Key Stage 3 curriculum

by Liz Dunbar @HuntSchoolMusic

Key Stage 3 is delivered over three years at Huntington. Students are taught for one hour per week by a Music specialist. The purpose of the course is to develop students' understanding of  how music works.

What happens in the classroom?

In each unit we take an existing piece of music, put it in context, and look at other works that are similar to it in style, or share some of its musical features.  We explore the work in various ways - this might be by analysing it, performing sections of it, improvising ideas based on fragments of it, composing new ideas to replace or sit alongside it, or arranging the material we've made, to create a finished whole.

Our primary language is sound, and we model endlessly in sound.

Lesson content is designed to enable students to work at a pace that is right for them, to dwell a little longer, or to push on with more challenging tasks guided by their teacher. We expect musical responses from everyone. Students are taught what this means and how to improve their responses. During the process, students develop and hone skills, broaden their knowledge and..... hopefully.... their appreciation of what's out there in the wider musical world.

From the beginning of year 7, all students are treated as musicians regardless of their starting point. Some students will have lots of musical experience, some will have very little. It doesn't matter - there are entry points in our curriculum for everyone, creating routes through to GCSE for every student.

What do we assess, and how do we do it?

How is attainment measured?

How is progress measured?

When do we assess?

And if you're interested in some of the repertoire students encounter in and beyond lessons, here's a link to an ever evolving playlist: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/4pP5GzUTiLNAPUJvj25k7L

Feel free to get in touch if you would like to know more. You can find details on how to get in touch in the 'About' tab.