Music

Intent

 Since our last inspection in November 2019, there has been much work done on the music curriculum at De Lucy. Where previously it was taught as part of a themed curriculum, this has been addressed and there is now in place a sequenced, progressive model that follows a discrete scheme. At De Lucy our intent is for all children to develop a lifelong love of music and to develop their talent as musicians. We fulfil the requirements of the National Curriculum for music through the Music Express scheme of work, which provides a broad and balanced curriculum, ensuring the progressive development of musical concepts, knowledge and skills. We seek to offer opportunities for children to: perform, listen to, review and evaluate music across a range of historical periods and genres; to learn to sing and to use their voices, to create and compose music on their own and with others; have the opportunity to learn a musical instrument; use technology appropriately and have the opportunity to progress to the next level of musical excellence.

Implementation

In EYFS, children sing a range of well-known nursery rhymes and songs, perform songs, rhymes, poems and stories with others, and – when appropriate – try to move in time with music. In Key Stage 1 and 2, music is taught in weekly lessons. We follow the ‘Music Express’ scheme which has inbuilt progression, both within each year and from one year to the next, ensuring consistent musical development. The children learn about and explore how music is created, produced and communicated through use of pitch, duration, dynamics, tempo, timbre, texture, structure and appropriate musical notations. It is a participatory and inclusive approach, where children actively listen, explore sounds, perform and compose; they learn to handle and play instruments to create and express their own and others’ music. The map below shows the units followed and the focus being studied.

Impact

Children at De Lucy have access to a varied programme that allows them to discover areas of strength, as well as areas they can to improve upon. As the children progress, they develop a growing musical vocabulary that allows them to critically engage with music and increases their self-confidence, creativity and sense of achievement.  We assess through teacher assessment at the end of each unit. Teachers make a judgement on the children’s progress against the learning outcomes for the unit followed; photographs and video are stored to capture progress throughout the year.

How parents can help

As music is part of everyday life for so many of us, helping your child at home is easy! Sing along to songs with your child; encourage them to listen to a wide genre of music from across the world. If you want to go further, help them compose, perform and evaluate their creations. All of these things help foster your child’s engagement and enjoyment of music.

Here are some useful links with many more ideas:

https://home-ed.info/heresources/music_resources

https://www.sfebmep.co.uk/2020/04/23/7-free-inclusive-music-resources-for-parents-teachers-and-pupils/

https://www.themusicstudio.ca/music-resources-for-parents.php

https://www.naeyc.org/our-work/families/playing-music-home

https://network.youthmusic.org.uk/bbc-teach-bring-noise-%E2%80%93-new-content-children-aged-4-7-parents-and-teachers

Partnership Links

The Greenwich Music Hub provides support with the teaching and leading of music. They share information on curriculum developments, best practice and activities and events the school can be involved in.

Policies

Subject leader

Ms Macauley

Page updated 3rd January 2021