Music

Intent

At Little Leigh Primary School, we make music an enjoyable learning experience. Our curriculum aims to inspire and enable high quality music teaching and learning, whilst developing a curiosity and love of music. The study of music is inspiring and every young person should have the opportunity to experience and learn music and musical instruments within their education.  We encourage children to participate in a variety of musical experiences, through which we aim to build the confidence of every child. Music connects us to each other and our world. It is collaborative, celebratory, joyful and exciting. It allows us to express our thoughts, feelings and creativity through song, expression and performance.  Music enables children to create, perform and listen to others. This encourages and empowers children to share and collaborate with each other. 

At Little Leigh Primary School, our curriculum focuses on teaching the following four key skills: 

Singing, listening, composing and performing. 

Within every unit of work the children will:

• Learn to sing, using their voices to join in with the songs they are taught.
• Listen and appraise music linked to the genre they are learning about. 
• Develop an understanding of how music is created and learn to play an instrument to a song. 
• Use the skills they have learnt to compose their own melodies.
• Perform their music to others and listen to each performance. 

Implimentation:

Music is taught through our Charanga scheme.  Each Unit of Work comprises the following strands of musical learning which correspond with the national curriculum for music:

1. Listening and Appraising
   2. Musical Activities
        a. Warm-up Games
        b. Optional Flexible Games
        c. Singing
        d. Playing instruments
        e. Improvisation
         f. Composition
   3. Performing

Charanga Musical School Units of Work enable children to understand musical concepts through a repetition-based approach to learning. Learning about the same musical concept through different musical activities enables a more secure, deeper learning and mastery of musical skills. 

Musical teaching and learning is not neat or linear.  Over time, children develop new musical skills and concepts, and re-visit established musical skills and concepts. Repeating a musical skill allows the children to gain a mastery understanding of music, developing a deeper understanding of musical skills and concepts, whilst learning something new.

All music learning enables children to develop an understanding of: pitch, pulse, rhythm, tempo, dynamics, timbre, textrue, structure and notation.  Each unit of work enables children to deepen their knowledge of each of theres dimensions of music through a variety of genres and musical culture. 

Every year group has the opportunity to learn to play the glockenspial to their song and also compose their own melody using the skills they have learnt. The children learn, practise and develop their understanding of notation in each unit of work. 

Wider opportunities: 

In Year 5, every year a trained music teacher will lead a term of music lessons where the childrne have the opportunity to learn a string based instrument.  At the end of the half term they will perform their musical piece to an audience, to celebrate and share their learning and creation.  

Peripatetic teachers come into school and teach individual instruments to those children who wish to learn them.

KS2 have the opportunity to join the school choir and perform at a variety of venues, local community events and celebrations, providing a range of rich musical experiences.  We immerse every child in school in music through daily singing, singing assemblies and celebratory performances. At Little Leigh Primary School, we invest in ensuring every child develops the skills and confidence to perform to others and share the joy of music with their peers.   

Impact 

When children reach the end of Y6, they will have experienced a rich range of music culture and genre.  They will have gained a deep understanding of musical concepts, knowledge, skills and vocabulary. They will have been immersed in the joy of music, whilst gaining the confidence to create and perform to others. The children will have developed the skills to play a musical instruments, understand notation and the interellated dimensions of music.  Through their knowledge and experiences of music, they will have developed a love for music, preference of genre and a deeper understanding of culture and society.  The skills taught through our carefully designed curriculm, will allow children to continue to enjoy music throughout their lives.