Music

Music has enormous power to change emotions, to unite, to provide a medium for the expression of feelings, together with promoting ordered thinking.

One of our main aims is to keep children enjoying music and to develop a love for it. We live in a very visual culture and we aim to educate and fine tune the ear of the child.

Our focus is on practical involvement for all children, with an emphasis on singing using the methods of Kodály, thereby imparting a working knowledge of the elements of music – pitch, rhythm, dynamics, texture, timbre and, of course, silence which is necessary to frame music! The curriculum includes both composition and evaluation of performances. Cross-curricular links are formed with ICT through the use of the notation software ‘Musescore’.

In Year 4 children learn to play the recorder, and in Year 6 they play the ukulele. The Year 5 and 6 children sing in a 2/3 part choir and tackle difficult repertoires at various choral events.

Individual instrumental tuition is available in piano, violin, flute and guitar. Seventy percent of children learn an instrument at school. Many children take external grade examinations and most achieve very good results.

There are a number of opportunities annually for children to perform to an audience.