Worksheet and writing frame (adapted from a collegue’s English resource) to be used to support students in longer form music essay writing. Makes specific reference to the PETAL technique (Point, Evidence, Text, Analysis, Link) which students can use a scaffold when starting to write longer answers. Specifically developed for use with the 30 mark questions for the AQA A Level Music exam but could also be used with any longer form writing in music.

Activity I used as homework to support AQA (2016) A Level Music Jazz unit. Students list the characteristics of typical early jazz and swing musicians with reference to the set works we’d covered. In the following lesson we then used this as the basis of a comparison discussion and as a writing frame for an essay assignment.

Detailed notes on all the works listed in AQA’s suggested listening list and covered in the Rhinegold study guide (updated for Sept 2020 including revisions made following 3 years of use in the classroom): Stevie Wonder: For Once In My Life Signed, Sealed, Delivered (I’m Yours) Superstition You Are The Sunshine Of My Life Sir Duke Joni Mitchell: Big Yellow Taxi River Carey A Case Of You Help Me Muse: -Stockholm Syndrome Supermassive Black Hole Uprising Supremacy Beyoncé: Crazy In Love Listen Single Ladies (Put A Ring On It) Best Thing I Never Had Daft Punk: Around The World One More Time Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger Get Lucky Labrinth: Earthquake Express Yourself Beneath Your Beautiful Let It Be Jealous

Lesson covering rondo form, theme & variation, and ternary form. Starter assumes some previous knowledge of other forms. Students examine rondo form and theme & variation through listening activities and finishes with a cloze activity.

Pupils are assigned one of the set works taken from Sgt. Pepper’s in small groups and are given time to prepare revision notes collating everything they know. Meanwhile they also prepare tricky questions for the other groups. The lesson culminates with a ‘trial’ in which each group has questions put to them by the rest of the class. The winners are those judged to have put up the best defence. Resource includes exemplar questions in case pupils’ questions don’t go into enough detail.

Students are given a key word each in small groups and asked to provide: a description specific features (what makes this key word different from other similar bits of vocab an example of its use from the set works studied misleading example (example of its use or a description which might confuse people or highlight common misconceptions (e.g. for texture, “what the music feels like” or for polyrhythm, “a rhythm played by someone called poly”). A good starter activity which can sometimes be expanded out to a longer task if students are enthusiastic. Pupils often really enjoy developing funny misleading examples. Developed for use with AQA GCSE but would be applicable to any syllabus

Following some persistent behavioural issues in some classes I used this resource as a contract for any repeat offenders. Having been placed on report, students were asked to complete the form to describe their own behaviour. This process was repeated for 4 week’s worth of lessons.

Performance task of ‘If I Only Had A Brain’ from The Wizard Of Oz I use as part of a module of Musical Theatre. Features three differentiated levels for both piano and guitar.

A list of key terms with a blank space for students to provide a specific description and specifc example of its use. I used this as an online homework but could be used as a paper resource though would need reformatting to allow space for student answers

A unit’s work covering all the suggested listening in preparation for the popular music elements of the AoS2 listening exam

A full unit’s work (updated for Sept 2020) covering each set work in detail as well as addition tracks and general contextual information. Some references are made to homeworks for which I used the Zig Zag resource pack but these could be removed if you didn’t have access to it. Includes full lesson’s work on: Context With A Little Help From My Friends Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds Within You Without You Other songs on Sgt. Pepper’s 3 x revision lessons Also includes multiple exemplar 8 mark questions to try

A unit’s work covering all the suggested listening in preparation for the popular music elements of the AoS2 listening exam

Students compose an perform riffs using G blues scale on keyboard. The resource features three levels of difficulty which are assigned a Mastery Level (could be adapted to whichever assessment level system your school uses).

Detailed notes on all the works listed in AQA's suggested listening list and covered in the Rhinegold study guide (updated to include revision made for Sept 2020 following 3 years of use in the classroom): Louis Armstrong: -Saint Louis Blues (w/ Bessie Smith) - Muskrat Ramble - West End Blues - Stardust Duke Ellington: - The Mooche - Ko-Ko - Come Sunday Charlie Parker: - Ko-Ko - A Night In Tunisia - Bird of Paradise - Bird Gets The Worm Miles Davis: - So What - Shh/Peaceful Pat Metheny: - (Cross The) Heartland - Are You Going With Me? Gwilym Simcock: - Almost Moment - These Are The Good Days