At Burnside Primary School, our Music curriculum aims to inspire creativity, self-expression, and a lifelong love of music. We provide an ambitious, inclusive musical education that encourages every child to find their voice as singers, performers, and composers. Through diverse musical experiences, listening opportunities, and performance events, we equip our pupils with the knowledge, skills, and confidence to become reflective, passionate musicians.

Our Music curriculum is explicitly designed around our school motto—be safe, be smart, be kind—ensuring every pupil is empowered to thrive, achieve, and belong.

How Music Reflects Our Values

Be Safe: We create a supportive, encouraging environment where children feel secure taking creative risks, performing in front of others, and exploring new instruments without fear of judgment. This safe space builds emotional resilience and self-confidence, allowing pupils to thrive.

Be Smart: Pupils develop foundational musical knowledge, mastering technical skills in pitch, rhythm, notation, and composition. By studying significant historical musicians and diverse genres, children gain deep cultural knowledge and strive to achieve musical excellence.

Be Kind: Music is a collaborative art that fosters empathy and mutual respect. Children listen thoughtfully to others' performances, sing together in harmony, and celebrate diverse musical traditions from our local North East community and across the globe, helping everyone feel a true sense of belonging.

 

Key Stage Progression & Content

Our curriculum aligns fully with the National Curriculum for Music, systematically developing pupils' understanding of the inter-related dimensions of music: pitch, duration, dynamics, tempo, timbre, texture, structure, and notation.

Key Stage 1

In KS1, children learn to:

Use their voices expressively and creatively through singing, chants, and rhymes.

Play tuned and untuned instruments musically.

Listen with concentration to high-quality live and recorded music.

Experiment with, select, and combine sounds.

Cultural Focus: Pupils explore significant local and global artists.

Key Stage 2

In KS2, children develop their musical fluency to:

Perform in solo and ensemble contexts using voices and instruments with increasing accuracy, control, and expression.

Improvise and compose music for varied purposes.

Read and use staff and other musical notations.

Listen with attention to detail and recall sounds using growing aural memory.

Deepen their understanding of music history and cultural contexts.

Cultural Focus: Pupils examine influential musical genres and social movements, studying Motown pioneers like The Supremes, T and their link to civil rights. They also study British Rock heritage.