MUSIC AT OAK GREEN SCHOOL

Why do we teach what we teach? (Our intent)

At Oak Green School, we believe that Music hugely contributes to children’s confidence, curiosity and motivation. These being some of the key qualities we aim to build in children through our ethos. Focusing on resilience, which is built through sharing and critiquing of performances the children are involved with. The children experience resourcefulness through the playing of musical instruments and the children using the skills they have to compose music. The quality of teamwork, which is developed through working together as a group to create music and sharing critiques to each other. Lastly, providing the children with reflectiveness, as it is demonstrated through the appraising of music and self-evaluation after a performance.

How do we teach it? (Our implementation)

Here at Oak Green, Music is taught throughout each week through Charanga and is also embedded into each Year group’s topic, and in stand-alone events. Children have the opportunity to listen to and appraise different genres of music and types of instruments, explore and create music through playing musical instruments, improvisation and composition. Children learn to sing confidently and tunefully, whilst performing different types of musical pieces. This allows our children to have an enriching musical experience throughout their time at school, building their confidence and skills in every year group. The children will have a vast range of experiences in music at  Oak Green, as it is vital that children are exposed to as much variety as possible. These experiences will range from outside musical companies visiting the school to work with the children, watching performances which involve music (e.g. pantomime’s, musicals, etc.), performing in both theatres and at school, taking part in whole school music-based events and through lessons and singing assemblies being exposed to different genres of music. This will enrich their learning through experiences, providing children with a good understanding of music. Through understanding music, children will learn how music affected change in periods of history and have contributed to change and movements throughout time. They will join up learning by studying music that coincided with historic events and impacted on different countries and religions. Children will be encouraged to interpret music through different feelings and emotions, and to understand how empowering some music can be. Furthermore, the confidence the children will learn to exhibit from performance events, will be applied to different areas of their lives to ensure that they are more outgoing and volunteer for more opportunities in the future.

What is the difference that this makes? (Our impact)

Impact will be measured through the use of observation during performances, pupil and parent’s voices, group tasks (e.g. the children receive a theme or story in a group and need to compose a piece of music to symbolise that theme or story) and self-reflections based on listening, appraising, performing and technical vocabulary. Teacher and self- assessment will be used to record children’s progress and achievement.