Music – Key Stage 4 Curriculum

This music qualification has been developed by an organisation called Drake Music (www.drakemusic.org) and is specifically created for disabled students. All resources and activities have been designed so that all students can access them. Many of the resources use Clicker 5 technology switch accessible technology, something that many of our students have used already. There are four units:

1. Music Skills for performance: this focusses of the key skills needed to perform music as a soloist and as part of an ensemble. Students can perform using a variety of instruments including Soundbeam, iPad apps, acoustic and electric instruments, bells and voice among others;
2. Creating Soundtracks for Films: students investigate film soundtracks and then compose their own;
3. Writing Music Down: this looks at how music can be written down, including graphic scores and (at Levels 1 and 2), the basic elements of standard notation;
4. Composing Music using Chance Methods: Students explore methods used by composers like John Cage, before composing and performing their own. This unit is great fun and is particularly useful for students who may not be in a position to play the same notes in the same way every time.

Units are internally assessed and externally moderated. Each unit gains the student a certificate. This means that students can also work at different levels in different units. For example, a student may gain Entry 3 at Unit 1 but then achieve a Level one for Unit 4. Level 1 is equivalent to GCSE grade D-G and Level 2 GCSE grade A-C. Examples of work by students from other schools can be found on the Drake Music website.