Music throughout the school follows the requirements of the National Curriculum 2014. In addition to this, KS1 children take part in a 10-week singing programme and KS2 children take part in a 15-week instrument tuition programme. Our School Choir, which runs for several months yearly, gives KS2 children the opportunity to perform in school, at events within the local community, and every other year at concerts organised by the DCC Music Partnership. For more information about our curriculum, you can speak to your child's teacher, a senior leader, or our curriculum leader (Mrs Becky Hibbitt).

Key Stage 1

At KS1, children have the following opportunities:

• 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 inter-related dimensions of music.

They also learn to:

• Perform:

  • Take part in singing, accurately following the melody.

  • Follow instructions on how and when to sing or play an instrument.

  • Make and control long and short sounds, using voice and instruments.

  • Imitate changes in pitch.

• Compose:

  • Create a sequence of long and short sounds.

  • Clap rhythms.

  • Create a mixture of different sounds (long and short, loud and quiet, high and low).

  • Choose sounds to create an effect.

  • Sequence sounds to create an overall effect.

  • Create short, musical patterns.

  • Create short, rhythmic phrases.

• Transcribe:
  • Use symbols to represent a composition and use them to help with a performance.
• Describe music:

  • Identify the beat of a tune.

  • Recognise changes in timbre, dynamics and pitch.

Key Stage 2

At KS2, children have the following opportunities:

• 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 inter-related 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.

Lower Key Stage 2 (Years 3 and 4) children also learn to:

• Perform:

  • Sing from memory with accurate pitch.

  • Sing in tune.

  • Maintain a simple part within a group.

  • Pronounce words within a song clearly.

  • Show control of voice.

  • Play notes on an instrument with care so that they are clear.

  • Perform with control and awareness of others.

• Compose:

  • Compose and perform melodic songs.

  • Use sound to create abstract effects.

  • Create repeated patterns with a range of instruments.

  • Create accompaniments for tunes.

  • Use drones as accompaniments.

  • Choose, order, combine and control sounds to create an effect.

  • Use digital technologies to compose pieces of music.

• Transcribe:

  • Devise non-standard symbols to indicate when to play and rest.

  • Recognise the notes EGBDF and FACE on the musical stave.

  • Recognise the symbols for a minim, crotchet and semibreve and say how many beats they represent.

• Describe music:

  • Use the terms: duration, timbre, pitch, beat, tempo, texture and use of silence to describe music.

  • Evaluate music using musical vocabulary to identify areas of likes and dislikes.

  • Understand layers of sounds and discuss their effect on mood and feelings. 

Upper Key Stage 2 (Years 5 and 6) children also learn to:

• Perform:

  • Sing or play from memory with confidence.

  • Perform solos or as part of an ensemble.

  • Sing or play expressively and in tune.

  • Hold a part within a round.

  • Sing a harmony part confidently and accurately.

  • Sustain a drone or a melodic ostinato to accompany singing.

  • Perform with controlled breathing (voice) and skilful playing (instrument).

• Compose:

  • Create songs with verses and a chorus.

  • Create rhythmic patterns with an awareness of timbre and duration.

  • Combine a variety of musical devices, including melody, rhythm and chords.

  • Thoughtfully select elements for a piece in order to gain a defined effect.

  • Use drones and melodic ostinati (based on the pentatonic scale).

  • Convey the relationship between the lyrics and the melody.

  • Use digital technologies to compose, edit and refine pieces of music.

• Transcribe:

  • Use the standard musical notation of crotchet, minim and semibreve to indicate how many beats to play.

  • Read and create notes on the musical stave.

  • Understand the purpose of the treble and bass clefs and use them in transcribing compositions.

  • Understand and use the # (sharp) and ♭ (flat) symbols.

  • Use and understand simple time signatures.

• Describe music:
  • Choose from a wide range of musical vocabulary to accurately describe and appraise music including:
    • pitch;

    • dynamics;

    • tempo;

    • timbre;

    • texture;

    • lyrics and melody;

    • sense of occasion;

    • expressive;

    • solo;

    • rounds;

    • harmonies;

    • accompaniments;

    • drones;

    • cyclic patterns;

    • combination of musical elements;

    • cultural context.

  • Describe how lyrics often reflect the cultural context of music and have social meaning.