ST MARY'S CATHOLIC PRIMARY SCHOOL

Music Curriculum                                                                                              

Our Mission Statement

Celebrating Excellence through our Faith and Learning

Rationale for teaching Music at St Mary's 

At St Mary’s we believe that our children need a curriculum that allows them to become enthusiastic and engaged learners. The knowledge and skills taught in Music are set out in The National Curriculum (Department for Education, 2014) and supported by The Model Music Curriculum (Department for Education, 2021). We have set these out in a year-group based sequence of learning (see age-related expectations), which allows progression by building upon and revisiting knowledge and skills learnt in previous years.

When designing the music curriculum creativity and a love of music are key aspects: we search for purposeful, meaningful opportunities to extend and deepen the pupil’s learning and musical experiences. We endeavour to make strong links with the diverse multi - cultural backgrounds of the pupils and staff and we build upon these experiences to develop pupils who listen, engage and compose music with discernment.

In Music we nurture pupils to engage with music of all traditions, genres and styles through a range of activities such as singing, composing and learning an instrument. Throughout their musical education pupils will experience a range of performing opportunities in order to become a confident musician. Whilst exploring music from a range of historical periods pupils will develop a more in depth understanding of musicianship and how music is created.

In Key Stage 1 pupils will:

• Use their voices creatively and with expression. They will explore a wide range of songs, chants and rhymes.
• Play tuned and untuned instruments musically.
• Listen to and develop and understanding of a range of recorded music.
• Explore different elements of music to experiment with and create music.

In Key Stage 2 pupils will:

• Learn a musical instrument.
• Play and perform in different contexts to develop their musical experiences.
• Use and understand musical notation.
• Improvise and compose music for different purposes.
• Develop an understanding of the history of music.
• Listen to and develop an appreciation and understanding of a wide range of live and recorded music from different traditions and composers.

How do we teach Music at St Mary's?

We have designed a curriculum at St Mary’s that incorporates the National Curriculum and the New Model Music Curriculum. It will be delivered through specialist Music teachers from the Music Hub, specialist Music teachers in our school as well as class teachers who are supported with a range of resources including the use of Charanga. It is our priority that all pupils experience performance opportunities in every year group, whether it be individual, groups or as a class.

Through the Music Hub, we also offer a range of instrumental lessons for pupils including woodwind, strings and brass instruments. These can be booked directly through the Music Hub, if you need mor information please contact Mrs George.

Music Progression at St Mary's.

How we assess Music at St Mary's

We evaluate the impact of our Music curriculum in the following ways:

Pupil achievement and progress

We measure pupil achievement – the acquisition of knowledge and skills – and progress using a number of strategies including:

• On-going informal teacher assessments, based on questioning in class, observations and pupil outcomes.
• Each class have their own Music Big Book where lessons are recorded, we also keep records of performances and recordings. KS2 pupils also have their own individual msuci books to use when formal notation and composition is being introduced.
• Scrutiny of progress in books, performance recordings and pupil conferencing with children.
• Learning walks

Pupil attitudes

• Feedback during learning conversations.
• Attitudes and behaviour in Music lessons and musical activities.
• The quality of work they produce and the pride they take in the performances and compositions.
• Engagement with extra-curricular opportunities and during performance opportunities.

 Who to contact about Music at St Mary's.

Mrs L. George - Music Co-ordinator, SENCO and Year 6 Class Teacher.