The Musical Contexts Fully-Resourced Secondary/KS3 Music Curriculum
The Musical Contexts "Fully-Resourced" Secondary/KS3 Music Curriculum aims to provide a unit-based approach that is 'ambitious, well-sequenced and which leads to good musical outcomes for all pupils', to provide 'good impact as seen by secure and incremental learning of the technical, constructive and expressive knowledge that pupils need for their future participation in and enjoyment of music'.
The units follow the Musical Contexts Key Stage 3 Learning Journey (shown right, click for further details).
Each 'fully-resourced' unit comes with resources, tasks and activities to supplement:
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Playing: Singing and Performing
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Creating: Composing and Improvising
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Critical Engagement: Listening and Appraising
These include: Teacher Schemes of Work and Lesson Pathways, Knowledge Organisers, DOITNOW and Plenary Review Activities, 5 Minutes Silent Reading Tasks, Cover and Homework Activities, Worksheets, Songs, Scores and Presentations.
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Samples from each unit, in scrolling pop-up galleries, can be seen by hovering over the unit images below as well as by visiting the "Unit Preview & Download" pages.
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The resources for each of the 'fully-resourced' KS3 units are available to 'full site subscribers' from the "Unit Preview & Download" page links below.
Building Bricks
Exploring the Elements of Music, Descriptive and Programme Music and Graphic Notation and Graphic Scores.
Keyboard Skills
Exploring Effective Keyboard Performance Technique, Treble Clef Staff Notation, Sharps and Flats and Melody and Chords.
I've Got Rhythm
Exploring Pulse, Beat, Rhythm, Ostinato, Cyclic and Polyrhythms, Note Durations and Rhythm Grid Notation.
Building Bricks
An interactive Presentation with media files demonstrates the Elements of Music. A great activity for new Year 7's!
Keyboard Skills
Includes a range of increasingly complex Keyboard Warm-Ups all given with keyboard/piano fingering as practical DOITNOWs
I've Got Rhythm
This unit is packed full of activities in understanding Pulse, Beat, Rhythm and Ostinato starting with Rhythm Grid Notation tasks.
Form and Structure
Exploring Musical Structures: Question and Answer Phrases, Binary Form, Ternary Form and Rondo Form.
Sonority City
Exploring Instruments of the Orchestra, the Conductor, Beating Time and Performing as an Ensemble.
Folk Music
Exploring the Folk Tradition and Harmony and Accompaniments: Pedal, Drone, Ostinato and Chord Patterns.
Folk Music
Pupils explore Sea Shanties as a form of Traditional Folk Music, such as The Wellerman, singing, performing, arranging and creating different musical accompaniment and chord patterns.
Form and Structure
The unit begins by exploring Musical Q&A Phrases as a simple type of musical structure showing balance and contrast.
Sonority City
Each of the Musical Contexts Fully-Resourced KS3 units contains a detailed Scheme of Work and Lesson Pathways.
Hooks and Riffs
Exploring Repeated Musical Patterns: Hooks and Riffs through Western Classical and Popular Music.
Offbeat
Exploring Reggae, Syncopation, Texture, Chords, Reggae Song Lyrics and creating a Reggae Arrangement.
Variations
Exploring Ways to Develop Musical Ideas through Changing and Adding to a Theme and Ground Bass Variations.
Hooks and Riffs
This unit is all about Repeated Musical Patterns: Hooks, Riffs and Ostinatos. Three case studies from popular songs include: "Sweet Dreams", "Word Up" and "We Will Rock You".
Offbeat
As with all Musical Contexts Secondary/KS3 units, all essential Key Words, Terms and Concepts are included in the fully-editable unit Knowledge Organiser.
Variations
This unit begins with simple Variation techniques of adding and changing, using the Elements of Music, to a well-known case study theme: "Frere Jacques".
All That Jazz
Exploring Chord and Chord Patterns, Improvisation, the 12-Bar Blues, the Blues Scale, Swing and Big Band Jazz.
All About the Bass
Exploring Bass Clef Reading and Notation, Bass Clef Instruments and Bass Line Patterns: Riffs, Walking Bass, Pedals etc.
Saharan Sounds
Exploring African Drumming, Polyrhythms, Syncopation, Call and Response, Cyclic Rhythms and Rhythm Grid Notation.
All That Jazz
The unit begins with an introduction to the 12-Bar Blues revising Primary Chords and Triads. Improvisation features throughout the unit with pupils using the Blues Scale over a Walking Bass Line.
Saharan Sounds
Djembe performance technique explores the range of Sounds, Timbres and Sonorities from African Drums.
All About the Bass
Bass Clef Reading and Notation lie at the heart of this unit which begins with a selection of Bass Clef Hip-Hop and Rap Riffs.
Dance Music
Exploring Rhythms, Metre and Chords in Dance Music from Different Times and Places.
Soundtracks
Exploring Film Music, Leitmotifs, The James Bond Film Music Project, Sequencing and Motifs and Mood and Sound Effects .
Video Game Music
Exploring Character Themes and Development, Ground Themes and Sound Effects in Computer and Video Game Music.
Dance Music
This unit explores Rhythms, Chords and Metre in Dance Music from different times and places: Marches, Waltzes, Tango, Baroque Dance, American Line Dance, Irish Jig & Reel, Disco and Club Dance.
Soundtracks
The unit explores Leitmotifs from a range of different film genres in terms of how film music composers have used the Elements of Music including Listening and Appraising and Performing tasks.
Video Game Music
This unit explores Computer and Video Game Music from its origins and development, to how music is used within video games, how video game music is produced and composers of Video Game Music.
New Directions
Exploring Ways to Develop Music from Small Ideas in Twentieth Century Music: Minimalism, Serialism.
Samba
Exploring Latin-American Rhythms, Ostinato, Call and Response and Improvisation through ensemble Samba.
What Makes a Good Song?
Exploring Popular Songs: Hooks and Riffs, Lyrics, Structure & Melody and Musical Arrangements.
New Directions
New Directions explores Minimalism and Expressionism/Serialism in Twentieth Century Music. Lesson Pathways are given within the Teacher Scheme of Work for each unit.
Samba
Samba is based around a flexible and accessible Samba piece: Bellini's"Samba de Janeiro", with adapted original melodic parts and added rhythmic Samba parts for class ensemble performing.
What Makes a Good Song?
This unit explores two 'good' songs as case studies: "Shape of You" by Ed Sheeran and "Shotgun" by George Ezra in terms of Hooks/Riffs, Structure, Melody and Lyrics. Lead Sheet Notation is used throughout the unit.