Music Vision Statement
“Where words fail, music speaks.” (Hans Christian Andersen)
At St John’s, it is our vision that all children see themselves as musicians. We aim to offer them opportunities to be curious, to begin to understand how music is created and to develop a life-long love of music.
It has been scientifically proven that participating in musical activities has a positive effect on well being, development, health and happiness. This cannot be underestimated. At St John’s we enable and invite all children to experience the joy of music making and appreciation, in a variety of ways, supporting them to live happy, healthy lives.
By harnessing the creative nature of ‘music learning’, we want to enable all pupils to take their musical ideas and interests as far as their imaginations allow. Alongside the supportive theoretical and factual learning of notation and chronology, learners are unlimited in what they might achieve and encouraged to take risks and make adventurous choices through performance and composition.
Through our secular and non-secular ‘Singing Assembly’ repertoire, and exploration of the lives, beliefs and obstacles faced by composers and musicians through time, we wish to provide opportunities to explore and promote school values and morality issues.
In all musical activities we strive to create a nurturing environment where all pupils are given the opportunity to express their own ideas, develop confidence and resilience, and are free to listen and respond to the ideas of others.
Music is at the heart of our school. We sing to celebrate, to remember and to reflect. We aim to provide meaningful and memorable opportunities to take our music making outside the confines of our building and into the world around us. Through exploration of the history of music and the lives of key composers and musicians, children will develop an insight into how music has changed to reflect an ever-evolving society.
St John’s Primary School Music Development Plan Summary 2024
Our Music Curriculum
Our music curriculum is designed to be fun and ambitious. Our children use a range of instruments, as well as their voices, and at WR we have a dedicated Music Room. Children learn to read and write traditional musical notation from year 1 and this is developed as they travel through the school.
We use the award winning Bristol Curriculum for Music as the basis for our teaching, This is supported by materials from ENO – Finish This!, Berlioz Fantastique for Schools and Sing Up. Our curriculum is closely aligned with The Model Music Curriculum
Singing
Singing is at the heart of our school
A weekly Singing Assembly takes place on each site. During this, we focus on posture, breathing techniques and diction whilst learning a range of secular and non-secular music for celebrations, calendar events . . . and for fun!
We also have a large Junior Choir (60 singers) who perform at charity and church events, as well as at annual concerts such as Young Voices (Birmingham Arena) and Bristol Beacon events (Bristol Cathedral, St. George’s, UWE Conference Centre, Bristol Grammar School, Spiegeltent).
Peripatetic Music Lessons
Learning a musical instrument is an excellent opportunity to develop musical skill and talent. It also helps to grow confidence and resilience.
Our Music hub, Bristol Beacon provides our peripatetic teachers for violin, guitar and woodwind instruments. Children can learn one of these instruments, during school time from year 3 onwards and parents and carers can register an interest in these and other instruments on the Bristol Beacon website: https://ukbristolbeacon.speedadmin.dk/registration#/
In addition to this, we have several experienced and dedicated piano tutors who visit our school several times a week to provide lessons to children at Worrall Road and a ukulele / guitar tutor who visits Lower Redland Road and Worrall Road to provide group lessons and clubs. For more information, please email ChurchillL@stjohnsprimary.org.uk
Music Week
Each summer we have a dedicated Music Week.
Each year group selects a musician or composer, finds out about their life and work and uses this as a stimulus for their own work that week be it musical, artistic or as a springboard for creative writing. During this week, children take part in a competitive House Event with a musical focus. Recent themes have included Stomp inspired compositions, beat boxing challenges, musical theatre arrangements and performances and a task based on contemporary composer Kerry Andrew’s amazing, ‘No Place Like’, from the BBC Ten Pieces.
During this week, we hold our annual Musical Showcase concert. This is a great opportunity to celebrate the achievements and progress made by the young musicians during the year.
Music Staff
Music teaching is delivered across the school by Lindsay Churchill.
She also co-ordinates the instrumental tuition for the juniors, leads the Junior Choir and Ensemble and leads the Junior Singing Assembly.
Lindsay works in tandem with Sue Morgan who leads our Infant Singing Assemblies and a seasonal Infant choir, as well as co-ordinating instrumental tuition at our Lower Redland Road site.
Lindsay Churchill
Lindsay began learning musical instruments and receiving vocal tuition at the age of 7. Before leaving school, she had gained her Grade 8 singing and then her Advanced Diploma in Voice (ABRSM).
As a young musician, Lindsay gained valuable experience from an array of school and county orchestras and choirs and fully recognises the importance of these groups in promoting the skills of and educating our next generation of musicians.
Lindsay went on to gain a Music Degree from Cardiff University and then a Postgraduate Diploma from Trinity College of Music, London. Before teaching full time, Lindsay travelled and performed with various opera groups and as a soloist for many choirs as well as working as a peripatetic singing teacher in primary and secondary schools and for a performing arts education company.
SEND
To support learners with additional needs, our ordinarily available provision is underpinned by inclusive approaches and strategies captured on our Quality First Inclusive Teaching document – although this is by no means an exhaustive list. Some children will need more bespoke provision which is then planned on an individual or small group basis.
How is music inclusive?
Music offers all children an opportunity to join in and belong. It can be easily differentiated when performing and its subjective nature means that some of the fear of being ‘wrong’ that may exist in other areas of learning is removed. Singing plays a huge role in life at St John’s and everyone has access to this (e.g. we have learnt to sign certain songs for children who are non-verbal). Likewise, in KS2 every child participates in whole class instrumental learning. The nature of music learning, gives children who may find reading or writing difficult, an alternative way to access learning and demonstrate their talents. Singing is a great asset when it comes to learning and memorising information and can support other subjects. It also helps to develop collaborative and social skills, not to mention the benefits to wellbeing. Through music we explore, celebrate and perform the music of composers from a wide range of cultures, languages, religions and times.
Each of our musical elements (Golden Threads) is represented by an image which is consistently displayed and referred to throughout our school. We use lots of kinesthetic techniques (e.g. bouncing balls, pitch tracing) to assist children in understanding their learning.