"We get to listen to and appraise lots of different styles of music." "We had so much fun learning opera songs from the 'Magic Flute.' Then, we got to perform them live with the Royal Opera House and an orchestra, at Huddersfield Town Hall." "We learn how to play jazz on the glockenspiels."
Music
At Warwick Road Primary School, we teach music lessons to develop children’s brains, increase IQ, expand children’s ability to problem-solve and promote reading skills. Many studies have shown that musical learning has profound benefits for children in terms of wellbeing, academic achievement and the development of reading and social and emotional skills.
We use Charanga to support our music teaching, this is an online music scheme provided by Kirklees Music Services, with lots of visual aids and interactive resources to support children's learning about music. Children also experience using glockenspiels, percussion instruments and recorders to take part practically in classroom and small group music lessons.
The music curriculum ensures students sing, listen, create, play, perform and evaluate. This is embedded in classroom activities and lessons as well as assemblies, various performances and the learning of instruments. Music lessons are planned in progressive sequences to provide children with the opportunities to review, remember, deepen and apply their understanding.
The elements of music are taught in classroom lessons so that children are able to use, with growing fluency, the language of music to dissect it and understand how it is made, played, appreciated and analysed. In the classroom children learn how to sing with confidence and play a variety of tuned and un-tuned percussion instruments. Playing various instruments enables children to use a range of methods to create music, as well as how to read basic music notation. They also learn how to compose, focusing on different dimensions of music, which in turn feeds their understanding when listening, playing, or analysing music. Composing or performing using body percussion, vocal sounds, un-tuned and tuned instruments is also part of the curriculum, which develops the understanding of musical elements.
We celebrate the musical ability of pupils, through regular performances. Pupils are provided with the opportunity to perform to a wider audience of parents and the wider community. Parents are invited to watch the musical talents with the annual nativity, musical Eid performance, end of year productions and class assemblies.
What makes us a successful musician?
- To have ongoing curiosity and attention to detail
- To develop creative confidence
- To have a way with words and use good communication skills
- The confidence and stamina to perform in front of an audience
- To have motivation, determination and perseverance
- The ability to work well as part of a team
- To be critical and analytical
How and what we learn at Warwick Road
EYFS – Nursery and Reception
Pupils are taught to:
- To listen carefully to rhymes and songs, paying attention to how they sound.
- To learn rhymes, poems and songs.
- To clap or tap out beats or rhythms.
- To create their own songs, or improvise a song around one they know.
- To play instruments with increasing control to express their feelings and ideas.
- To explore using body and voice as instruments.
- To perform together as a group.
Key stage 1 – Years 1 and 2
Pupils are taught to:
- Use their voices expressively and creatively by singing songs and speaking chants and rhymes
- Play tuned and untuned instruments musically
- Listen with concentration and understanding to a range of high-quality live and recorded music
- Experiment with, create, select and combine sounds using the interrelated dimensions of music
Key stage 2 – Years 3, 4 and 5
Pupils are taught to:
- Sing and play musically with increasing confidence and control
- Develop an understanding of musical composition, organising and manipulating ideas within musical structures and reproducing sounds from aural memory
- Play and perform in solo and ensemble contexts, using their voices and playing musical instruments with increasing accuracy, fluency, control and expression
- Improvise and compose music for a range of purposes using the interrelated dimensions of music
- Listen with attention to detail and recall sounds with increasing aural memory
- Use and understand staff and other musical notations
- Appreciate and understand a wide range of high-quality live and recorded music drawn from different traditions and from great composers and musicians
- Develop an understanding of the history of music
Subject LTP
Enhanced Curriculum Experiences
At Warwick Road, we strive to immerse children in music by providing diverse and plentiful opportunities for them to develop, practise, apply and deepen their existing knowledge, skills and understanding, and to promote a love of music! Below are just some examples of the additional experiences on offer for our children:
- Annual winter nativity performance
- Year 6 End of Year Production
- Warwick Road 'Show Your Voice’ Singing Competition – house championships competition
- Eid performance
- Regular class assemblies
- Nazam singing competition
- An extra-curricular recorder club for pupils
- Create and sing workshops with the Royal Opera House
- Live opera performance at Huddersfield Town Hall, with the Royal Opera House and Musica Kirklees orchestra
- Composition workshop with English National Opera
- Live music performances from musicians
Pictures from previous school trips
Parent Support
Charanga – Musical School: Musica Kirklees
https://www.kirkleeswideropportunities.org.uk/
Understanding the theory behind music
https://method-behind-the-music.com/theory/notation/
Understanding teaching primary music
https://www.ismtrust.org/resources/primary-toolkit
Tuned and untuned instruments
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lists_of_tuned_and_untuned_percussion_instruments
To use and understand staff and other musical notations
https://method-behind-the-music.com/theory/notation/
How to Improvise
https://www.musical-u.com/learn/how-to-start-improvising-music-in-6-steps/
Interactive teaching resources - Interactive piano and glockenspiel
https://www.virtualmusicalinstruments.com
Famous composers and their music
https://www.britannica.com/list/10-classical-music-composers-to-know
Music Facts for Children
BBC Ten Pieces
https://www.bbc.co.uk/teach/ten-pieces
Subject Policy
Music Lead: Miss Kitson
Music governor: Moira Hunt
Miss Kitson is our music leader. Please speak to Miss Kitson if you would like to find out more about how we teach our music curriculum at Warwick Road Primary School.
