Wessex Gardens
A Flagship for the DaCapo Integrated Music Programme
DaCapo has an innovative partnership with Wessex Gardens School in London, NW11. It is the base for two flagships:
* The Saturday Family Music Centre, where we research, test and develop the DaCapo programme and train teachers. Over twenty Toddler to Teenage programmes give examples of the DaCapo approach at its very best. The centre is oversubscribed and highly sought after by families, many of whom travel long distances each week to take part. In return for the use of the school on a Saturday, DaCapo run the music programme for Wessex Gardens School throughout the week.
* An Integrated School Music Programme – putting in place a mix of music lessons and sessions in this lively, large primary school where a large percentage of pupils have English as an additional language.
Over the next year we plan to show the work that takes place in school time as an example of excellent school music making and offer it as a training centre for music teaching. We aim to build a greater awareness of the quality of the DaCapo work as well as illustrating how music impacts on the school in a broader context.
The DaCapo integrated music programme:
- follows a clear and progressive classroom music curriculum from Foundation through to Upper KS2
- is run by dedicated teachers who plan carefully and communicate the children’s achievements to each other to ensure progression from class to class and year to year.
- includes classroom music, instrumental lessons and choirs that use the same musical language, repertoire and order of progression
- involves all learning styles: auditory, read/write, visual and kinesthetic
- contains (actual learning of the elements of music) pulse, pitch, rhythm, improvisation and composition, expressive elements, form and reading notation
- teaches composition based on known materials and exploring elements that are being ‘learned’ (much as story writing is based on what children are learning about in their english lessons)
- aspires to Year 6 (regardless of other musical activities) children leaving the school able to read simple musical notation.
- includes performances as a result of the learning and a sharing of things discovered (with occasional polished performances but limited emphasis on pre-planned performances that are learned by rote).
DaCapo music teachers at Wessex
Patxi Del Amo, Vice Principal of DaCapo is:
- coordinating all DaCapo activities in the school
- supporting the DaCapo teachers working in the school (lesson planning, behaviour strategies, repertoire, general delivery)
- delivering some of the teaching
- coordinating performances for both classroom music sharing and instrumental lessons as well as assemblies which will be open to parents as of September ‘11
- liaising with the Wessex Gardens staff
Principal, Jane Cutler is working on social impact mapping, looking at effective ways of evaluating the impact of the DaCapo. She will be researching both evidence of the musical skills gained and also gathering information and evidence of change- whether simply a ‘feelgood’ factor or a direct improvement in areas of the curriculum. She is being supported by Charles Rice, Trustee, School Improvement Partner and Secondary Adviser.
The DaCapo music programme started at Wessex Gardens in 2007 with a small number of classroom music sessions; it has now built up to include:
- PPA cover (music lessons to cover the class teacher’s absence for preparation, planning and assessment
- partnership work – planning, delivery and supporting of class teachers in music delivery
- choirs
- guitar lessons
- end of year musical for year 6
- performances and assemblies
- concerts (DaCapo teachers)
We hope to add to these activities with:
- teacher training (for class teachers and visiting teachers)
- whole class ukuleles and/or other whole class instrumental opportunities
- opportunities for the classroom teachers and classroom assistants to learn (ukuleles? choir?)
- toddler /early years music for siblings
- family music making
- music club/Attacca session
- projects in partnership with Aurora Orchestra
The programme at Wessex is constantly evolving and is always ‘work in progress’: researching, testing, experimenting and discovering the very best in a music programme and always integrating the musical elements to ensure an all-round music education for every child.
DaCapo 2011
