Intent
A St Joseph and St Theresa musician will appreciate and enjoy a variety of music by a range of composers. They will be given the opportunity to experience and experiment with a variety of instruments including their own voice which will help them to realise their own God-given gifts and give them the confidence to create and express themselves through music. They will become active and confident when composing and performing for different audiences and will become controlled and fluent in this.
Implementation.
All national curriculum classes, Year 1 – Year 6, receive a 30-minute whole class musical instrument tuition lesson each Friday lead by a specialist music teacher from Rock It Music. Within the music sessions children are exposed to a range of musical styles and traditions to aid their listening and understanding of music composition and begin to appreciate different styles of music. Children are given opportunities to experiment and create combinations of sounds to develop their own musical performance for a particular purpose. Year on year, children will build upon their skills of playing a range of instruments: ukuleles, keyboards, pitched percussion and drum kits, and will continually develop their understanding of music notation and staff culminating in them being able to read short pieces of music. In all sessions, children are given the opportunity to use their voices expressively and creatively through singing songs, chants and rhymes and as children progress, they develop the awareness of how these songs are formulated in regards to musical notation and will be able to sing an increasing repertoire from memory. In addition to their instrumental lessons on a Friday, children will be given the opportunity to link other areas of the curriculum to music e.g. listening to war music to link to WW2 in year 6 or putting the story of Stone Age Boy to music in Year 3. In addition to this, in class, children listen to different genres of music. These are created using BBC ten pieces and the model music curriculum. This may be a modern or classical composer, or world music. The children listen to and comment on their music, drawing connections between pieces, to their own lives and to the world around them. Children also have the opportunity to take part in small group peripatetic lessons during the afternoon to master an instrument of their choice: drums, guitar or keyboard. Within these sessions, children work through the practical and theory elements of music and work towards completing Grade 1 in their instrument of choice. Children are assessed using the progression grids and National Curriculum requirements, by the class teacher and the music teacher. This is shared with parents during school reports and helps inform teachers of children who may need some targeted support during lessons. In Year 6, the class perform a whole class ensemble to achieve the Level 4 Ensemble Exam through the London College of Music
Impact
Since incorporating a 30minute music slot for whole class musical instrument tuition (otherwise it sounds like we weren’t doing any music previously) into our Curriculum Journey timetable, children have developed the skills (at an age-appropriate level) to participate in performing in a group assemble performance playing an instrument. They have gained in confidence and ability and enjoy their instrument lessons. Through composer of the month and other musical learning opportunities children have developed a greater awareness and understanding of how music is composed and the different styles and genres that there are. Children are active and curious learners in all sessions and enjoy being exposed to a range of musical styles where they are able to note similarities and differences and talk eloquently about their preferences. It is clear to see how much children enjoy their music lessons, and this is supported through pupil voice questionnaires which have been completed. All children now have a basic understanding of staff and notation and can sing a range of songs, chants and rhymes from memory. All children have been exposed to a range of musical instruments and have an awareness of their history. Children are able to play a short piece of music on each instrument understanding the how the pitch of each note creates a rhythm.