children to play musical instruments.
- That allows pupils to learn to use their voice individually and as part of a group.
How we teach music:
The curriculum is taught through the SingUp! scheme of work and uses the progression document from Nursery to Year 6 for each strand of music teaching to ensure coverage and to allow staff to focus on key skills for their year group.
In the EYFS, the building blocks to Music are taught through ‘Communication and Language’, ‘Physical development’ and ‘Expressive Arts and Design’. There are Sing Up! units to support the teaching of music, as well as the availability of musical expression through provision and Child Initiated opportunities. Children listen carefully to rhymes and songs and join in with actions and movement. They sing in a group, try to move in time with the music and explore and engage in music making and dance, performing together.
In Key stage 1, pupils sing songs, speak chants and rhymes, learning to use their voices expressively. They learn to play tuned and untuned percussion instruments. They use their bodies and instruments to explore the beat/pulse of music. They listen to and discuss a range of high-quality live and recorded music. They experiment with creating, selecting and combining sounds.
In Key stage 2, pupils use their voices and play instruments with increasing accuracy, fluency, control and expression and are taught to play and perform in solo and group contexts. They have opportunities to improvise and compose music. They listen with attention to detail. They use and understand staff and musical notations. They appreciate and understand a wide range of live and recorded music from different genres.
All children at Westfield:
- Participate in a weekly music assembly where key concepts of dynamics, tempo, rhythm and beat are further reinforced and where children learn about the history of music and different genres of music.
- Experience whole class ensemble teaching in Year 5 where children are taught a specific musical instrument for a school year. The pupils are currently learning the ukulele. These lessons incorporate, singing and rhythm games as well as learning to play an instrument.
- In Year 6 children participate in Young Voice where they are invited to sing at the O2 Arena in London.
- Take part in celebrations, at our local church, for Harvest and Christmas where they perform a song.
In addition to music assemblies and class lessons children have an opportunity to:
- Join the school choir (KS2 only),
- Participate in Rock Steady
- Have individual music lessons in piano, recorder or guitar.
- Perform in the annual Summer Serenade.
At designated points in the year, children have the opportunity to participate in whole school workshops, or targeted Key Stage sessions with music experts or ensembles. This allows our children to experience live music and to perform with their peers.
- Overview (542.94KB)
- Progression (148.18KB)
How we assess the impact:
Assessment is used as a powerful tool to aid the teachers in identifying the next steps in the children’s learning. Music is assessed through questioning and observations in the lessons which is then used to inform subsequent lessons. Children’s performances give teachers’ opportunities to record children’s progress over a unit. The music coordinator will also conduct learning walks and pupil voice to ensure the overview of coverage and to ascertain pupils’ views of music.
Children will fulfil the requirements of the National Curriculum, develop musical language, knowledge and skills enabling them to perform, compose and appraise.
The impact of the Music curriculum will be evidenced through continuous and effective monitoring by the subject leader and SLT, through:
- Action plan
- Learning walks
- Pupil voice
- Staff voice
- Class productions
- Lesson studies
- Performance clips
- Staff CPD
If you would like to share some music with your children at home, then BBC Ten Pieces is a good place to start. The page has lots of interesting clips such as ‘Whistle Stop Tour of the Orchestra’ and ‘A-Z of the Composers’.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/teach/ten-pieces