Music

‘The language of music is common to all generations and nations; it is understood by everybody, since it is understood with the heart.’
Gioacchino Rossini 

 

Wisdom

Children show wisdom in the challenge of tackling new musical experiences. They understand that by engaging fully in all lessons they will have the opportunity to become better musicians. They are beginning to critique and asses their own and others work fairly understanding that these opportunities form part of the learning journey.

Hope

Children understand that Music is a safe place to be creative and learn. They show enthusiasm for new tasks, skills and experiences and this in turn creates a vibrant positive work ethic.

Respect

Children recognise and respect the fact that music can mean different things to different people. They know how to support each other when exploring music that may fall outside their comfort zone. Children learn how to treat musical instruments with care and consideration for all users.

Community

Children are aware of how we can support the community and also how they support us. Musically there are a range of services that take place in the church and elsewhere in the community. There is a great sense of togetherness with all our music making in the community.

At St Marys Chiddingfold we believe that Music making is fun and is for everyone. We are a school that loves music and we use the power of music to develop pupils’ self-esteem, team working, creativity and overall academic success. We want our children to engage in a fun and inspiring curriculum which is relevant for today’s world, whilst also giving them the opportunity to appraise and be influenced by music of previous generations.

In EYFS the key strands of Music Development Matters in the Early Years, Hearing and Listening, Vocalising and Singing, Moving and Dancing, Exploring and Playing are interwoven into the daily learning opportunities for each pupil. We encourage children to understand how modify to the sounds they create by learning how to change the pitch, dynamics and rhythm to create different effects. We encourage children to understand that we can make music in many different ways using non-standard instruments. By the end of EYFS we encourage children to be confident in demonstrating their musical skills through singing and dancing and playing a range of instruments.

In KS1/2 we follow the English National Curriculum for music that is further supported by the Model Music Curriculum 2021 (MMC). We follow the guiding principles of the interrelated dimensions of music, and use our skills progression map to ensure that each year builds upon previous learning.  Children’s increasing awareness of pulse, pitch, rhythm, tempo, dynamics, timbre and texture helps inform their increasingly complex improvisations and compositions. Our teaching is divided into the following key areas.       

  •  Singing

WE ARE A SINGING SCHOOL. We recognise the health and wellbeing that singing brings and it forms the basis of our music teaching.

  • Listening/Appraising

Children are encouraged to describe their thoughts and feelings about the music they hear. Use musical vocabulary to describe music that and make and be able to give suggestion for improvements.

  • Composing/Improvisation

Children learn how to create musical patterns and learn how to shape and change music using non-standard and standard notation. They will become confident in improvising their own music in a given style

  • Playing Instruments/Performing

As well as singing, children have access to a range of instruments. They will learn to play accurately with control, and rehearse and perform to an audience.

  •  Aural/Theoretical knowledge

Children will be able to understand the rudiments of staff notation and use this in their compositions. The development of aural awareness will see them develop their skills in internalising and recalling sounds and rhythms accurately.

We have a specialist music teacher who teaches one lesson per week for all classes on a rolling yearly basis. Our curriculum is supported by various schemes of work including Charanga, Music Express, BBC ten pieces, and bespoke schemes depending on the ability and challenge that each year group needs year on year. Whole class instrumental lessons include recorders and Ukulele. Glockenspiels are used extensively within each year group to support composition and improvisation. Visiting instrumental teaching is provided on a 1v1basis for piano.  The Rocksteady visiting company provide an opportunity for children to learn to play contemporary music on Keyboards, drums, guitars and vocals. Children are involved in a variety of musical activities on regular basis including daily collective worship, singing assemblies and termly class assemblies, end of year performances and a school choir. We positively encourage children to engage in live musical performances, this includes listening to visiting musicians play live in school and participation in local and national music events, including Surrey Primary Music Festival and Young Voices at the 02.

As the children develop their musical skills across the age groups, they are better able to listen, appraise, compose and perform their musical ideas. This enables them to describe music in more detail using appropriate musical language which in turn influences and informs their own compositions. These become more detailed and complex as they think about instrument choices, structure and tempo as they develop their own musical style. All children should make outstanding progress given their starting point and progression of skills.  We want our curriculum to foster a real love of music which children take with them as a lifelong skill with options for further study.