Music
At Fairfield, we believe that music is a unique way of communicating that can inspire and motivate children. Listening to and making music fulfils an instinctive human need for self-expression and creativity. It can be uplifting, therapeutic and has a positive effect on our well-being.
Music is a foundation subject in the Curriculum 2014. At Fairfield, we teach music throughout a thematic creative curriculum. Planning is centred around the topic as well as the inter-related musical dimensions, developing children’s listening, appraising and composing skills and can be experienced through other subjects including ICT, PE and Art.
We are a singing school and high expectations of the Staff ensure all children sing, learn songs by heart and enjoy singing as a natural part of their school experience. All children have the opportunity to perform to an audience. The Music Co-ordinator sets the example by leading singing whenever possible and at any appropriate opportunity!
Music contributes significantly to the teaching of English by actively promoting the skills of reading, writing, speaking and listening. Children develop language through singing by paying attention to diction, meaning, rhythm and rhyme. Likewise the teaching of music contributes to children’s mathematical understanding in a variety of way by observing patterns and processes.
Music can develop key skills that can support learning in all subjects and which are needed for life and work skills eg. communication, concentration, creativity, teamwork, perseverance, evaluation and improvement, problem solving and thinking skills.
School Focus
- All children are encouraged to use their voices expressively and creatively by singing songs, chants, raps, rhymes etc.
- The children’s work is showcased through class and whole school performances.
- All classes perform an item in Church for the Harvest Festival, Christmas Carol Service (alternate years) and Easter Service.
- All classes contribute towards the Christmas production (alternate years).
- The finale to the academic year is the End of Year Concert (whole school) and the Leavers’ Assembly produced and performed by Willow Class.
- Regular singing assemblies are conducted throughout the year. Different styles of music is played each morning as the children walk into assembly.
- All classes are encouraged to use the instruments that we have at school to play in lessons and within performances. Classes are encouraged to experiment, create, select and combine sounds using the inter-related dimensions of music (eg, pitch, dynamics, tempo etc).
- As children move into KS2, appropriate musical vocabulary is taught. We have a class set of glockenspiels which, when used in class, begin to introduce musical notation to children.
- In recent years, all children in Year 3 have had the opportunity to learn to play the ukulele and thus have begun to experience musical notation.
- When possible, we have had musical workshops given by professional musicians enabling children to make and play instruments in a topical context.
Enrichment opportunities
- Membership of Choir – including opportunities to perform in public within the local community.
- Sing-a-long Club
- Glockenspiel Club
- Recorder Club (future possibility)
