Curricular music is the backbone of excellent EYFS and primary provision. While whole-class music can lay the foundation for fantastic musical performance, more importantly, curricular lessons encourage learners to enjoy the exploration, passion and understanding of music. Peek inside our Schemes of Work and Progression Map to learn how.
Sing Education lessons always contain active music-making. They’re high-energy and engaging, with singing at the core. Children are making music and singing all the way through their music lessons. We believe that curriculum time should be the backbone of all good music-making in schools.
We also see an important distinction between music education and musical performance. In the Sing Education methodology, our teaching is not focused on having children reproduce sounds, rhythms and lyrics simply in order to have them perform. It’s about children actually learning and experiencing music; it’s about them developing a natural and deeply individual love for music. And we feel this happens best during whole class, curricular music. We believe that every part of the primary music architecture – be it extracurricular clubs, singing assemblies or instrumental tuition – should stem from good quality curricular music.
Curriculum music gives children a deep understanding of music through a rich and varied music education. Lessons always contain singing and active music-making throughout. Through activities, games, instruments and songs, children learn the musical elements of that day’s lesson plan.
Curriculum music provision from Sing Education typically consists of one, two or three days of jam-packed music provision, covering everything from whole class music lessons to after school clubs. Usually, we work with schools to create a timetable that consists of a 45-minute lesson for each class, though sometimes this is 30 or 60 minutes per class and in some schools, this is on a rotation. The length, regularity and type of classroom lesson is bespoke to each school and their needs. Whether you’re a one-form entry or a four-form entry school, we develop a music plan to suit your timetable.
Sing Education lessons usually take place either in a designated music room (ideal setting) or in the classroom or the hall. The children and teacher sit together in a circle as this helps lessons to be engaging and inclusive. Before undertaking a new placement, all Sing Education teachers are specifically trained by us to teach all year groups and to deliver our bespoke music curriculum. They also have advanced developmental workshops which focus on classroom management, safeguarding procedures and inclusive teaching practice.
In addition to individual lesson plans and assessment tools, Sing Education offers termly Schemes of Work and a comprehensive Progression Map all of which are fully in line with the National Curriculum for music. This means that at any time should you as a headteacher – or perhaps an Ofsted inspector – wish to take a deep dive into the school’s music programme, we have a set of educational planning tools that can be readily accessed and shared.
A scheme of work is a unit which a class studies over a half term. Each scheme of work is made up of six to eight detailed lesson plans with a general overview as well. We design each unit to focus on a specific topic or musical element, such as music around the world or exploring pop music or exploring pulse and rhythm. Each scheme of work builds on prior knowledge and musical experience, teaches and presents new elements or ideas, reinforces terms already learnt, and prepares children for what they are going to learn in the next unit.
Alternatively, consulting our Progression Map enables you to take a more granular or bird’s eye view of what children are learning in any particular lesson. You’ll understand why they’re learning it, what they have learned before and how this leads on to future learning. The Progression Map is comprehensive in terms of educational inputs, outputs and strategies but simplified in structure so that it provides at-a-glance support to our Schemes of Work.
