Music Curriculum Intent Statement

Curriculum Intent

At Humberstone Infant and Junior Academies, pupils enjoy a richly diverse music curriculum that seeks to engage and inspire, to foster a love of music and to develop musical talent. Such aims are positively recognised in the National Curriculum for their potential to increase “self-confidence, creativity and a sense of achievement”. These goals are underpinned through the delivery of an academically inclusive curriculum, comprising listening, singing, playing, evaluating, analysing, and composing across a wide variety of historical periods, styles, traditions, and musical genres. 

By the time they leave Humberstone, pupils will have received skilled specialist tuition on a minimum of 3 different musical instruments. They will have been exposed to and encouraged to use specific musical language and vocabulary to describe their learning. They will have developed compositional and improvisation skills to increase aural memory and develop a basic understanding of written western notation, going beyond the scope of the National Curriculum. Performance is fundamental and all pupils will be provided with the opportunity to sing and perform in front of their peers and within a wider school setting, instilling confidence, musicality and a love of learning that will accompany them through all stages of their education.

Implementation

Our music curriculum follows National Curriculum objectives and uses resources from SingUp and the Model Music Curriculum. This has been developed and expanded upon by specialist music teachers, who tailor the sequences of lessons to our children’s needs and interests. Clear progression routes are woven into the curriculum, with assessment built into lesson plans. 

The music curriculum follows the inter-related dimensions of music and the following musical elements are implemented and repeated throughout each year group: Pulse, Voice, Rhythm, Pitch, Technology, Structure and Form and 20th Century Music. This ensures that skills and knowledge are embedded and developed year by year and sequenced appropriately to maximise learning for all children. Music learning is also supported by access to a wide range of instruments and in the Junior Academy, children have the unique opportunity to learn instruments:

• Year 3: Recorder
• Year 4: Ukulele 
• Year 5: Keyboard
• Year 6: Keyboard and ensemble work

By the time the children are in Upper Key Stage 2, they will have the opportunity to perform, improvise and compose in smaller peer groups, working collaboratively to create a shared outcome, which reflects their personal musical interests. Instruments include recorder, ukulele and the keyboard; the benefit of learning these instruments ‘in house’ means that instrumental learning can be tailored and adapted to the essential musical elements simultaneously being taught.

There are frequent opportunities for children to express their creativity through improvising and composing and each unit of work culminates in a class and peer performances, which form the basis of teacher assessment. Children also have regular opportunities to participate in singing assemblies, the school choir and a Musical Summer Showcase, which allows the children to perform at the end of each academic year, demonstrating their love of music from both music lessons and extra-curricular activities. 

Impact

Music assessment is ongoing and informs planning, lesson activities and differentiation. Summative assessment is completed at the end of each unit to highlight improvements or skills that still need to be embedded.
By the time children leave Humberstone they will have:

• Acquired a sound musical understanding underpinned by high levels of aural perception, internalisation and knowledge of music, including high or rapidly developing levels of technical expertise.
• Developed a level of technical expertise on a minimum of 3 instruments and have some understanding of how to read basic notation within treble clef.
• Developed a strong awareness and appreciation of different musical traditions and genres.
• Achieved an excellent understanding of how musical provenance – the historical, social and cultural origins of music – contributes to the diversity of musical styles.
• Developed the ability to give precise verbal explanations, using musical terminology effectively, accurately and appropriately.
• Shared their love of music with their peers and the wider community in a variety of ways, demonstrating their love of the subject.
• Acquired a genuine passion for and commitment to a diverse range of musical activities.