Intent

Our Music curriculum is designed to engage, inspire and challenge pupils, whilst equipping them with the knowledge and skills to be able to experiment, invent and create their own works of art. We recognise that music touches every part of our daily lives and as such we give the teaching and learning of music the prominence that it deserves.

As musicians, our curriculum encourages children to:

• Develop their ability to compose and perform music.
• Be aware of and appreciate different musical traditions and genres.
• Give written and verbal explanations using music terminology accurately and appropriately.
• Have passion for a diverse range of musical activities.

We’re committed to ensuring continuity and progression across all year groups, tailoring learning to meet the needs of our pupils.

Implementation

Our music curriculum is based on the National Curriculum and features a spiral structure, ensuring continuity and skill progression. We use ‘Charanga’ music scheme and have used this to create a scheme of work that suits the needs of our school.

The use of the scheme ensures that the curriculum is:

• Carefully Planned: Our curriculum is designed with consideration for mixed-age classes, ensuring all pupils receive a rich and balanced art education.
• Vocabulary Rich: We prioritise developing subject-specific vocabulary, helping children articulate and understand key art concepts.
• Supportive for teachers: Using Charanga gives support for teachers who are non-music specialists to ensure that they have the tools to teach the curriculum.

There are 4 units to be taught over the year that are from the scheme. Autumn 2 is linked to the pro-ductions in Reception/KS1 and KS2.

Aspirational Outcomes

Our aim is for pupils to not only enjoy and engage with music but to also achieve the following:

• Skill Development: Pupils will progress in their ability to read music, compose pieces, and perform confidently.
• Cultural Appreciation: Pupils will develop an appreciation for diverse musical genres and cultures.
• Creative Expression: Pupils will utilise music as a form of creative expression, reflecting their personal experiences.
• Collaboration: Through group activities and performances, pupils will enhance teamwork and communication skills.
• Critical Analysis: Pupils will critique music using proper terminology, demonstrating deep understanding.

Special Education Needs in Art & Design

Although a child may have been identified as having a special educational need, they may not have a special educational need in music. Within music, we aspire to create inspiring, explorative lessons linked to engaging topics across the curriculum. We strive to maintain an inclusive learning environment, working with additional adults and using multi-sensory approaches, including the use of technology, to explore and create, allowing pupils to express ideas and develop them.
When planning, we take into account pupils’ needs and celebrating individual expression, promoting positive attitudes. We set suitable learning challenges to overcome potential barriers to learning and assessment and modify the curriculum to remove barriers, so all pupils meet the same objectives.
Charanga also has a set of accessible resources designed to support musical activities and learning with students with special educational needs or disabilities. They are appropriate for a range of settings including special schools, alternative provision and mainstream schools, across all ages and abilities. Every resource in this section can be mixed and matched with other content and materials on the Charanga platform, ensuring all pupils can access music.

Impact

The children review and build upon their knowledge through each new unit of work. The frequent listening opportunities allow children to compare and contrast genres as their growing musical vocabularies develop. Through the explicit teaching of skills in music, both the teachers and the pupils assess their learning continuously throughout the lesson. As most of our work is practical, we use video recordings as our main tool to assess and analyse. We have also introduced a music passport to assess the children against at the end of the year.