Music Intent

“The opportunity to study and explore music is not a privilege; it is a vital part of a broad and ambitious curriculum”

Rt Hon Nick Gibb MP Minister of State for School Standards, March 2021

The joy of music can last a lifetime and often starts in the classroom. A high quality music education engages and inspires pupils to develop a love of music and their talent as musicians, and so increase their self-confidence, creativity and sense of achievement.

Our aim is to provide children with a broad musical education, which benefits themselves and the school community, in many ways.

Music can be the catalyst that makes a good school exceptional. When music is allowed to permeate the whole curriculum, it can have a positive impact on everything from academic attainment to student attendance and wellbeing. Taking part in musical activities, such as mass singing events, helps children to recognise their own skills and appreciate those of others. These experiences build life skills such as teamwork, risk-taking, creativity, empathy, problem solving and communication, and a sense of responsibility and commitment.  Music builds cultural understanding, encouraging pupils to explore, appreciate and respect their own culture alongside other rich and diverse cultures.   Schools have the potential to use music education to add social value to the communities they serve, for example, through shared performances and workshops. Supporting pupils’ creativity, music enables young people to express themselves like no other medium and allows them to exercise their imaginations. Taking part in musical activity and learning musical skills builds resilience, improves self-esteem, and can have a positive impact on mental health and wellbeing for life.

Music knowledge is interrelated and cumulative with children developing in the core areas of composing, performing and evaluating. Throughout the curriculum, we aim to give children a wide range of practical experiences so that their confidence, skill and enjoyment of music grows as they progress through the school.

• Composing: children can explore and experiment with selecting, creating and combining sounds using the inter-related dimensions of music to create sound pictures, songs and music for different purposes and learn how to write and record their compositions.
• Performing: children can learn to sing and play with increasing accuracy, control and fluency and have opportunities to perform in different settings.
• Evaluate: children can listen to a wide range of musical genres and traditions and be able to appreciate and evaluate different styles and the development of music throughout history.