Intent of Music curriculum

At Roebuck Academy it is our intent that we make music an inspiring and enjoyable learning experience which develops the children’s musical skills and prepares them in readiness for secondary school. We encourage children to participate in a variety of musical experiences through which they may develop a love of music and their talent as musicians; in turn increasing their self-confidence, creativity and sense of achievement.

Teaching across the school focuses on developing the children’s ability to understand rhythm and follow a beat using a range of musical instruments. By singing and performing songs, children learn about the structure and organisation of music. We teach them to listen and to appreciate different forms of music across different time periods, cultures and traditions. This supports children to understand the cultural capital of being open-minded in their listening as well as permitting them to develop knowledge about a breadth of musical genres in the world from the past as well as today. The children learn to appreciate how music supports other areas of the curriculum such as dance, drama and can enhance and broaden their topic knowledge when learning about different countries and cultures and traditions in their Geography topics. Children develop descriptive language skills in music lessons when learning about how music can represent different feelings, emotions and narratives. We also teach technical vocabulary such as volume, pitch, beat and rhythm and encourage children to discuss music using these terms. As pupils progress, they develop a critical engagement with music, allowing them to compose and to listen with confidence

Implementation

The Charanga scheme of work is used from Reception through to Year 6 to ensure a wide exposure to different genres of music, with lots of practical opportunities to explore and develop as musicians and singers. Charanga’s approach uses a spiral based curriculum which builds on, and revisits specific skill sets year upon year. Children at Roebuck Academy will also learn how to play the Glockenspiel as part of their weekly music lesson.

The scheme of work is topic based and has a new topic and focus for each half-term. Please refer to the curriculum map attached below.

As well as weekly music lessons we offer alternative opportunities for children at Roebuck Academy to further develop their interest in Music.

• Weekly singing assembly
• Christian Celebrations with the local vicar (Christmas, Harvest, Easter)
• Christmas, Easter and End of Year performances to peers and families
• Specialist music lessons such as Violin, Guitar, Rock Steady
• Choir which is run as a club for KS2 children
• Musical Nurture Group in partnership with Herts Music Service
• Music Day- across the whole school
• Themed activities linked to topics
• Specialist activities to expand cultural experiences e.g. A live String Quartet performance

Impact

As an ‘Arts Mark School’ raising the profile of music across the school for both teachers and pupils is a priority. Charanga allows us to develop a consistent approach to the teaching of music right across the school, as well as all the extra musical enrichment we provide from themed days, clubs, assemblies and specialist instrument lessons provide children with a balanced and well-rounded curriculum.

We assess music throughout the year through pupil voice, staff voice, lesson observations as well as summative assessment and formative assessment by the class teacher.