Brookburn’s Intent
At Brookburn, our music curriculum takes as its starting point the ambition that every young person should be able to experience music and make progress within it. Music has a rare and unique ability to bring people together and enable them to feel connected to others and be part of something bigger; music is inclusive and offers all pupils a chance to realise their creative potential. From the early years and as they progress through the school, children are exposed to music and encouraged to respond and comment on the feelings and emotions that it evokes. They are encouraged to use their voices; body percussion; and tuned and un-tuned percussion instruments to create their own music both individually and collaboratively. Music is a language that speaks beyond words and our intent is to provide the breadth of experience to allow our children to engage in musical discussion, responses and performances, within different genres, cultures and histories, with confidence.
Our Implementation
Music at Brookburn is taught both distinctly and discretely via four strands:
- Singing
Throughout their time at Brookburn, regular singing takes place both within the classroom and within weekly singing assemblies. Popular nursery rhymes, modern pop music, classics from different eras, Christmas songs and music from different cultures all have their place within our broad curriculum.
- Listening
Children are taught to listen critically and are exposed to music from a wide range of cultures and traditions in order to gain a broad aural knowledge of Western Classical Music, Popular Music and Traditional Music from around the world, following the Model Music Curriculum.
- Composing
Children are taught, via listening, to recognise musical themes and forms. They are also taught how to respond and encouraged to express themselves creatively using a range of tuned and untuned instruments.
- Performing
Performances take place within the classroom, within groups, within assemblies and within Christmas and other seasonal occasions throughout children’s time at Brookburn. We also celebrate the individual skills of children taught by our peripatetic teachers, at a specific music evening in the Summer.
Our music curriculum is based on the Charanga scheme of work. Music lessons are taught weekly. Children learn to play the recorder in Year 3 as part of our universal music offer. We work with the Manchester Music Hub to support professional development.
Impact
Children at Brookburn enjoy listening to and performing music. Whilst in school, children have access to a varied programme, which allows students to discover areas of strength, as well as areas they might like to improve upon. The integral nature of music and the learner creates an enormously rich palette from which each student may access fundamental abilities such as: achievement, self-confidence, interaction with and awareness of others, and self-reflection. Music will also develop an understanding of culture and history, both in relation to students individually, as well as ethnicities from across the world. Children are able to enjoy music, in as many ways as they choose- either as listener, creator or performer. They can dissect music and comprehend its parts. They can sing and feel a pulse. They have an understanding of how to further develop skills less known to them, should they ever develop an interest in their lives.
