Music
Curriculum
Music at NSG is taught for one hour a week in year 7 and 8. In year 9 music it is taught on rotation with 12 hours allocated for music throughout the year. KS4 students benefit from 2 hours of music a week and follow the BTEC Tech Award in Music Performance offering both a technology or performance pathway which students are supported to pick in relation to their strengths as musicians.
The music curriculum has been carefully sequenced in order to develop students musical ability throughout KS3 in the following strands: Performing, Composing, Listening and Singing. The curriculum has been developed as a spiral model taking influence from the national and model music curriculum and carefully tailored to the needs of the students here at NSG. As a result the curriculum is always developing and evolving to ensure the best opportunities are available through student voice and regular curriculum reviews.
All students in Y7 and Y8 benefit from a whole class instrumental teaching focussing on developing fluency and technique on the guitar and ukulele. Through the development of the composite knowledge required students are able to further develop composition and improvisation skills to culminate with a songwriting project in Year 9 putting all of the knowledge they have learnt across Y7 and 8 into practice.
Students have regular and consistent opportunities to sing in lesson time as a stand alone activity concentrating on vocal technique and health alongside singing as a way to internalise musical sounds to develop playing, composition and listening skills and in turn developing the students' musical abilities holistically. Through this students develop confidence and musical ability they can share with friends, families and the community.
Here at Newland we work closely with the Hull Music Hub who provide individual and small group tuition in a wide variety of instruments. Regular communication via link teachers is at the forefront of this so that curriculum content is challenging for students who study instrumental or vocal lessons. This also means students are able to use their own instrument in their curriculum lessons where appropriate.
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In KS4 students study for the BTEC Tech Award in Music practice. Students also benefit from the ability to take graded music qualifications as part of their peripatetic instrument lessons. In which a variety of exam boards such as ABRSM, Trinity and LCM are offered depending on the needs of the individual.
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SEND
At Newland school for Girls we believe music should be accessible to all and SEND students are supported to ensure access to the music curriculum through differentiated activities if required so that students are able to take part fully in the music curriculum. Neurodiverse students are supported with sensory needs on a one to one basis and breakout spaces are available to support all students to access and achieve in the music lessons in a supportive environment.
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Extra-curricular Music at NSG
At NSG students are able to learn an instrument both in and outside of their curriculum lesson time. We work closely with the Hull Music Service to ensure students can access a wide variety of instrumental opportunities in a wide variety of instruments such as voice, guitar and bass, drums, tuned percussion, brass, violin, cello and woodwind, Lessons are provided on a one to one or group basis and all instrumental students are encouraged to take part in an extracurricular activity.
Practice and ensemble rooms are available for students to use at break and lunch times and instrumental students are actively encouraged to make the most of these.
Singing is at the heart of the extra-curricular provision at NSG and is run as a regular lunchtime activity open to all students. This allows students to develop the confidence, vocal and performance technique in a supportive environment and is always well attended by the students. In addition a senior choir has been newly established as a way to develop musicianship alongside vocal technique and develop the students as musicians. Hull Music Service supports the ensembles and provides opportunities both in and outside of the school.
Students can benefit from the following ensembles in school from September 2024:
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NSG Chorus - Singing club
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Rock band ensemble
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NSG Singers - Advanced Vocal Group
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NSG Collective - Ensemble - Brass, Percussion, Woodwind and Strings
Students who take part in the school band activities benefit from performance opportunities at local venues in and around the local area. In addition a mixed ensemble will begin in 2024 allowing all instrumental students to take part in an extracurricular activity to support their learning.
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Students are supported if they don’t have an instrument at home and can use the equipment we have at breaks, lunch and afterschool to rehearse. Hull music hub also provides instrumental loans for students meaning they are not disadvantaged.
Hull music service also provides a wide variety of activities that students can benefit from and attend after school and on saturdays. Further information on this can be found on the hull music service website. https://www.hullmusichub.com/
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Instrumental Lessons
Musical instrument lessons are subsidised by the school for all students and are charged based on student groupings. Students are grouped according to instrument and ability to ensure as many students as possible can access opportunities to learn a musical instrument, something also supported by the whole class instrumental teaching at KS3.
Pupil premium students are supported further to access musical instrument lessons ensuring that socioeconomic factors are not a barrier to achieving and enjoying music making. Alongside lessons students benefit from exam material and fees funded by the school making music accessible to all. Information is shared via with parents during transition, in lessons and assemblies so all students have equality of access to these
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Musical Experiences at NSG
Throughout the year students are given the opportunity to perform in termly concerts. These are both formal and informal opportunities for their parents, peers or teachers to celebrate the hard work of the students over each term.
Built into the curriculum are points where year groups can get together and celebrate the music that they have made in lessons. Singing showcases will be developed from 2024 for all year groups in KS3 in which all students will showcase the vocal arrangements they are working on in lessons and perform as a year group.
Trips to musical performances are offered to students and they are supported to attend if a barrier is present. This offer is being expanded moving forward into 2025 to include a Samba workshop and Orchestral concert so students can access a wider variety of musical performances.
We request a small donation for our termly concerts in order to support the music department in putting on events and purchasing musical equipment for all. All visits are subsidised and in school workshops are not charged.
Hull Music Service also supports the concerts we are able to offer at NSG not only by helping prepare students in their lesson time for their performances but also often attending to support the students and the events.
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The future of Music at NSG
Music at Newland is an ambitious subject and is always developing opportunities both in and out of the classroom. Further opportunities to perform and sing will be developed throughout the next academic year. Singing showcases will allow every student in KS3 to take part in vocal performance at least once a year developing their vocal techniques as they move through KS3. Further opportunities to include whole class instrumental performances will be developed moving through into 25/26. It is hoped this will also mean more community engagement through performances for primary schools and organisations in the local area and parental engagement through learning instruments.
Opportunities to see live performances by professional musicians and companies are already offered however it is the hope that these can be expanded further including a more diverse range of opportunities and links with local universities are available as we move through 24/25.
Every effort is made to decolonize the music curriculum to match the diverse cultural backgrounds of the students who study with us and further curriculum resources and lessons will be developed to ensure all students understand the cultural context of the music they are performing.
Working closely with the music hub it is hoped that informal concerts will be held more regularly for students to learn stagecraft and performance technique in a supportive way in front of family and friends and further engagement with industry links and professional practitioners will be established
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Further Information and Resources
Hull Music Service Website - https://www.hullmusichub.com/
Department for Education. What the National Plan for Music Education means for Children and Young people - A guide for parents and young people
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Free Resources
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Musical Futures - https://www.musicalfutures.org
This free resource has tutorials and information on how to play various rock band instruments. All students are able to access this via the login details on their google classroom.
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