Hackney New Primary School

Intent

At Hackney New Primary School we champion the benefits of providing a high quality music education for all of our students. With research supporting findings that music has a positive impact on wellbeing, as well as being proven to accelerate brain development, it is our firm belief that  music should be at the very core of any education, which aims to develop the whole child. Our objective at HNPS is to ensure our students leave primary school with the skills, knowledge and understanding to enable them to become confident performers, composers and listeners, whilst also providing a broad and rich musical experience that will foster a lifelong enjoyment of and appreciation for, a variety of genres of music.

For our students, the musical journey begins in Early Years, where musical awareness is developed through singing to support imagination, self-expression and language acquisition. Using principles of the  Kodály  method, our young musicians are taught to use their voices creatively and expressively as a primary instrument, learning the fundamentals of  rhythm and pitch supported by the use of solfa hand signs. In adopting the core principles of the Kodály approach, we understand the importance of singing and its role in developing and strengthening internalisation (the ‘thinking voice’) which forms the foundation of musical memory development and is a necessary prerequisite for part work, improvisation and instrumental learning. 

In accordance with the philosophy that ‘music belongs to everybody’ and in alignment with our commitment to reducing the social and financial barriers our students may face, all of our pupils receive weekly specialist instrumental lessons from Year 1 through to Year 6. Through our bespoke, progressive and ambitious curriculum, children will listen to, perform, analyse and evaluate repertoire from a broad range of musical styles and genres from around the world. They will also sing in different languages that recognise and celebrate the diverse and multicultural communities that make up our school. During instrumental lessons, our students put the interrelated dimensions of music into practice as they refine their bow holds, bowing techniques and finger positioning to develop  accuracy, fluency, control and expression when  playing. By Upper Key Stage 2, one instrumental lesson per week is dedicated to playing as a year group ensemble, enabling students to come together as an orchestra,which offers the chance to consolidate aural memory and deepen human connection as they collaborate and perform alongside their peers.

Implementation

Music lessons take place daily at HNPS, ensuring a well-rounded music education for our students. Our progressive curriculum enables students to listen and interpret, sing, play, perform and evaluate their own and others playing. Key knowledge and skills for each year are mapped to ensure music skills are developed sequentially and build on knowledge of music from one year to the next, enabling continued progression as children advance in their musical journey.
As part of our inclusive music offer, instrumental lessons are delivered thrice weekly, by our specialist tutors in their respective groups. We value the benefits of smaller group instrumental teaching for our students, which enables greater engagement with the violin, viola, cello and double bass, as well as offering the opportunity for frequent individualised feedback from tutors to refine individual technique and overall sound quality. 
Whole year group singing lessons and singing assemblies also take place once a week, with the aim of developing an awareness of pitch, understanding of harmony and development of part-singing. During their time with us, our pupils learn to sing a variety of genres, amassing different cultures, languages and historical periods to create meaningful cross-curricular links. As we hold the informal model of musical learning in high regard, we encourage our children to share songs which interest them and we endeavour to incorporate this into our repertoire each year. 
Musicianship lessons are taught once weekly and are delivered by class teachers following the KAPOW scheme, which provides class teachers with pedagogical content and knowledge to deliver well-planned and executed lessons, ensuring our pupils are successful in their outcomes. The scheme varies between a practical and theory-based approach, whereby pupils explore a variety of different instruments but also take the time to understand the cause and effect they have on an orchestral environment.Through explicit modelling of skill using ‘I do, we do, you do’ known as the gradual release of responsibility model, we enable all learners including our SEND children to feel successful as skills are clearly modelled and broken down into smaller instructions. 
 

Impact

Music assessment is on-going throughout the year, by both the music team and class teachers to ensure children make the expected progress to meet their end of year expectations. For children that join us midphase, or have had no prior instrumental lessons before attending HNPS, we offer smaller nurture groups led by our specialist string tutors to minimise learning gaps and revisit any learning which may require consolidation. 
With our central location in Hackney, East London, HNPS is fortunate to be at the epicentre of one of the most exciting musical and cultural centres in the world. At HNPS, we strive to enrich our student’s cultural capital by exposing our musicians to music in a wider context, through immersion in local projects and events across London. During their time with us, our pupils have the opportunity to work in collaboration with The London Symphony Orchestra to develop their compositional skills and perform with LSO Players. Our Pupil passports also include educational visits whereby students experience live music firsthand, as each year group is given the opportunity to watch a musical in London’s West End. Our students also participate in music festivals, workshops and concerts in some of London’s most well established venues which include The Barbican, Hackney Empire, Jerwood Hall, Roundchapel, EartH and Birmingham Town Hall. 
Each and every student within HNPS is provided with the scope to showcase their learning through performance at our ‘Hackney New Proms’ during Autumn and Summer terms. Further performance opportunities include our KS1 Christmas Nativity production and a Year 6 Musical, which allows children to develop their confidence and competence within the field of performing arts, thus preparing them for continued music education at KS3.