"Music is a world within itself, with a language we all understand." - Stevie Wonder

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The member of staff responsible for Music is Mrs Jones.

 

How Dovecotes Primary School’s Music Curriculum Promotes Our Core Values:

 

Be Creative – Pupils will use their voices expressively and creatively to sing songs and speak chants and rhymes; they will experiment with instruments using them to create and combine sounds to compose their own pieces of music that allow them to express themselves.

 

Be Ambitious - Pupils will sing and play musically with increasing confidence and control. Pupils will foster a life-long love of music having been exposed to the best musicians and diverse musical experiences igniting a passion for music.

 

Be Honest - Pupils will make honest judgements about the quality of music heard and will critically evaluate performance pieces offering constructive feedback.

 

Be Kind - Pupils will respectfully discuss and share their own thoughts, opinions and ideas when appreciating and evaluating music and will acknowledge that these opinions may vary. 

 

Be Brave - Pupils will place themselves outside of their comfort zone and find their voices as singers, performers and composers, and have the opportunity to develop their confidence further by performing in front of a range of audiences.

 

Be Healthy - Pupils will recognise how musical experiences can have a positive impact on their wellbeing and happiness as well as act as a means to develop self-esteem, confidence and lift mood.

 

Intent – What Do We Aspire For Our Children? 

 

At Dovecotes, our children will develop a sense of musical creativity and self-expression, build their listening skills and deepening their understanding and application of technical music knowledge. Music will also develop an understanding of different cultures around the world. 

 

Practical skills sit at the heart of our music curriculum, where core component knowledge and skills in music strands such as understanding pitch, developing a sense of rhythm, composition and appraising are sequentially built upon through the year groups through regular and varied practical music making experiences, including through singing.

 

By the end of the Early Years:

 

Our Early Years learning’s music curriculum follows the ‘Expressive Arts and Design’ learning pathway of the national Development Matters guidance, meeting the requirements of the Statutory framework for the Early Years Foundation Stage.  This culminates in our Reception children learning and performing a range of songs in a group (or on their own) increasingly matching pitch and melody; learning to listen to music and developing their abilities to express themselves through music. Here, they are introduced to fundamental musical vocabulary, focus on fine and gross motor practise and develop an awareness of basic rhythm.  Our children regularly experiment with sound, use their bodies to respond to music and sing. Children practise regularly and are given the opportunity to perform solo or in groups in front of their peers. They know how to listen attentively, move to and talk about music, dance and performance art expressing their feelings and responses.

 

By the end of Key Stage 1:

 

Early Years skills are built on in Key Stage 1 as our children continue to develop their technical accuracy, fluency and expression through both singing and playing instruments. They sing a broad range of songs from different genres and cultures, concentrating on intonation, phrasing and clear diction and build their listening skills further. 

 

By the end of Key Stage 2:

 

Our Key Stage 2 children hone their technical knowledge and skills, such as music notation and understanding pitch and rhythm.  This is done through a focus on musical compositional work, solo and ensemble performance, aural development and appraising existing music pieces. They also build an understanding of the history of music.

 

Implementation – How Will We Deliver The Curriculum? 

 

Knowledge at the Heart of the Curriculum - Understanding Different Types of Knowledge in Music

 

Substantive knowledge in music is knowing about the technical and wider elements of music (the facts).It is based around nine interrelated dimensions - pulse, rhythm, pitch, tempo, dynamics, timbre, texture, structure and notation – and also involves learning about music across a range of historical periods, genres, styles and traditions, including the works of the great composers and musicians.

 

Disciplinary knowledge in music is the interpretation of the interrelated dimensions of music and knowing how to apply this knowledge in practice to control sounds and create music when singing, playing instruments, improvising and composing.

 

Across the school, we adopt the Charanga music scheme to structure our curriculum. We chose this scheme because it sequences learning in music for each year group and uses high-quality resources which support our staff well to deliver the music curriculum.

 

The scheme covers the following in each lesson:

1. Listen and Appraise

2. Musical Activities include Games, Singing, Playing, Improvising and Composing

3. Perform/Share

 

In the Early Years, music and movement is part of every-day learning. The children are taught songs and dances linked to the topics they are learning. During their time in Nursery and Reception, our children build a repertoire of familiar songs and ways of dancing. Additionally, the children are encouraged to explore a range of percussion instruments, both with an adult and independently. As the children move into Key Stage 1, and throughout Key Stage 2, each class has a weekly music lesson. As part of the KS2 curriculum offer, in Year 4, we provide whole class instrument tuition, delivered by visiting music teachers from Wolverhampton Music School, where children learn to play the ukulele and violin. As part of our extra-curricular offer, brass and woodwind tuition is also delivered by visiting teachers from Wolverhampton Music School to those children in Year 5 and Year 6 who wish to pursue an instrument. We also have a Junior Choir who regularly perform in school and in the community.

 

Each week, a different musician of the week is introduced in whole school assembly which develops cultural capital by exposing pupils to a wide range of music from across different time periods, genres and cultures.

At Dovecotes, all children are provided with a range of opportunities to demonstrate and showcase their musical skills and successes such as assemblies, performances to parents/ carers and wider celebrations.

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Dovecotes Whole School Music Curriculum
 

Little Doves and Nursery

EYFS teach through themes which are heavily led by the children’s interests. 

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Reception

• Me!

• My Stories

• Everyone!

• Our World

• Bear Funk

• Reflect, Rewind and Replay

 

Year 1

• Hey You!

• Rhythm in the way we walk and Banana Rap

• In the Groove

• Round and Round

• Your Imagination

• Reflect, Rewind and Replay

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Year 2

• Hands, Feet, Heart

• Ho Ho Ho!

• I Wanna Play in a Band

• Zootime

• Friendship Song

• Reflect, Rewind and Replay

 

Y3/4

• Cycle A

  • Let Your Spirit Fly

  • Glockenspiel Stage 1

  • Three Little Birds

  • The Dragon Song

  • Bringing Us Together

  • Reflect, Rewind and Replay

• Cycle B

  • Mamma Mia

  • Glockenspiel Stage 2

  • Stop!

  • Lean on Me

  • Blackbird

  • Reflect, Rewind and Replay

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Y5/6

• Cycle A

  • Livin’ On a Prayer

  • Classroom Jazz 1

  • Make You Feel My Love

  • The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air

  • Dancing in the Street

  • Reflect, Rewind and Replay

• Cycle B

  • Happy

  • Classroom Jazz 2

  • A New Year Carol

  • You’ve Got a Friend

  • Music and Me

  • Reflect, Rewind and Replay

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Impact - How Do We Know Our Music Curriculum Is Effective? 

 

We measure the impact of our curriculum through the following methods:

• Pupil discussions and interviewing pupils about their learning (pupil voice).

• Photo and video evidence of the pupils’ practical learning.

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Assessment

 

Each unit of music has an ongoing musical learning focus which builds on children’s prior knowledge in singing, listening, appraising, playing, improvising, composing, and performing. During music lessons, assessments are made using the assessment tools provided within the Charanga scheme.

 

The school is proud to be a Music Mark School 23/24 in recognition of a commitment to providing a high-quality music education for its pupils. ​

 

For further information about the Music curriculum please contact Mrs Jones our subject lead through the school email address.