Music
Music at Great Moor Junior School
Subject Leader: Miss Doogan
I have worked in Music for over 15 years. In 2018, I graduated with a degree in Music. I have worked as a vocalist and songwriter for over 10 years performing in venues all over Ireland and the UK. I also play ukulele and guitar. My favourite music genres are soul, R&B, country and rock. I'm very excited to lead and teach the children in all aspects of music.
We have a thriving singing club at Great Moor. We meet every Tuesday after school and we have around 40 wonderful singers. We take part in concerts throughout the year and sing a wide range of different songs. We love to sing at Great Moor!
Our music ensemble club runs on a Monday after school, where the children play keyboards, ukulele, samba drums and other percussion instruments.
Year 3
Autumn Term is the opportunity to get to know the children and their musical abilities. We spend time learning the songs for the Year 3 Christmas Production. Glockenspiels also come out as a way of beginning to learn about the technical aspects of music such as pitch, pulse and notation.
In the Spring Term we learn the basics of how to play an instrument. By the end of unit of work we know 3 chords and can strum along to some well known tunes.
In the Summer Term we listen to the work of some famous composers around a theme of 'Magic and Mystery' to link with Year 3's class text Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone. These pieces of music inspire group compositions.
Year 4
In the Autumn Term the children will be focusing on instrument skills using ukuleles. We build upon the work that we did in Year 3 and continue to grow in skill. Hopefully some of the children are inspired to continue playing in their own time.
In the Spring Term will be listening and appraising Peter and the Wolf by Prokofiev, a Russian composer, inspired to write this piece from a children’s story. We will learn about instruments in the orchestra and read and write rhythm notation. We will learn basic keyboard skills and use keyboards to compose leitmotifs for a cartoon character.
In the Summer Term the children will become music film composers. We will listen to different music from films, discussing how effects are created and focus on ‘The Battle’ by Hans Zimmer. The children will create their own mini film using music technology - Garageband, Chrome Music Lab and Tone Gym and the keyboards.
Year 5
We become Jazz musicians in Autumn Term. We listen to work of some brilliant Jazz artists and learn to emulate the Jazz style on glockenspiels and children's own instruments. We learn the technique of improvisation.
In the Spring Term the music we do links in with the Year 5 topic of 'Space'. We listen to the brilliant 'Planet Suite' by Gustav Holst and this inspires some space-themed compositions. We will build on our keyboard skills learned in Y4 and aim to record some of our ideas using standard music notation devices.
Summer Term is 'salsa' time! In this unit the children will learn about the history and elements of Latin America music to work alongside their Geography topic South America. The children will perform a salsa style song and play from staff notation. We will perform a mini carnival using a range of performance techniques including song, dance, tuned and untuned musical instruments.
Year 6
Autumn Term has a composition focus. This half term the children work in groups to create a piece of landscape inspired music. We will listen to music that has been written by famous composers and is inspired by the landscape around them.
We get 'The Blues' in the Spring Term. The children will be immersed in the genre of Blues. We will learn the history of Blues Music, the 12-Bar Blues and the Blues scale. The children will improvise to create their own Blues melody and record a track using keyboards and music technology.
The final term, Summer Term, at Great Moor is a busy one for the Year 6 children. In music we prepare for the Year 6 Production and the Leavers' Assembly.
