Living God’s Love through….

• Academic provision that recognises the need for excellence in teaching and learning.
• Holistic provision that encourages Christian hope; building spirit and soul through faith orientated pastoral care.
• Inspirational provision through a modern curriculum that celebrates diversity and provides new opportunities.

Our vision for the arts:

Inspired by others

Created from within

Enjoyed by all

Music is valued and enjoyed by the whole school community at Countess Anne School. We believe music can bring “sparkle” to a school and is an important way of expressing ourselves and developing new skills. Through music, we can develop understanding of musical skills whilst also developing personal, social, communication skills.

Aims: -

• Inspire and motivate children to participate and make a response to all aspects of music.
• Build confidence and self esteem by encouraging performances to different audiences.
• Promote an appreciation and understanding of music as a means of communication.
• Develop an awareness of different cultures and traditions through music.
• Provide opportunities to express ideas, feelings and moods.
• Support children in finding their singing voice.
• Know and understand how sounds are made and then organised into musical structures.
• Promote co-operation and teamwork though composing and making music together.
• Know how music is composed and written down.
• To promote links with our local, national and global communities through music.
• To develop singing as a teaching tool throughout the school day.

Planning: -

Music at Countess Anne follows the National Curriculum which requires pupils to:

Perform, listen to, review and evaluate music across a range of historical periods, genres, styles and traditions, including the works of the great composers and musicians.

Learn to sing and to use their voices to create and compose music on their own and with others, have the opportunity to learn a musical instrument, use technology appropriately and have the opportunity to progress to the next level of musical excellence.

Understand and explore how music is created, produced and communicated including through the inter-related dimensions: pitch, duration, dynamics, tempo, timbre, texture, structure and appropriate musical notations.

Music is a holistic subject. Therefore, each statement is interrelated to the others. Development of listening skills, in particular is integral to the development of all aspects of pupils’ knowledge and understanding of music. Music lessons will cover all aspects of the National Curriculum Strands during a term.

All children are encouraged to participate in a class music lesson that is inclusive for all. Where possible cross-curricular links are made between music and topics.

Children are encouraged to perform in lessons, assemblies, school services and concerts and their participation in performances is celebrated.

Teaching follows it’s own skill based scheme planned with reference to the methodology of the Voices Foundation, which puts the voice at the heart of music education. It is progressive, building on skills learned the previous year, using the singing voice and concentrating on the development of the inner ear. Musical skills such as pulse, rhythm and matching the pitch, are seen as skills that can be developed by all with regular daily practise. While there are opportunities for children of all abilities to develop their skills and knowledge in each teaching unit, the planned progression built into the scheme of work means that the children are increasingly challenged as they move through the school.

Responsibility for teaching music through singing is taken by the class teacher, supported by the music subject leader and may take place at different times throughout the day, every day throughout the week.

The class teacher writes a termly plan,  from which he or she chooses specific learning objectives for lessons during the week. The music subject leader is responsible for keeping a copy of these plans and supporting staff where needed.

Additional music teaching

Countess Anne is a school which believes in allowing children to access instrumental tuition. In order to do this, children begin to learn steel pans in Year 4, which followed by a second intermediate year in Year 5. Children who show particular aptitude or enthusiasm for the instrument are encouraged to participate in a steel band. 

In addition, children are offered the opportunity to study musical instruments with peripatetic teachers. Group lessons are provided by the school from children in Y4, 5 and 6. The school has a number of violins, cellos, clarinets and recorders which pupils can borrow while they are in the initial stages of learning an instrument.

Pupils are expected to show commitment to learning by practising, in order to keep their place in a school funded group lesson.

Some children go on to individual lessons. Parents who want their childen to participate in the scheme must pay the additional music lesson fees on a termly basis.

These lessons are addition to the normal music teaching of the school and usually take place during normal lessons from which children are withdrawn for the duration of the instrumental lesson.

Pupils who receive instrumental tuition are encouraged to join the school band- every Tuesday 3-4p.m.

Assessment

Teachers’ assessment of children’s music work is ongoing,  through observation or in discussion with the children, using this information to inform their future planning.

More formal assessment takes place with reference to the National Curriculum and using the school’s scheme of work and assessment procedures. (See Appendix.)

Progress in music is reported to parents in the Summer annual report.

Resources. (These should be used by staff during music lessons.

• Set of steel pans- kept on the stage in the hall.
• Variety of glockenspiel and xylophones – on display in the hall.
• A class set of djembe drums- on display in the hall.
• The music trolley contains a selection of untuned percussion instruments, including tambours,  tambourines, drums, wood blocks, guiros, triangles, bells, cymbals, castanets/ shakers, a cabassa. This is kept in the hall, but can be wheeled into classrooms for a class lesson.
• A box of claves.
• A selection of beaters – box under the stage in the  hall.
• A selection of song books- on shelves in the corridor outside the hall.
• 12 glockenspiels- most suitable for infants- on shelves in the corridor outside the hall.
• Music magazines with tapes, linking literacy and music- on shelves in the corridor outside the hall.
• Keyboard- kept under the display stage in the hall.
• Piano- in the hall.
• Electric Piano -in Family Room

Musical events.

It is our policy to ensure children have as much opportunity to perform as possible.  For example, at the Schools' Songs of Praise at St Etheldreda’s Church; three communion services a year; Easter service; Christmas service; daily assembly /worship features whole school singing;

Singing is always a part of our Christmas performances presented by EYP (YR and Y1) and Phase 2 (Y4 an, 4 and 6). Plus the Easter play performed by Phase 1 (Year 2 and 3) During the Summer term, the whole school celebrates their achievement in music lessons with a  Celebration Assembly, plus a Summer Music Concert for each Key Stage. Pupils who receive individual instrumental lessons are also invited to perform at a Summer Recital evening. 

Other opportunities have included- playing at concerts with the Hertfordshire Symphony Orchestra; the Welwyn and Hatfield Brass Band; the Hertfordshire concert band in different venues such as Drill Hall, Ware or the Alban Arena. Such opportunities are taken when they arise. 

Every two years, we offer pupils from Y5 and Y6 the opportunity to take part in a Young Voices Concert  to the O2 Arena and also participate in events run by county, the diocese or the Voices Foundation, such as a gala at the Royal Albert Hall.

Extra-curricular music activities.

• Pupils in Phase 2 participate in choir and Tribal Groove- drumming and dancing club on a Monday. Pupils experience a term in each then choose which clib to revisit for the Summer Term.
•  Countess Anne Band – Tuesday 3.00p.m.-4.00p.m.
•  Violin  and piano lessons- peripatetic teacher. Tuesday and Wednesday.

Parental involvement.

Parents are regularly informed about any musical activities and events that are taking place. Parents are encouraged to support their child by attending musical events and enabling practise at home.

Staff development and C.P.D.

Class teachers are responsible for every day music teaching. In EYP, KS1, Y3 and Y6 teachers and key workers deliver their own music lessons, while Y4 and Y5 are split into two groups, so that one group receive a Voices Foundation lesson while the other participates in their steel pan lesson. The music subject leader supports all staff in their delivery of music.

Priorities for staff development will be identified by the music subject leader from observations and staff discussions. The  school expects to develop its music education provision, by continuing to work on the principles of the Voices Foundation and further develop the musical skills of the staff through a termly staff meeting, plus continuing its links with the Voices Foundation Organisation.

S.E.N.

We believe that music should be experienced and enjoyed by all. As a result, all music activities are inclusive and appropriate for all children of any ability.

Should a child have a specific learning or physical need, we would endeavour  to make provision for that child.

Monitoring and review.

The music subject leader is responsible for monitoring the standard of music teaching and learning through observation, team teaching, planning and assessment procedures.