Courses

We offer a broad and balanced curriculum, for key stage 3 (Years 7-9), key stage 4 (Years 10 and 11) and key stage 5 (Years 12 and 13 - Sixth Form). Click the appropriate button below to find the details for each subject offered in each key stage.

Further details of our curriculum are available on the curriculum page.

Overview

Music

Introduction

The Performing Arts Department aims to ignite a lifelong passion for music with a department ethos of ‘Music is for all’. We want students to be free to explore creatively above and beyond their expectations and challenge their own ideas with that of their peers. Our goal is to promote interest in the arts whilst developing lasting skills to carry them through into their chosen futures.

Lessons in music are practical and offer ‘hands on’ learning, that embed the academic side of the subject. Students are given the opportunity to learn an instrument from day one in Year 7, and develop their performing, composing and listening skills through to studying A-level music in Silverdale Sixth Form. Music is a growing subject within the school, with large investment in our newly developed facilities and equipment that offer students the freedom to be creative in their lessons, and in extracurricular activities. The department is equipped with lots of exciting instruments and music technology and students are encouraged to explore and experiment with these.

The department offers an extensive list of extracurricular activities, such as a choir, orchestra, ukulele and guitar group, composing clinics and opportunities to perform either on stage or in the band during whole-school productions. The music department hosts three concerts a year, celebrating the wide variety of musical excellence at Silverdale. The Performing Arts Department offers a wide variety of extracurricular programmes that change throughout the year in order to engage students from all different cohorts. All students will be given every opportunity to develop their skills and talents via the curriculum and extracurricular courses.

Course leader

Miss C Durham

Return to key stage 3 courses

Curriculum

Course content

At key stage 3, students will be given the opportunity to explore music of different genres and styles from a variety of cultures and periods of history. Music is taught in an active and hands-on approach and students are given the opportunity to explore sound through different instruments such as keyboards, ukuleles, guitars, voice, music technology and percussion.

The curriculum is built around the musical foundations of performance, composition and listening analysis. During Year 7, students will sing, learn to read notation, identify and understand the musical elements and compose using music technology. In Year 8 these skills are built upon, with all Year 8 students given the opportunity to specialise in an instrument (guitar, bass, drums, vocals or their own instrument). Students hone their performance skills across topics like the blues, rock ‘n’ roll and band skills, performing in small ensembles and class band activities.

Throughout Year 8 and Year 9 students learn to compose using music technology (Bandlab, Ableton Live Intro and MuseScore) and are supported and challenged in listening, performing and composing tasks to ensure all students, no matter their starting point, have the skills to study music successfully at GCSE and A-level.

Students who have peripatetic lessons will be challenged throughout their key stage 3 experience, with more challenging performance, listening and composing tasks. Students are assessed twice a semester on their listening, and either performance or compositional skills and will be supported and challenged throughout Years 7, 8 and 9 to meet their full musical potential.