Listen Imagine Compose Primary – A Planning, Reflection and Progression Toolkit
Added to website 20/11/2024.
This toolkit, by Nancy Evans (BCMG) and Professor Martin Fautley, focuses on the teaching and learning of composing in primary schools and is designed to complement different schemes of work and to give confidence, skills and understanding to music teachers and non-specialist classroom teachers.
Listen Imagine Compose Primary was a two-year action research project that followed 480 children (and their teachers) from Year 4 into Year 5. This toolkit was designed to support the project and then revised and edited as a result of the project. The project was a partnership between Birmingham Contemporary Music Group, Birmingham City University and Sound and Music, funded by the Paul Hamlyn Foundation, which drew on 25 years of collective and individual experiences of supporting young people to compose in and outside of school. The project included, regular composing workshops led by professional composers and their teachers, regular reflection sessions between teachers and composers, and joint whole project seminars.
The toolkit includes and explores:
- a brief history of and context for children composing
- understanding children as composers
- connecting composing to other parts of the music curriculum
- understanding the composing process
- planning for composing in the classroom
- preparing children for composing
- guiding children through the composing process
- listening to and responding to children’s music
- encouraging composing in your school
- what progression in composing might look and sound like
- supporting children to document their music
- making composing inclusive
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About the Provider
Birmingham Contemporary Music Group
Birmingham Contemporary Music Group is one of Europe’s leading new music ensembles. BCMG Learn & Take Part focuses on young people’s composing, supporting teachers, digital resources, commissioning music for youth/non-professional ensembles, concerts for schools and families.
