Activity Resource 2: Starting the process of planning a unit

If you have read the tabs on good practice, you will be ready to start planning a unit which incorporates the key principles of musical understanding. To do this, download Document 1b  49kb which is a planning template that will guide you through the planning process in a way which directly relates to the recommended principles and model of learning.

As you work through the rest of this unit, you will be constantly referred back to this template, and asked to complete further sections in the light of the reading you will have done. It is therefore a good idea to save the template as a new file, and then save additions to the file as you go.

It is worth remembering as you develop the plan that it is trying to help you focus on the following.

• The process of planning.

The thinking behind the process is critical: you will need to establish your own understanding of this process, take risks in developing the thinking and focus on the process rather than the completion of particular tasks to a formula.

• The application of this process to a particular unit.

You could choose between:

1. reworking an existing unit of work of your own choosing, to refine and develop its focus on musical understanding;
2. creating a new unit of work, perhaps based on a style, genre or musical tradition that you currently feel is under-represented within the whole scheme for the key stage.

You might like to note that many teachers have found the second option more rewarding since it enables greater flexibility and creative thinking.

Documents 1c  54kb, 1d  50kb, 1e  80kb, 1f  62kb and 1g  50kb are examples of units which have been created by teachers using this process. Document 1h  56kb is a version of the planning template with guidance notes.

How the template works

Three layers of teaching objectives are implied by the model of learning. These cover:

1. the overarching understanding that informs and is informed by all other learning;
2. the conventions, processes and devices of a musical style, genre or tradition and the focus of the practical experience needed to engage with that music;
3. the detailed features of musical elements and the development of practical skills that enable access to the appropriate conventions and relevant music making.

The template takes you through each of these layers in turn – you can see them marked out by the thick black lines, as well as a final section at the bottom of the first page which deals with outcomes. The section on progression will help you to complete the box on ‘stage and objective of understanding', while the ‘developing practice’ tab will take you through the process of completing each of the other sections in turn.

To start, however, you need to ensure that the title of your new or reworked unit properly reflects a focus for learning that is based around musical understanding. Preceding the title with the words ‘understanding the conventions of’ immediately indicates the difference between learning and doing: ‘understanding the conventions of Japanese music’ signals something very different from ‘doing Japanese music’. It also ensures that, right from the beginning, there is a focus on musical understanding as the key learning within the unit of work.

Use Task 6 (Refining a unit’s title) to help you decide what unit you are going to create, and to start the process of planning for the unit by working through the template file.

When you have done this, you can either

• develop your understanding of good practice in progression for musical understanding and completing the next box in the template by reading more;
• continue with this unit by developing your practice in planning units of work.