At Red Hill, music is a regular lesson where we use instruments as well as our voices and it is taught in a variety of ways. Music is a subject which uses and improves skills that will be useful in many other subjects, for example by learning to listen purposefully.

“Music is a universal language that embodies one of the highest forms of creativity. A high quality music education should engage and inspire pupils to develop a love of music and their talent as musicians, and so increase their self-confidence, creativity and sense of achievement. As pupils progress, they should develop a critical engagement with music, allowing them to compose, and to listen with discrimination to the best in the musical canon.” National Curriculum (2014).

Singing Assembly

Key Stage 1 and Key Stage 2 take part in a weekly singing assembly which will improve both their musicality and their wellbeing. Songs are selected that will teach a particular vocal skill, such as singing in a round or using rhythmic devices or that will help uplift the children’s mood.

Music curriculum

Music lessons are sometimes embedded into the IPC topics where the children work in a more cross curricular way. Other lessons are taught using the Charanga Music Scheme, which allows us complete other aspects of the National Curriculum using percussion instruments and our voices. Other lessons are taught with the aim of learning an instrument. In Year 5 children learn the recorder, which also helps to embed a knowledge of staff notation. In Year 6 children spend time learning to play African drums.

The key skills we regularly use in music are listening, performing and composing. We also spend time learning about the styles of music and a little bit about the history of them so that we can use that knowledge in our playing/singing.

Red Hill Choir

Children are given the opportunity to sing in our 2 choirs. This allows children to further progress with their singing by improving their vocal techniques and learning to sing with a conductor. The children become used to singing in harmony and are given regular opportunities to perform.

1:1 Music lessons

In addition to other lessons, we are lucky enough to have specialist instrumental teachers come into school regularly from Bromley Music Trust that can give individual lessons to children in drums, guitar, piano and violin.