We are delighted to announce that our recent Ofsted inspection (September 2023) was rated GOOD, with OUTSTANDING in Early Years.
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Music

Statement of Intent - Music 

“Music is a universal language that embodies one of the highest forms of creativity. A high quality music education should engage and inspire pupils to develop a love of music and their talent as musicians, and so increase their self-confidence, creativity and sense of achievement. As pupils progress, they should develop a critical engagement with music, allowing them to compose, and to listen with discrimination to the best in the musical canon.”  - Music - National Curriculum 

 At St John the Baptist Primary School, it is our intent to nurture a life-long passion and appreciation of all styles of music.  We strongly believe that music is fundamental to our children’s education, which can enhance key life skills such as increased confidence, development of social skills and enable them to tap into their inner creative spirits.  Our lessons provide opportunities for children to react and appreciate a range of musical styles and develop their language skills.  We show how music can not only evoke a range of emotions and feelings, but can also ‘tell a story’.   

 Our aim is to enable children, regardless of background, ability and additional needs to be motivated, effective and independent life-long learners.  By offering a stimulating and carefully structured experience in music, we enable each individual pupil to develop the capacity and the capability for artistic thought and critical awareness, and develop the necessary skills to enable them to succeed.      

 Aims of the Music Curriculum 

By the time children leave us at Year 6, we hope that they will have acquired the following skills and knowledge: 

  • can sing and use their voices individually and in a group 

  • can listen to, review and evaluate the work of great composers and musicians from a range of historical periods, genres, styles and traditions 

  • have enjoyed and an appreciation of a range of different musical styles such as classical, jazz, rock, pop, country and reggae  

  • can use and understand musical language and include musical features in their own work 

  • can confidently create and compose music both on their own and with others  

  • can use technology appropriately when composing 

  • can understand and explore how music is created, produced and communicated using the inter-related dimensions of music: pitch, duration, dynamics, tempo, timbre, texture, structure and appropriate musical notations 

  • can review and evaluate music created by their peers  

  • can play a wide variety of instruments, including the ukulele (through the West Sussex Music Service) 

  • can be part of a music performance either singing or playing an instrument 

IMPLEMENTATION 

We recognise that if our children have access to high quality experiences, this will ultimately raise standards and promote accelerated learning.    

Our music lessons are delivered through the multi-award winning primary music resource ‘Charanga’, which has identified the key skills and processes, as outlined through the National Curriculum.  Each year, these skills are sequenced appropriately to maximise learning for all children, and ensures that the children sing, listen, play, perform and evaluate. Children are taught to play tuned and untuned percussion instruments in their lessons, which also enables them to gain an understanding of basic music notation.  They also explore structure and organisation whilst developing a sense of melody.   They use the building blocks of music when composing and access a range of technical vocabulary to describe elements such as volume, pitch, beat and rhythm.  They learn how to work together and compose music using a given stimulus.  Finally, they are taught how to listen, appreciate and evaluate each other’s performance. 

Children in Year 3 receive a year's tuition on the ukulele, which is provided by the West Sussex Music Service.  Children are taught notation, learn to accompany well-known songs, singing, theory of music and composing.   

We also like to give our children music experiences outside of their lesson.  This includes: 

  • A weekly ‘Sing Up’ session 

  • An annual trip to the Young Voices O2 concert 

  • Singing at the local church throughout the year 

  • Year 5 Vocal workshop at Christ’s Hospital 

  • KS2 Boys' Vocal Group
  • Weekly Choir rehearsals
  • After-school instrumental club

IMPACT 
Our vision is to equip each child with the tools to enable them to play a future positive role in the wider community.  We do this by nurturing our children to become ambitious learners so that they demonstrate passion about their learning and are motivated to achieve the best they can both now and in the future.  Through music, we like to stretch the children to reach their full potential, and recognise the development of self-esteem and confidence.    

This will be evident through: 

  • A musical understanding underpinned by high levels of aural perception, internalisation and knowledge of music, including high or rapidly developing levels of technical expertise.  

  • Very good awareness and appreciation of different musical traditions and genres.  

  • An excellent understanding of how musical provenance - the historical, social and cultural origins of music - contributes to the diversity of musical styles.  

  • The ability to give precise verbal explanations, using musical terminology effectively, accurately and appropriately.  

  • A passion for and commitment to a diverse range of musical activities.