At Goldsmith, we are musicians...
We are passionate about offering every child at Goldsmith Primary Academy the opportunities they deserve to access a full, quality music curriculum. Music is open to every single child and allows pupils to be active and expressive in order to develop their skills and knowledge. Music is also used to bring the school community together and to develop a sense of connection and belonging.
EYFS - Music in EYFS is used continually as part of the routines and learning in every school day. Our teachers follow guidance from “Development Matters” more specifically, ‘Listening and Attention’. Music is used to facilitate learning in all areas, to celebrate special occasions and to help children with the daily routines of school. The children have access at all times to musical instruments in class and in the outdoor areas. Teachers plan to promote development of the children’s voices, confidence to perform and understanding of the foundational musical concepts of beat, rhythm and pitch. Children are encouraged to listen attentively and respond to music in different ways. Children in early years take part in a Christmas Celebration in class or in a Nativity play.
KS1 - Children are taught curriculum music sessions by their teachers and a music specialist over the course of the year.. The children learn about the interrelated dimensions of music: pitch, duration, dynamics, rhythm, tempo, texture, timbre, melody and harmony and children play and compose using tuned and untuned classroom percussion. Music is woven across school life so that children study artists and composers in assemblies, and use music in their learning across a variety of subjects. The children will have the opportunity to take part in the Christmas Showcase.
KS2 - In KS2 children learn about the interrelated dimensions of music in more depth and learn to read and write music notation. Lessons are delivered by both music specialists and class teachers. “Sing Up” is used to facilitate high quality singing sessions and to access a huge range of cross-curricular music opportunities. Children also learn about composers and influential artists in assemblies. Pupils in all year groups have the opportunity to perform during the autumn term Christmas Showcase. Pupils in Year 6 perform at the end of the summer term, to celebrate their graduation. A number of KS2 pupils have the opportunity to visit London’s West End to see a musical production. Pupils in KS2 are also welcome to join our School Choir, held on Friday lunchtimes.
Music is taught thematically across all year groups and within all themes. Additionally, pupils take part in ‘Magic Moments;’ our Arts and Music led theme in summer 1. Music teaching takes place in assemblies and celebrations. Also, many pupils in KS2 elect to take part in the choir, during Friday lunchtimes.
Lessons are created using the National Curriculum programmes of study for music and threshold concepts for each key stage or year group. We use many resources from the “Sing Up” website and planning is written specifically for our curriculum by the ‘WAT Curriculum Team’ to relate teaching as closely as possible to the themes studied by the children.
The desired impact is that children will develop their musical skills and knowledge, be able to use their voices with control and increasing accuracy and build their confidence in performance situations.
Formative assessment takes place throughout music lessons through observations, questioning and pupil self-evaluation to ensure that all learners are making progress. Impact is also measured through observing pupils in performance situations and in their composition work against the success criteria for the unit of work. Pupil engagement in extra curricular clubs is also tracked.
Performances are observed in class or filmed and this is assessed against the success criteria for the unit. We allow pupils to watch the recording back to see how they are progressing between terms. When learning an instrument, pupils know they have progressed as the pieces they play become more challenging.
Every pupil is able to access the music curriculum and most differentiation is by outcome. We provide an extra layer of challenge during lessons or performances and all pupils have the opportunity to aim as high as possible. If confidence is low, pupils are encouraged and this is dealt with sensitively.
Our curriculum covers a broad range of music styles and genres from many different cultures. Pupils with additional learning needs are included with advice from our excellent SEND inclusion team. Any pupils who cannot participate in music due to religious reasons are given alternative musical activities. Wherever possible this is avoided by using secular repertoire.