-    M – Memorable Learning
-    O - Oracy
-    R - Reading
-    E – Experiences (Real Life)
 
Intent:
Music is a practical, creative subject that is underpinned by a sound knowledge and
understanding of technical, musical terms. At Westmorland Primary School, we aim
to develop each child’s understanding of key music vocabulary and their enjoyment
of musical opportunities.
We know that we need to offer MORE in our Music lessons and aim to offer a varied
curriculum that inspires children to want to create and explore music (MEMORABLE),
that allows children to talk through their ideas when composing and evaluating
pieces of music (ORACY), that develops their reading skills through introducing basic
graphic notation and through reading song lyrics (READING) and that is practical at
every opportunity. (EXPERIENCES).
We strive to achieve this aim by:
•    Providing memorable learning opportunities for all children to explore music
through voice, tuned and untuned percussion instruments.
•    Providing a sequence of lessons that are vocabulary rich so that children can
develop their understanding of technical terms.
•    Giving children the opportunity to work with others to compose and perform
short pieces of music.
•    Ensuring children have a focused sequence of lessons that explores music
technology.
•    Encouraging children to listen to and evaluate music that has been pre-recorded
or made by their peers.
•    Helping children to develop an ability to criticise constructively and evaluate their
own music and those of others.
 
Implementation:
At Westmorland Primary School, we use a variety of teaching and learning styles in
Music lessons. A mixture of whole-class teaching and individual/group activities are
used within largely practical based lessons to enable children to develop their
understanding of musical terms. The lessons also allow children to develop their
listening and evaluation skills through encouragement to give constructive feedback
to each other. They have the opportunity to use a range of tuned and untuned
percussion instruments as well as developing their vocal skills. 
An understanding and enjoyment of Music begins in the Early Years Foundation
Stage through child led continuous provision experiences and adult led group
activities. Our foundation stage baseline assessments highlight low listening and
attention levels so music is also utilised as a tool to encourage development in this
area and Phase 1 of phonics. EYFS staff provide a range of memorable music
experiences that encourage exploration of percussion instruments and voice in both
the indoor and outdoor learning environments. 
Our school has a wide range of resources to support the teaching of Music across
the school. Percussion instruments are all stored in a cupboard in the Y1 classroom
and are available for all teachers to use when they need to. 

 
Impact:
Music is assessed through judgements of how well children demonstrate their
understanding of taught musical terms and skills in the following ways:
•    Observations of the children during each lesson
•    Listening to the children’s ideas and evaluations during group discussions 
•    Assessing the children's learning against the objectives for their half-termly unit
using the assessment pro-forma.
Planning and the portfolio is monitored by the Music team when requested by the
Senior Management Team. Lessons are also observed by the music team across
each key stage so that an accurate picture of childrens’ experiences in music is
created. Pupil voice also forms a part of these observations to enhance the teams’
understanding of lessons across the school. The work of the co-ordinator also
involves supporting colleagues in the teaching of Music and being informed about
current developments in the subject.
 
SEN & Equal Opportunities:
As teaching professionals, we wish to ensure that the relevant parts of the
curriculum are accessible to all. Teachers differentiate by task and support in order
that children with special educational needs, including gifted and talented children,
can reach their full potential. At Westmorland, we are keen to ensure that all
children are treated equally regardless of race, religion, gender, social background or
ability as much as their individual needs allow it.