Music

“Without music, life would be a mistake.

Friedrich Nietzsche

Music is about developing skills, working together and joyful participation. When students learn how to work with their audience, with each other and by themselves, then music can activate transferable skills that go on to inform and unlock potential in all other disciplines.

Through performing and composing, through singing and learning an instrument, all students at Bordesley Green Girls' School and Sixth Form can access the aliveness that comes from performing with enthusiasm and commitment.

Year 7 – Musical Skill Development

Term	Topic/ Key Enquiry Question	Type of Assessment
Autumn	What is Music? Instrumental Skills 1	Singing, Ukelele, Keyboard Keyboard, Singing
Spring	Instrumental Skills 2 Let's Write a Melody	Ukelele, Singing Keyboard, Composition
Summer	Solo & Small Ensemble Skills Songwriting 1	Singing, Keyboard, Ukelele Singing, Ukelele, Keyboard
Extra-Curricular Activities/ How you can help at home Choir, Steel Pans, Guitar, Dhol, Woodwind & Brass lessons

[Top of the page]

Year 8 – Around the Musical World

Term

Topic/ Key Enquiry Question

Type of Assessment

Autumn

Calypso

Reggae

Singing, Ukelele, Keyboard

Spring

Indonesian Gamelan

French Impressionism

Percussion

Keyboard, Composition

Summer

Bhangra

Blues Songwriting

Dhol, Keyboard

Singing, Instruments, Composition

Extra-Curricular Activities/ How you can help at home

Choir, Steel Pans, Guitar, Dhol, Woodwind & Brass lessons

[Top of the page]

Year 9 – Putting It Together

Term

Topic/ Key Enquiry Question

Type of Assessment

Autumn

Introduction to Song-Writing

Introduction to Musicals

Singing, Ukelele, Keyboard, Composition

Singing Performance

Spring

Show Planning & Songwriting

Keyboard, Singing, Composition

Summer

Show Rehearsal

Show Rehearsal/ Performance

Singing, Instruments, Technical

Extra-Curricular Activities/ How you can help at home

Choir, Steel Pans, Guitar, Dhol, Woodwind & Brass lessons

[Top of the page]

Year 10 & 11 – BTEC First Award in Music

	Yr10	Yr10		Yr10	Yr11	Yr11	Yr11
Unit 1 The Music Business	Careers & organisations External Exam in the Music Industry in May Yr 10					Retake Opportunity January Yr 11	Consolidate, wider revision when coursework is complete
Unit 2 Create a Musical Product					Work as a group to plan, host, publicise and evaluate a concert Or Work as a group to plan, record, publicise and evaluate an album (CD)
Unit 5 Performing	Skill Development		Technical development, rehearsal and assessed performances.
Unit 6 Sound Recording				Develop knowledge and skills to set up and run a multi-track studio recording session, followed by editing and mixing a final track

[Top of the page]

How to we assess what your child has learned?

MUSIC
How will classwork be marked/ monitored/ graded/ self-assessed?	KS3	Final unit outcomes once every half term Skill development ongoing as and when on spreadsheet Ongoing verbal self/peer assessments throughout topics
	KS4	Folders checked once per fortnight Questions marked/self/peer assessed during exam lessons Assignments assessed according to BTEC Assessment Plan
What classwork will be marked?	KS3	Final unit outcomes once every half term Skill development ongoing as and when on spreadsheet
What classwork will be marked?	KS4	Teachers will comment using Red pen. Comments will reflect unit assessment criteria Students to track verbal feedback on sheet
How will students ‘reflect’ on marking/ feedback?	KS3/KS4	Students complete end of unit reflection sheet
How will Homework be marked/ monitored/ graded?	KS3	N/A
How will Homework be marked/ monitored/ graded?	KS4	Exam questions will be marked by teacher
What are the formal Assessments? When are they marked?	KS3- Performances/compositions recorded every half term KS4 BTEC- coursework assessed according to BTEC Assessment Plan KS5- N/A