Music
At Billesdon, we teach music through the Leicestershire Music scheme. We chose this scheme because it gives children access to a wide range of musical experiences, vocabulary, types of music and technology. It teaches children to read music, initially through graphic notation, from EYFS onwards.
Music was a subject that was difficult to teach remotely during school closures and therefore, to close these inevitable gaps, we have chosen Leicestershire Music because it provides high quality training and content for teachers and teaching assistants to deliver lessons with clear objectives and progression throughout the year, and within each child’s time at our school.
It is engaging and practical in nature, making music a lesson that each child looks forward to and enjoys.
Curriculum Overview - click here
Intent
Through their work in music, children will:
- Explore Pulse, Voice, Rhythm, Pitch, Technology, Structure and Form, and 20th Century Music every year, with clear progression each time a theme is revisited over their seven years at Billesdon.
- Develop a rapidly widening repertoire of musical concepts which they then interpret into original and creative musical pieces over the course of a unit.
- An appreciation and deep awareness of different musical genres.
- Gain the ability to critique others’ performances as well as evaluate their own.
- Develop a passion for a diverse range of musical activities.
Implementation
There are six units of work for each year group: Pulse, Voice, Rhythm, Pitch, Technology, Structure and Form, and 20th Century Music. As we have mixed year groups across Key Stages 1 and 2, we use a two-year rolling programme to ensure that all children receive the correct content without gaps in their knowledge. For example, in Year A, Year 3 and 4 while follow the Year 3 programme, and in Year B, Year 3 and 4 will follow the Year 4 programme. Teachers can use the objectives of the programme one year up or down to provide differentiation as needed, whilst keeping the main content and choice of music as per the planning to ensure that content is not repeated unless it needs to be.
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Milestone 1 Year 1 and Year 2 |
Milestone 2 Year 3 and Year 4 |
Milestone 3 Year 5 and Year 6 |
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Perform |
• Take part in singing, accurately following the melody. • Follow instructions on how and when to sing or play an instrument. • Make and control long and short sounds, using voice and instruments. • Imitate changes in pitch. |
• Sing from memory with accurate pitch. • Sing in tune. • Maintain a simple part within a group. • Pronounce words within a song clearly. • Show control of voice. • Play notes on an instrument with care so that they are clear. • Perform with control and awareness of others. |
• Sing or play from memory with confidence. • Perform solos or as part of an ensemble. • Sing or play expressively and in tune. • Hold a part within a round. • Sing a harmony part confidently and accurately. • Sustain a drone or a melodic ostinato to accompany singing. • Perform with controlled breathing (voice) and skillful playing (instrument). |
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Compose |
• Create a sequence of long and short sounds. • Clap rhythms. • Create a mixture of different sounds (long and short, loud and quiet, high and low). • Choose sounds to create an effect. • Sequence sounds to create an overall effect. • Create short, musical patterns. • Create short, rhythmic phrases. |
• Compose and perform melodic songs. • Use sound to create abstract effects. • Create repeated patterns with a range of instruments. • Create accompaniments for tunes. • Use drones as accompaniments. • Choose, order, combine and control sounds to create an effect. • Use digital technologies to compose pieces of music. |
• Create songs with verses and a chorus. • Create rhythmic patterns with an awareness of timbre and duration. • Combine a variety of musical devices, including melody, rhythm and chords. • Thoughtfully select elements for a piece in order to gain a defined effect. • Use drones and melodic ostinati (based on the pentatonic scale). • Convey the relationship between the lyrics and the melody. • Use digital technologies to compose, edit and refine pieces of music. |
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Transcribe |
• Use symbols to represent a composition and use them to help with a performance. |
• Devise non-standard symbols to indicate when to play and rest. • Recognise the notes EGBDF and FACE on the musical stave. • Recognise the symbols for a minim, crotchet and semibreve and say how many beats they represent. |
• Use the standard musical notation of crotchet, minim and semibreve to indicate how many beats to play. • Read and create notes on the musical stave. • Understand the purpose of the treble and bass clefs and use them in transcribing compositions. • Understand and use the # (sharp) and ♭ (flat) symbols. • Use and understand simple time signatures. |
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Describe music |
• Identify the beat of a tune. • Recognise changes in timbre, dynamics and pitch. |
• Use the terms: duration, timbre, pitch, beat, tempo, texture and use of silence to describe music. • Evaluate music using musical vocabulary to identify areas of likes and dislikes. • Understand layers of sounds and discuss their effect on mood and feelings. |
• Choose from a wide range of musical vocabulary to accurately describe and appraise music including: • pitch • dynamics • tempo • timbre • texture • lyrics and melody • sense of occasion • expressive • solo • rounds • harmonies • accompaniments • drones • cyclic patterns • combination of musical elements • cultural context. • Describe how lyrics often reflect the cultural context of music and have social meaning. |
Impact
At the beginning of each unit, teachers record a baseline video to show what the children can do before they are taught the content, and at the end of the unit their performance is videoed to show what they can do. When these videos are compared, they show clear progression over the course of six weeks. Teachers then assess the children’s understanding according to set objectives. We can then use these assessments to build on their learning, address any misconceptions and fill any gaps in understanding.
Link to the National Curriculum for Music - click here
