Music at Claremont Primary enjoys a strong and visible profile. Highly skilled practitioners, from both inside and outside of our school, teach music, and assist colleagues in the teaching and learning of music, to a high standard. All children, regardless of their musical or personal background, are fully encouraged and given the fullest opportunities available to fulfil their musical aspirations, ambitions and potential. The foundations of this success have been in place at Claremont for some time. The aims of this policy are, therefore, to: 

1. Ensure we are trained, equipped and pedagogically confident to maintain our high standards 
2. Celebrate, demonstrate and share the musical skills and knowledge our children need 
3. Continue to raise the profile of music in our school, our community and our City of Nottingham 
4. Encourage and foster collaboration between all teaching staff and outside agencies – including the Nottingham Music Hub and Nottingham Music Service – to create a lasting legacy of musical proficiency in, by and for our school 
5. Ensure that every child has the means to be musical 

The agreed musical syllabus comprises three main strands of teaching and learning: 

• Listening & Responding: recognising instruments, using musical vocabulary, reflecting on emotions 

• Composition & Communication: exploring different sounds, collaborating, recording their ideas 

• Singing, Playing & Performing: following a beat, practising in a group, performing to an audience 

Children will learn and take part in all three strands during each academic year. As their use of skills and incremental acquirement of knowledge grows, children will have a range of opportunities to express their musical selves. In KS2, we are proud to continue our relationship with the Nottingham Music Service. Our investment in their teaching expertise and musical skill means that throughout Year 4, children will learn, practise and perform with an instrument. They will then have the opportunity in Upper Key Stage 2 to develop their use of this instrument if they wish. Children in across both Key Stages will take part in Singing Assemblies and our school choir will continue to perform in our community and our city of Nottingham whenever the opportunity arises. Staff with any kind of musical skill or enthusiasm are encouraged to share it with their class and the school as a whole. All children, and, in particular, those children and families who do not consider themselves to be musical, will taught that being musical starts with yourself: your body (voice, hands, knees, feet) is a collection of instruments.