Music

Music at Water Leys

“Music gives a soul to the universe, wings to the mind, flight to the imagination, and life to everything.”

Plato

Intent – What we are trying to achieve?

• At Water Leys Primary School, the intention is that 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.

• Our music curriculum intends to inspire creativity, self-expression and encourages our children on their musical journeys as well as giving them opportunities to connect with others.

• We hope to foster a lifelong love of music by exposing them to diverse musical experiences and igniting a passion for music.

• By listening and responding to different musical styles, finding their voices as singers and performers and as composers, all will enable them to become confident, reflective musicians.

• We hope to develop 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 knowledge, skills, and experiences to involve themselves in music, in a variety of different contexts.

The aims of our Music curriculum are to develop pupils who:

• Can sing and use their voices individually and in a group

• Create and compose music on their own and with others

• Use technology appropriately when composing

• Have opportunities to learn a musical instrument

• Understand and explore how music is created, produced and communicated

• Listen to, review and evaluate the work of great composers and musicians from a range of historical periods, genres, styles and traditions

• Enjoy and have an appreciation of a range of different musical styles e.g. Classical, Jazz, Hip Hop, Pop, Rock etc.

• Use and understand musical language and include musical features in their own work

• Have different opportunities to take part in performances

Implementation – How do we translate our vision into practice?

• The music curriculum ensures students 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 the language of music to discuss it, and understand how it is made, played, appreciated and analysed.

• In the classroom pupils learn how to play various un-tuned and tuned percussion instruments. In doing so they understand the different principles of creating notes, as well as how to devise and read their own musical scores and 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 – What is the impact of our curriculum on the students?

• Whilst in school, children have opportunities to forge their own musical journey, which allows them to discover areas of strength, as well as areas they might like to improve upon.

• 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 students 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 discuss music and comprehend its parts.

• They can sing, feel a pulse, add rhythms and create melodies in a group and they can further develop these skills in the future and continue to enjoy and embrace music in their lives.

Whole School Curriculum Map

All year groups study the same unit at the same time, building on the skills they learnt in the previous year.