MUSIC IN S3
Learning in S3 Music
The young people in S3 will be given the option to continue with Music if they have chosen it in S2 and have enjoyed their experience. Those who did not choose Music in S2 will also be given the opportunity to choose Music in S3 if they wish to. Each S3 Music class will get three periods of Music every week.
The main focus in S3 will continue to be on learning the two instruments the young people have chosen to work on in S2, and performing individually and in groups. Those who did not choose Music in S2 but have returned in S3 will choose two of the following instruments to focus on learning.
KEYBOARD
GUITAR
BASS GUITAR
DRUMKIT
TUNED PERCUSSION (XYLOPHONE AND GLOCKENSPIEL)
UKULELE
SINGING
The young people will continue to work through their performance achievement record in which their progress on each instrument will be regularly tracked. They will take an increasing responsibility for developing their own effective practice routines, where they should work towards continually improving their technique on each instrument and learning more complex pieces of music in a variety of styles.
Learning musical instruments will also enhance their concentration, confidence and focus as well as enabling them to develop a growth mindset through persistence, resilience and responsibility.
The young people will build on their prior learning and continue to develop their understanding of music by learning about some more complex features of different styles of music through listening, discussion and composition tasks. These will be completed in an Understanding Music Workbook which will be issued to each individual at the start of the year. The topics studied in S3 are the same as in S2 but in more depth. These are:
MUSIC AND THE MEDIA
MUSIC FOR CULTURE AND CELEBRATION
MUSIC FOR ENTERTAINMENT
At the end of S3 the young people will complete a National 3 level Understanding Music test to assess the listening skills they have developed, and their understanding of the musical concepts and styles they have learned about. They will also have composed some short pieces of their own music using the Sibelius music writing software on computers.
Homework in S3 Music
All S3 classes will be allocated to a Google Classroom class which can be accessed online. Homework tasks will mainly be issued on these classrooms and will include a variety of short tasks involving researching and revising musical concepts and styles, and listening to specific examples of music and concepts. Some of these tasks can be completed on smartphones if they have internet access. If any of the young people do not have access to a computer or internet, they are more than welcome to use the computers in the department at lunch times or after school to complete homework tasks.
How you can help
You can help the young people to make the most of their learning in Music by encouraging them to regularly check in with their Google Classroom to see if they have any homework due in, and making sure that they submit it on time. A free app for Google Classroom can be downloaded onto most smartphones so you can ask the young people to get this and set it up to receive notifications. This way reminders of homework tasks can be sent out. You can also remind them to ask their Music teacher if they have any problems with or questions about homework or work in class.
Young people should try to engage with music by listening to it and trying to pick out the different instruments they can hear which they can then discuss with you. If they have access to instruments outside school you can ask them to let you hear what they have been learning and encourage them to establish a practice routine. We would advise 4 practice sessions of around 15 -30 minutes per week where possible.
There are also many music apps now available where young people can work out tunes and create their own music too, so you can encourage them to have fun with these and enjoy music. Finally, please have a look through the materials attached to this page so you can see what the young people will be learning in Music.
