Music Intent

At Rosewood Primary School, we want children to experience a high-quality, inspiring music education which instils a life-long enjoyment and appreciation for music.  We believe music develops children’s ability to take part in practical activities, both individually and in groups, that encourages and cultivates an enjoyment and engagement within different genres of music.

Our main objectives:

1. To develop pupils' understanding and appreciation of a range of musical styles, genres, and traditions.
2. To provide opportunities for pupils to acquire musical skills, including performing, composing, and listening.
3. To encourage pupils to express themselves creatively through music and develop their confidence and self-esteem.
4. To promote collaboration and teamwork through ensemble playing and group musical activities.
5. To foster an appreciation of the cultural and historical significance of music.
6. To provide opportunities for pupils to showcase their musical achievements through performances and events.

Rosewood's Key Music Concepts

What does Music look like at Rosewood?

In music lessons, the children are involved in making and responding to music. We aim to develop each of the formal elements of music through performing, composing, and appraising in all activities and extend these skills by applying listening skills, knowledge and understanding of music. In order to fulfil the objectives, we use the Charanga scheme of Music in EYFS, KS1 and KS2.  Children in KS2 have the opportunity to learn a musical instrument and will perform at the end of their block of sessions.

Rosewood Primary School is well-equipped with a variety of instruments, including keyboards, percussion instruments, and classroom sets of recorders. This ensures that the children receive an exciting and progressive curriculum. ICT resources, including music software and online resources, are utilised to enhance teaching and learning. Furthermore, the school library and local music services provide additional resources and support the delivery of lessons throughout the school. Specialist music teachers visit the school and deliver high-quality music lessons to pupils in KS2. 

Music in EYFS at Rosewood 

Across our EYFS, music interweaves through all areas of learning and development.  Children are often taught through song, nursery rhymes and repeated actions. 

This approach positively impact on all areas of the EYFS curriculum: its impact can be found here. 

Music can be a way of exploring, communicating and responding to experience. 

Making music with others can be a social experience whether this be parent-baby/carer-baby exchanging coos, or two or more children making music with pots, pans or traditional instruments. This interaction with others, whether this be with one other person or a group, is personal to each individual and is often an expression of feelings 

All vocal communication is comprised of musical elements such as pitch, rhythm and timbre, demonstrating that musicality is an intrinsic part of being human. Music should be seen as a core component of children’s learning and should be shared with young children to ensure they have broad, balanced and rounded experiences in early childhood and beyond. 

A musical progression and development overview can be found in this document: Musical Development Matters in the Early Years and is split into four areas:

Music Provision at Rosewood:

Our EYFS children have access to a variety of musical instruments within provision.  Music making can be challenging to provide for in early years settings as it is noisy, and it can be difficult to document as it is live, invisible and once it has been created in that moment it disappears, unless we capture it.  Staff, when able, record evidence of music and this is then evidenced within the children’s learning journeys. 

During a recent nursery learning walk, the children were waving scarves, material and ribbons to music developing their gross motor skills.

Our outdoor provision also provides opportunity for our EYFS children to engage with music.  The music shed homes a variety of instruments whilst the stage encourages our children to engage in music making and dance performing solo or in groups.  The children create their own songs, or improvise a song around one they know.  The use the instruments with increasing control to express their feelings and ideas.

This provision enables the children to ‘Sing a range of well-known nursery rhymes and songs. Perform songs, rhymes, poems and stories with others, and – when appropriate try to move in time with music.’ (ELG – Expressive Arts and Design)

Teacher interview/ discussion:

“We use music- especially nursery rhymes to help build up early listening skills. Nursery rhymes and singing is part of our daily routine. This follows alongside the Ruth Miskin approach and DFE. 

They help us learn how to listen and tune into sounds to prepare us for early blending and segmenting. Singing also helps us in early maths(1,2,3,4,5 one I caught a fish alive etc) BBC teach has early listening sounds which we use with the children. 

Music also helps us tune into early sounds. We use percussion instruments to help with tempo. 

We hide instruments under a blanket and allow children to guess or match the sounds and play music games such as what's in the box. 

Playing instruments and keeping a beat prepares us for clapping syllables in words - Fred Talk (3/4 literacy)”

Resources:

A list of resources found to support my understanding of music in the EYFS.

EYFS Music – What subject leaders need to know

Listening and understanding in the EYFS – Gov.uk

How to use music in Early Years

Music in Development Matters

Benefits of regular active music making (in EYFS)