Intent

Our intention is that children gain a firm understanding of what music is through listening, singing, playing, evaluating, analysing, and composing. We believe that all children are capable of becoming confident, expressive performers. We intend to allow the music curriculum to flow through the entirety of the school. We want to ensure that music is closely intertwined with each class topic to build an immersive learning environment.

The children in nursery learnt and performed a song, 'Street Party', as part of our whole school VE Celebrations. The children sang, learnt actions and waved flags and streamers to the music.

Year 1 had a wonderful time celebrating VE Day. They learnt the song ‘You are my sunshine’ with sign language from 1940 to perform in assembly. 

We learnt some actions songs. We learnt that when we add actions to songs it makes it easier to understand, remember and of course more fun!

Children in Reception enjoyed joining in with action songs and finding the beat and exploring tempo. They really enjoyed dancing and performing to others.

Year 4 have created and performed and ostinato. They have then given feedback to their peers, applied the feedback an performed again for their peers. 

Year 4 have performed a vocal ostinato!

Year 4 have sung in two parts using expression and dynamics about a river. 

The children used instruments in a class performance, keeping the pulse and rhythm.

Children used instruments and body percussion to play a rhythm and keep a pulse.

Children created rhythmic patterns and phrases by identifying the syllables in given words and phrases.

The children experimented by creating different sounds using a single instrument and choosing a relevant sound to accompany a part of the story.

The children explored dynamics by creating different character voices.

Children learnt about the four different groups of musical instruments, where they are positioned in the orchestra, their different sounds and the role of the conductor.

Year 4 have built, improved and composed their own body percussion composition. 

Year 4 created musical rhythms using body percussion. 

Year 4 followed musical instructions for creating body percussion.

Year 4 identified structure and texture in music and they performed body percussion music as a class.

In this lesson, children used a tuned percussion instrument to play a song, they learnt 'ABC' following the music. 

In this lesson, children use the Glockenspiel to accompany their song 'Once a man fell in a well', focusing on pitch and following the music. 

The children have enjoyed exploring different musical instruments. They then made their own instruments out of recyclable materials and played their instruments along to the music.  The children were encouraged to play loudly, quietly, quickly or slowly when appropriate.

Children accessed the instruments; drums, maracas, and tambourines and the children explored rhythms. They compare how different cultures express themselves through music and movement.

In the past couple of lessons, the children have been understanding how to play, write and perform a pentatonic melody.

In todays lesson, the children have been immersing themselves in the dragon dance. The children have been learning about the music used to celebrate the Chinese New Year festival. The children enjoyed dancing and moving to the different timbres explored in todays lesson.

To celebrate they learning the children have done in class, we invited parents to come and see our spectacular showcase. The children became Viking families, monks, saga tellers and women to explain what Viking life was like and sang songs and used instruments to bring history to life!

Let's Go A-Viking!!!

In this lesson, the children enjoyed using their simple rhythmic notation to compose and perform a Viking battle song.

The School choir represented the school when they attended 'Young Voices 2025' in Sheffield. All children thoroughly enjoyed themselves and behaved impeccably, well done! 

The children in year 5 were lucky enough to have a visit from a member of The Beat Goes On, who worked with the children to understand the famous Shakespeare play, Romeo and Juliet. By using body percussion and other percussion instruments, they were able to explore key scenes and lines within the play and express their understanding through music.

Take a look at the wonderful session above...

In Music - Theme and Variations - Year 6 enjoyed using lots of different way of body percussion and voices to create different sounds and tone...

Year 4 children have improvised in a Calypso style using a pentatonic scale.

Year 4 recognised and performed quavers from staff notation. 

Year 4 have understood how and why percussion instruments can be used in Calypso music.

In this lesson, the children enjoyed using the notations to use simple rhythmic notation to compose a Viking battle song.

Year 1 loved getting the opportunity to learn about and play the percussion instruments. They developed their understanding of rhythm and how to play different rhythms on the instruments. 

Year 3 enjoyed taking part in the live birthday celebrations for Bob Marley‘s 80th Birthday, with young voices global worldwide singalong.

In this lesson, the children enjoyed understanding simple rhythmic notations to compose a Viking battle song.

Year 2 enjoyed learning all about Orchestral instruments. They selected from a range of instruments to pair with a script they devised to retell the story of Jack and the Beanstalk, well done Year 2!

Children in Reception used percussion instruments to represent the sounds in the story, 'We're Going on a Bear Hunt'. Children chose an instrument to represent the grass, river, mud, forest, snow and the cave. They decided which instrument would be best, explain why and decide if they would play it loud of quiet and quick or slow. The children played their instruments at the correct part in the story.

So far in our music unit, we have been looking at how to sing in time with others, and understanding simple rhythmic notation to compose a Viking battle song. The children enjoyed adding actions to our performance.

It was so nice to hear the children in year 5 performing what they had learnt about chords by playing together as a class. As they took turns, they supported their partners when changing notes and keeping to a beat.

The children consolidated the key musical concepts from the unit in a final performance.

The children learnt about pitch and rhythm by adding a new character to the underwater piece.

The children in year 5, learnt about chords and how they are structured from different pitches of sound. They then used this information to learn the first line of the 12-bar blues.

In this lesson, children explored how music and sound effects can tell a story. 

The children listened to and clapped out different rhythms of a clicking camera while keeping the beat.

The children in year 5, spent their first lesson of the unit learning about the genre of Blues music and its key features. They explored its history and then learnt a famous Blues song from The Simpson, with some children taking the opportunity to sing solo.

We listened to the lyrics and melody of “Teddy Bear’s Picnic” by John Walter Bratton and Jimmy Kennedy. We enjoyed moving to the music on our own, with a partner and all together in a circle. We talked about the music made us feel. 

Year 2 enjoyed listening to an orchestra and discussing the tempo and dynamics of the music. They then explored using instruments focusing on changing the tempo and dynamics. 

Year 1 explored dynamics to represent the different fish under the sea. They carefully listened to the music and described which fish might match the dynamics and tempo of the different parts. They also thought about which instrument could be used.

 In this lesson, the children explored tempo changes through movement. The children played the role of the diver and ‘swam’ around the room to the music.

Year 6 now know that the conductor beats time to help the performers work well together, understand that improvisation means making up music ‘on the spot’, that texture can be created by adding or removing instruments in a piece and can create the effect of dynamic change and that timbre can also be thought of as ‘tone colour’ and can be described in many ways.

The children have learnt about traditional Christmas music. The songs involved singing, voice sounds and playing musical instruments.

The School choir visited Frenchgate shopping centre to sing carols and raise money. It was an enjoyable morning for all, the children even had a special visitor....Father Christmas and one of his elves who joined in for a song! So many parents also attended the event and as ever we are so grateful for the generous donations. 

The School choir visited our local ASDA to sing carols and raise money to fund our 'Young Voices' trip. It was lovely to see so many people joining in with the carols, well done. 

The School choir visited Dr Anderson Lodge, a local care home to sing carols, everyone enjoyed it and joined in. The children were extremely grateful for the juice and cake as a treat at the end, well done. 

The year 1 children learnt how to keep a pulse and show a sound pattern using bodies and voices. Here is a video of them singing the end of the friend name game.

In Music the children have been learning about music from a range of cultural and religious celebrations, including Diwali and Hanukkah. We enjoyed dancing with streamers to Diwali music and playing traditional Jewish instruments.

In this lesson children copied and created their own sound patterns. 

In this lesson, children were looking at what a ballad is, and using musical vocabulary to explain the stylistic features of a ballad. The children created a story board to describe each stage of a song.

In this lesson, the children have been performing a Ballad. The children have been exploring how actions can impact a performance.

Children used a range of instruments to create short sounds with varied dynamics that represent an animal.

Year 4 have composed rhythmic patterns for a gumboot dance.

Year 4 have recognised and played semibreves by ear and from staff notation. 

Year three enjoyed having a focus on Music for Black history week in school. The children have enjoyed learning about influential musicians Ella Fitzgerald, and Louis Armstrong. The children have been focusing on performing and composing the famous piece of music by Louis Armstrong ‘What a wonderful world’. The children also enjoyed showcasing their learning to children and staff members at Holy Family School.

Year 2 enjoyed presenting their class assembly, focusing on the theme of harvest. They were brilliant at remembering their lines and spreading the important messages of thankfulness and the important job our farmers do for us.

Year 4 have used glockenspiels to recognise and play minims, by ear and from staff notation, moving up and down by step.

Children considered the features of superhero theme tunes before working in groups to create their own superhero compositions.

Year 2 enjoyed selecting from a range of instruments to compose and perform their pieces in small groups. 

Pupils develop their superhero theme tunes by adding tempo changes to make them sound more exciting.

Using their understanding of pitch, children created a simple superhero theme tune using a low note and a high note.

Children were introduced to the concept of pitch and learn to recognise low and high sounds in a superhero theme tune.

In this lesson, year 2 enjoyed using different ways to represent and create a graphic score based on different pieces of music. 

The children in year 5 had fun learning how to represent music visually, in a graphic score, using colour as notes while describing what they think the music looks like and why.

In this series of lessons, year 3 were introducing the tal and adding a drone, to improvise and create a piece of music using a drone, rag and tal.

After being introduced to traditional Indian music and instruments, and forming an option on Indian music, the children were getting better at playing a rag. The children were using improvising skills using notes.

Children were introduced to the concept of pitch and learnt to recognise low and high sounds in a superhero theme tune.

The children explored how music can be experienced visually by associating sounds and songs with different colours and ideas. They listened to different music and then shared their ideas as a class.

In Year 2, children enjoyed listening to the story of George and the Dragon, they then created their own rhythms. 

Year 4 have performed rhythmic breaks within the samba piece. 

Year 4 have composed a basic rhythmic break and performed as a class. 

Year 4 have played syncopated rhythms through clapping and performed this as a class. 

The whole school showcased their Spring music learning and put on a wonderful show for our parents. The children describe their musical journey and even performed to show off their musical progress.

Lesson 5- The children created an eight beat break to play alongside traditional African music.

Lesson 4- The children really enjoyed learning how to play call and response rhythms, clapping and drumming together.

Lesson 3- The children used tuned percussion instruments to play as an ensemble after warming up by learning traditional African dancing.

Lesson 2- The children used tuned percussion instruments to play a chord progression using the A major, D major and E major chords.

Lesson 1- The children listened to traditional songs sung in the Xhosa language, joining in by singing the songs themselves. 

Children showcase their work throughout this unit by using instruments in a class performance of 'The Three Little Pigs', with the focus on keeping the pulse of the rhythm.

Children learn to identify how timbre is used to represent the different characters in 'Peter and the Wolf'.

Clapping the syllables in given words and phrases, pupils work in groups to create rhythmic patterns and phrases to tell the story of The Three Little Pigs, before performing whilst the story is told.

Y2 enjoyed completing their Musical Me unit of learning. They researched and composed a melody using the glockenspiels. 

In year 3, the children have completed their final performance using tuned instruments to perform their final compositions.

Building on their understanding of timbre, children carefully select and play appropriate instruments or body percussion to help tell the story of 'The Three Little Pigs'.

The children have been getting better at using scarfs and rhythm to perform a group composition, in the form of a dragon dance.

The children have been getting better at letter notation, and writing and perform a pentatonic melody.

Children explored timbre through the familiar story of The Three Little Pigs by creating different character voices.

In this lesson the children used glockenspiels to focus on dynamics and timbre, creating their own little melodys. 

In this lesson children in year have been getting better at pentatonic scale, and learning to use a tuned instrument to play the scale together as a class.

In this lesson, Year 2 enjoyed playing the 'name game' and then singing songs using different expressions. They focused on the timbre and dynamics of songs. 

In this lesson, Year 2 listened to a song 'Once a man fell in a well', they then learnt the song and played some untuned percussion instruments alongside the song. 

In music year 3 children have been performing the dragon dance. After watching the ‘Story if Nian’ the children danced traditionally to celebrate the festival. The children moved in response to the musical elements: crescendo, tempo, and duration.

In Year 4, the children have studied 'body percussion'. They have created simple tunes about each layer of the Amazon Rainforest. Then, they have then built and improved their compositions through peer feedback. 

In lesson 5, Year 6 used music notation to create visual representations of TIKI-TIKI, TI-TIKI and TIKI-TI rhythms 

In lesson 4, Year 6 learnt to play TIKI-TIKI, TI-TIKI and TIKI-TI rhythms

Year 6 performed a theme using body percussion and then added vocals

In lesson 2, Year 6 related sounds of different instruments to pieces of pop art

In Y3 the children have been performing in groups using music. Y3 have performed with confidence and discipline, whilst keeping in time and tune with others.

In pairs the children used instruments to demonstrate the different musical terms they had learnt.

The children investigated layering to imitate the different textures of a coral reef. The children had time to experiment to create their sounds using their chosen instruments. As a class, the adult used a pointer to move across the picture. When the children saw the pointer pass their plant/sea creature they should play their sound.

In Y3, the children have been performing rhythms from notations. They have been getting better at using simple rhythmic notations to compose a Viking battle song. The children enjoyed layering these rhythms to create a piece of music.

In this lesson, the children were learning about pitch and rhythm by adding a new character to the underwater piece. The children made upward and downward cascading sounds to show a deep sea diver going under the sea to take photographs of the sea creatures. See videos below.

In Y3 today they have been getting better at recognising simple rhythmic notation by ear and by sight.
They have been using Viking-themed phrases to learn new rhythms, develop understanding of stave notation and learn to recognise note names by sight and sound. We have been using Minims, Quavers and Crochets in our performances to create long and short beats.

Year 2 have explored how to select appropriate sounds to match events, characters and feelings in the story of Red Riding hood. 

Year 4 have explored how they can make music with their bodies. They have worked in teams to compose and perform musical rhythms about the Tropical Rainforest.

Year 4 have rehearsed and performed ‘boom, snap, clap’ to their peers.

Year 4 have listened and appraised pieces of music made through body percussion. The children have identified the structure of the music and identified the number of layers they heard in each piece of music.

Year 6 explored musical concepts of theme and variation and practised rhythm in lesson 1 of Theme and Variation

The children selected instruments with the timbres they think best represent the sparkling, colourful fish.

Children in Y3 have been getting better at singing in time with others. Y3 have rehearsed ‘Here the Vikings come’, and practiced warming up their vocals. Y3 have also started to include actions to contribute to the rhythm of the song.

Year 5 enjoyed learning how to play the first line of the 12-bar Blues. They had to practice the chord of C , knowing that it is made of the notes C and E, and play it 16 times altogether. It was wonderful to hear everyone playing together as a class. 

Children in Year 2 listened and analysed an orchestral version of Goldilocks and the three bears, we also used actions to retell the story in line with the music. 

The children used pulse and tempo to tell a story about a brush with sharks.

In lessons 4 and 5, Year 6 composed their own piece of music as a group, using different instruments to create pitch, dynamics and texture. One member of the group was a conductor who kept the class in time. We then reflected and gave constructive comments to improve our performances..

In lesson 1 of our Music topic (Dynamics, pitch and tempo), Year 6 appraised the work of a classical composer - Felix Mendelssohn. We discussed what we liked and disliked about the music and thought about what the music was about..

After identifying the pulse in several songs, the children practise performing either the pulse or rhythm to highlight the differences between the two.

The children in year 5 explored different forms of musical notation, creating and improvising their own piece of music using hieroglyphs. 

In this lesson, year 2 performed our call and response song and then planned and shared ideas about the unit. Creating mind maps on the features of a call and response song. The children were focusing on how to add dynamics (volume) to a structure of rhythms. 

Using the call and response method, the children listen out for rhythms and then repeat them.

Year 4 have found out how and why percussion instruments can be used in Calypso music. The children have played a four-note repeating pattern and then progressed to playing this in time as a class. 

Year 4 have used the glockenspiels to perform quavers from staff notation. The children were able to listen and perform for each other and offer helpful feedback to improve their performances. 

In Nursery we have been exploring different instruments. We have learnt how to play them, the sounds they make and we are getting better at knowing their names.

In this lesson Year 2 were getting better at creating rhythms based on call and response. The children thoroughly enjoyed learning more traditional songs and then using the African call and response genre.  

The children in Year 2 listened to some traditional African songs and then learnt and sang the song together. 

We then deepened our learning by adding instruments. 

Children in FS2 love singing, especially nursery rhymes. They learn new words, develop non-verbal communication skills, 

early maths skills along with learning different beats and rhythms.

The children in Year 2 are getting better at copying a short rhythm. 

In Music, Y3 have watched a short story clip, which they used to participate in the activity. The children planned a musical structure inspired by this short story (Soar, by Alice Tzure). They discussed feelings emotions, and actions. The children then explored writing sentences to accompany a storyline. The children then read and ordered these sentences using the story mountain.

Music- Composition Notation- Egyptians

The children have really enjoyed the first lesson of their new music topic- Composition Notation.

They took part in warm up activities, pretending to dig the foundations of the pyramids and lifting the stones to build them. They then practised vocal warm-ups before listening to and singing the song, 'Gift of the Nile'.

In this lesson the children played multiple voice control games exploring pulse and rhythm.

In Nursery we have been exploring drumming. We watched someone drumming fast, slow, loud and quiet. He also drummed on different things. We found some sticks in our outdoor area and practiced drumming fast, slow, loudly and quietly on different things just as he did to discover the different sounds we could make.

For lesson 1 in our new music unit, the children in Year 2 created short sequences of sound using a range of percussion instruments. 

We then developed our learning by seeing if we could change the pitch of the instruments. 

Year 5- Livin' On A Prayer

The children were eager to perform their rendition of the famous Bon Jovi track Livin' On A Prayer. They were enjoying themselves so much that they were even caught dancing along!

Year 5- Livin' On A Prayer

The children in year 5 enjoyed using movement and clapping to identify the beat and rhythm of the music.

The whole school had a lovely visit from the Music Hub! We listened to live instruments being played and we even had the opportunity to ask lots of questions. It was great fun and we even had the opportunity to dance to some of our favourite songs!

The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air

The children in year 5 have enjoyed learning the iconic theme tune to The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air. They have played dancing games to identify the beat and rhythm of the song and played along on the glockenspiels using the notes A and D. Take a look at children in action.

Reception childrfen learnt the song, 'We Gather Together' They took musical instruments outside and used them to accomany the song. 

What a fantastic, enjoyable and amazing experience the children in our choir from Years 3, 4, 5 and 6 had at Young Voices at Sheffield Arena. Not forgetting the teachers and parents too! From the rehearsals to the performance, everyone was enthusiastic and joined in with songs, dances and routines. It was a truely inspiring event!

Year 1 have enjoyed listening to music, following the beats by acting out different actions and clapping to the beats. We have also explored different pitches to our voices, singing high pitch and low pitch whilst following along to the music. 

Year 5- Dancing in the Street

Calling out around the world- are you ready for a brand new beat?

Year 5 certainly are! 

The class enjoyed listening to a range of Motown hits and discussed the songs before picking their favourite. We then explored the history of Dancing in the Street and played games to find the beat before learning the first verse and bridge. We can't wait to perform the song later in the term.

Year 4 have started to learn their new song on Charanga which is Blackbird by The Beatles. We listened to the song, found out some interesting facts and then played some pulse and rhythm games. The children then started to learn the song verse by verse and the chorus. The children did really well learning this song so quickly!

Year 5 loved playing glockenspiels!

Year 5 have really enjoyed finding the pulse in a piece of music and then playing glockenspiels to the pulse.