We deliver our music lesson through the Charanga scheme of work. The reason which we chose Charanga is that we believe in their philosophy which the scheme is based on which is “the principle that music should be fun and engaging for all concerned, and that every child is a born musician. We believe that music is like magic and that it has a role to play in every aspect of all of our lives, wherever and whoever we are.” The scheme places songs at the heart of each lesson, drawing out all of the elements of musical learning from interacting with those songs.
We have built our own scheme based on our 3 year cycle for both the lower school and the upper school which stems progressively from our Reception children.
The teaching and experience of Music begins with our very youngest children in Reception through 4 key aspects: hearing and listening, vocalising and singing, moving and dancing and exploring and playing. Children are introduced to instruments, rhythms and beats, explore basic pulses and beats as well exploring singing to name but a few. It is these early experiences that the children’s progressive learning stems from.
By the time children leave us, they have been taught to sing and play musically with increasing confidence and control as well as having developed an understanding of musical composition, organising and manipulating ideas within musical structures. In the lower school children are taught to play the recorder and in the upper school, children play the ukulele.
Singing is also within the fabric of our school. We feel passionately about the benefits of singing for young children in the sense it can improve communication and language skills, boosts self-confidence and lifts our moods as well as connects us as a community. We are always looking for opportunities to sing here at Brize Norton Primary School: through our choir, performances, weekly assemblies and carol concerts. We also take part in Young Voices every other year in Birmingham O2 Arena. This year we are taking a group of ouor Upper School children to perform.
