Music
Together, as one, we support each other to flourish and succeed
Intent
‘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.’ Department of Education, National Curriculum 2014.
At South Crosland C.E. (A) Junior School, it is our aim to provide a Music Curriculum that will enable each child to develop a proficient 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 aspire to develop a curiosity for the subject, as well as an understanding and acceptance of the validity and importance of all types of music from across the globe by exposing our children to experiences outside of their own circumstances.
Furthermore, we are committed to ensuring that children understand the value and importance of music within the wider community, and are able to use their musical skills, knowledge, and experiences to involve themselves in music, across a variety of different contexts.
Implementation
Music is taught as a discrete subject to each individual year group. Our whole-school Music Curriculum ensures that all children have the opportunity to sing, listen, play, perform and evaluate music, and ultimately flourish in this subject area. Music is embedded throughout school, not only through classroom-based learning, but also in the weekly singing worships, various concerts and performances, and in the learning of musical instruments.
Our children will learn that music is a universal language that embodies one of the highest forms of creativity. They will be inspired and engaged by the Music Education we provide and the practicality and creativity of each lesson. In addition, the lessons aim to engage and inspire each child to develop a love of music and develop their talent as musicians, and in turn increase their self-confidence, creativity and sense of achievement. As they progress through our Music Curriculum, the children should develop a critical engagement with music, allowing them to compose, and to listen to a range of good quality live and recorded music.
Impact
All children at South Crosland C.E. (A) Junior School receive a broad and balanced Music Curriculum regardless of year group or ability. Every child can access Music within our school. All topics are planned with a clear progression of skills and knowledge that we have devised as part of our curriculum offer, to ensure that all children access Music at an age-appropriate level and are able to progress and develop their skills further.
Through the Music Curriculum, children learn to work both independently and together, ensuring that their skills of resilience and teamwork are developed. Through this approach, they are enthused and engaged in the wide variety of Music activities. In addition to our Music Curriculum, opportunities to perform outside of school, within and beyond our local community, ensure that our children understand the significance of Music and its place within the wider world. These experiences are designed to excite and inspire our children’s thirst for knowledge and their participation in this subject.
Assessment and Reporting
In Music, each activity is formatively assessed by the teacher as part of the weekly planning and delivery of the curriculum. Each lesson is planned to ensure access for all children and to include a variety of learning styles with differentiated outcomes. Formative assessment is also carried out through: discussions with pupils and their responses; explanations and justification of thoughts linked to different artists and musical genres; and individual and group performances.
Summative assessment for Music occurs at the end of each unit of work. Achievement and attitude to learning are reported to Parents and Carers at the end of each year, as part of the School Reporting Calendar. All assessment information is gathered, analysed for individual pupils, cohorts and as a whole school. It also used to inform future planning and is shared with Senior Leaders.