We aim for our teaching and learning of music to be creative, collaborative and celebratory. Singing, instrument playing, musical performances, the love of listening and appraising music all go towards making a memorable music curriculum. At Westleigh Methodist Primary School, we follow Charanga music units. These are aligned with the National Curriculum and the DfE's non-statutory Model Music Curriculum 2021. There is a spiral approach to music learning with children revisiting and extending skills and knowledge incrementally. This leads to more secure, deeper learning and musical mastery.

Each unit involves a variety of musical activities centred around given songs:

Understanding music

• Children learn about pulse, rhythm, pitch, dynamics (volume such as forte / piano / mezzo forte / mezzo piano / crescendo / diminuendo), tempo, texture, articulation, timbre.
• Children move to the beat, copy back rhythmic patterns, use untuned percussion, warm up their voices, create melodies on tuned instruments.
• Listen and respond
• Learn to sing the song
• Play instruments with the song
• Children use tuned instruments - glockenspiels (clarinets in Year 5 / 6 with their Wider Opportunities project)
• Improvise with the song
• Children make up their own tune.

Composition

• Children create graphic scores using shapes, squiggles, letters or pictures.
• Formal notation is introduced in Year 3 but foundations are laid from Year 1.
• From Year 3, children learn about crotchets, minims, semi-breves, semi quavers and rests. They also use staves, bar-lines and treble clefs.

Perform the song

• Each unit has a musical spotlight. It highlights a musical activity to be discussed, learnt about and integrated into each lesson. The spiral approach allows 6 social questions to be progressively revisited. The questions are intended to stimulate and focus class discussion. In Year 4, Wigan Music Service teach a series of 1-hour lessons. They learn to play xylophones and drums. This culminates in a whole school music performance led by Wigan Music Service.

As children get older, we expect them to maintain their concentration for longer and to listen to more extended pieces of music. Children develop descriptive skills in music lessons when learning about how music can represent feelings and emotions. We teach them the disciplined skills of recognising pulse and pitch. Also, we teach the children how to work with others to compose music and perform for an audience. Finally, we ensure every child will have the opportunity to learn an instrument for a year and are taught by a music specialist; pupils learn to read music and play as part of an ensemble.

Productions

As part of our Music curriculum, we build in singing and drama performances.

• Nursery Nativity in Autumn term (Music is therefore taught for more than 1 hour per week in the second half of the Autumn term.)
• Rec Nativity in Autumn term (Music is therefore taught for more than 1 hour per week in the second half of the Autumn term.)
• In Year 1 /2 in Autumn term, we have a Christmas performance that incorporates song, dance and drama (Music is therefore taught for more than 1 hour per week in the second half of the Autumn term.)
• In Autumn term, we have a KS2 Carol Concert for families and children in the school hall.

Wider Opportunities

Wider Opportunities are provided to Year 4 every term where children are taught a musical instrument by specialist music teachers from Wigan Music Service. There is no charge to families for this.

Choir

At Westleigh Methodist Primary School, we promote singing's benefits. Firstly, it is a fun, inclusive activity. Singing also helps to lower stress, enhance memory and improve mental health.

From 2024 - 25, our choir, run by Adam Brocken, provides vocal coach support for our children in our after-school club. There is no charge to families for this club. This also benefits our community as the focus of the choir is to perform at a local care home and for our families at our Healthy Schools Coffee Morning in Spring term. Therefore, the benefits of singing reaches beyond the children in school.

Individual Music Lessons

Wigan Music Service offer our pupils tuition in a variety of musical instruments such as drums, vocal and guitar. These come at a charge to families but this may be supported by Pupil Premium in some cases.

Please find our Music Curriculum Overview and Progression of Skills and Knowledge below: