The Creative Arts department strives to encourage engagement and enthusiasm for the arts.

It strives to create opportunities for the intellectual, personal and social development of all students so that they may realise their full potential and become responsible and fulfilled members of the school, the community and of society around them.

The faculty attempts to achieve this through:

  • Creating interesting, engaging and challenging schemes of work in accordance with the national curriculum;
  • Ensuring that policies regarding equal opportunities, race and gender are all upheld.
  • By giving all students, whatever their ability a sense of achievement and success through their learning and activity.
  • Encouraging all students to develop the ability to work with others as well as independently.
  • Encouraging students to take responsibility for equipment and their surroundings.
  • Providing opportunities for students to perform for their peers and for the wider community.
  • Providing extended opportunities beyond the curriculum for engagement and enjoyment of the arts.

Dance, Drama and Music are taught within the Creative Arts to all Key Stage 3 students.
In KS3, Dance is taught within the PE curriculum on a rotation system; Drama and Music are taught on a rotation system with students receiving one lesson a week for half a year throughout KS3.

Music Curriculum

Dance Curriculum

Drama Curriculum

In KS4 students are able to opt for:

BTEC Music Award
BTEC Performing Arts Dance
GCSE Music
GCSE Drama

Dance

Dance is delivered in KS3 as a part of the PE curriculum. It is delivered via cross-curricula themes that can help students not only learn the key skills in Dance, but also support what they may be learning in other subject areas.

Topics of study are as follows:

  • Year 7 – Shape, Tetris, Raindrops.
  • Year 8 – Capoeira, Street dance, Parkour.
  • Year 9 – Conflict, Lindy hop, Into the Hoods.

Drama

In Drama, students develop skills and knowledge to respond imaginatively to stimuli, work effectively in groups and perform with confidence in front of an audience.

Topic areas are designed to engage students in a variety of issues, literature and historical events, through practical exploration and performance.

Topics of study are as follows:

  • Year 7 – Developing group work and introduction to dramatic devices. Bullying, the Witches Spell (from Macbeth), Evacuees
  • Year 8 – Genre – Theatre in Education, Horror, Pantomime and physical theatre.
  • Year 9 – Devising and performing – The Club, Romeo and Juliet, devising from a stimulus.

Music

The KS3 curriculum has been revised recently with emphasis on practical work and music theory along with a more in-depth study of chosen aspects and genres of music ensuring the national curriculum is followed. Theory is backed up by a predominantly practical curriculum which prepares students for either BTEC or GCSE Music. There is a strong emphasis upon self-management and acquiring transferable skills.

Topics of study are as follows:

  • Year 7 – Rhythm and Pulse, Pitch and Melody, The Orchestra and Graphic Scores
  • Year 8 – Roots of R&B, Baroque Music and Canon, Ostinato Rap
  • Year 9 – Music for Film, Chords and Melody, Musical Ensemble Skills

Music Knowledge Organisers
Year 7 Instruments and the Orchestra (MISSING FILE)
Year 7 Pitch and Melody (MISSING FILE)
Year 7 Rhythm Pulse (MISSING FILE)
Year 7 The inter-related Dimensions of Music (MISSING FILE)
Year 8 The Canon Texture and Baroque Music (MISSING FILE)
Year 8 The Roots of R&B (MISSING FILE)
Year 9 Chords and Melody (MISSING FILE)
Year 9 Film Music and Advertising (MISSING FILE)
Year 9 Musical Ensemble Skills (MISSING FILE)

Additionally, there are a large range of extra-curricular activities including daily, free music clubs. There are subsidised instrument lessons available and other opportunities.  Our two orchestra scholarship groups, in Year 8 and 10, have in depth music study orchestral training, large ensemble playing and other extra enrichment opportunities.

Dance

BTEC Tech Award in Performing Arts Level 1/ Level 2, specialising in Dance, is designed to develop a broad range of skills, techniques, personal qualities and attitudes essential for a successful working life in the dance industry. Students will be required to learn professional dance repertoire, study three set professional works and create their own choreography.

There are three components within the course, where students will build up a portfolio of evidence:

Component 1: Exploring the Performing Arts

This is internally assessed and externally moderated and worth 30% of the final grade. Component 1 is theory and writing based.

Throughout the Component learners will develop their understanding of the Performing Arts by examining and analysing practitioner’s’ work and the processes used to create performances. The set works will cover a variety of styles and genres and learners will be required to compare and contrast the constituent features.

Component 2: Developing Skills and Techniques in the Performing Arts

This is internally assessed and externally moderated and worth 30% of the final grade. This component is practically based, and learners will develop their performing arts skills and techniques through the accurate replication of professional set work.

Component 3: Performing to a Brief

This is externally assessed and is worth 40% of the final grade.

This external component builds on knowledge, understanding and skills acquired and developed in Components 1 and 2. Learners will apply their skills and techniques creatively to a workshop performance for a selected audience. They will capture their ideas on planning, development and effectiveness of the performance process in a written log and an evaluation report.

A task worth 60 marks is completed under supervised conditions. The supervised assessment period is a maximum of three hours.

For assessment, learners are given a brief and stimulus to create performance material. In groups consisting of a minimum of three and a maximum of seven members, learners respond to the stimulus and create a workshop performance that communicates ideas and creative intentions to a target audience of their choice.

Drama

GCSE Drama gives the opportunity to explore issues and gain understanding of people and the world around us. The aim is to become an accomplished performer, a creative collaborator and have the ability to write effective evaluation.

The course has 3 components (please see link below for further details.)

www.edugas.co.uk/qualifications/drama-and-theatre/gcse

Component 1 – Devising Theatre (40%)
Component 2 – Performing from a Text (20%)
Component 3 – Interpreting Theatre (40%)

Music

GCSE Music (Edexcel) is a course which develops musical knowledge, understanding and skills through performing, composing and studying different musical genres by applying knowledge of music theory and musical context.

Component 1: Performing. Students perform on their instrument in both solo and ensemble situations (30%)

Component 2: Composing. Students learn composition skills and compose two pieces, one to a theme set by the exam board and one free choice composition (30%)

Component 3: Appraising. There are 4 areas of study – Instrumental Music 1700-1820, Vocal Music, Music for Stage and Screen, Fusions. These are investigated through theory lesson and both knowledge and listening skills are examined at the end of year 11 (40%)

BTEC Music (Edexcel) is designed to develop a broad range of vocational skills via practical and assignment-based work. There are two core units and two optional units that are chosen to build up the qualification.  Students will study the following units:

Unit 1 – “The Music Industry” (Core Unit set by Edexcel), one-hour exam June Year 10. (25%)

This is assessed on: Exam, Research and presentation, report writing.

Unit 2 – “Managing a Music Product” (Core Unit set by Edexcel). (25%)

This is assessed on: Individual roles and group work within the organisation and preparation of a musical concert in Year 11.

Unit 4 – “Introducing Music Composition” (Optional Unit) (25%)

This is assessed on: Compositional work to a brief, presentation of compositional work, use of Music Technology.

Unit 5 – “Introducing Music Performance” (Optional Unit) (25%)

This is assessed on: Ensemble performance, On-going evaluation and reflection rehearsal and organisational skills

Qualification Registered Exam Board Website
BTEC Performing Arts Dance Edexcel http://www.edexcel.com/
BTEC Level 2 First Award in Music and GCSE Music Edexcel http://www.edexcel.com/
GCSE Drama Eduqas http://www.eduqas.co.uk/qualifications/drama-and-theatre/gcse/
Arts Award, Woodwind Exams Trinity College London http://www.artsaward.org.uk/
Drum Graded Exams Trinity College London
Rock School
http://trinityrock.trinitycollege.co.uk/instruments/drums
https://www.rslawards.com/
Guitar Graded Exams Registry of Guitar Tutors (RGT) http://www.rgt.org/
Vocal Graded Exams Rock School http://www.rockschool.co.uk/qualifications/gradedmusicexams/vocals/
Piano, Strings, Brass Exams ABRSM http://gb.abrsm.org/en/our-exams/piano
Site Useful for Website Link
Andrew Thompson Music Music/Guitar http://www.andrewthompsonmusic.com/
MusicTheory.net Music http://www.musictheory.net/
BBC Bitesize Drama http://www.bbc.co.uk/education/subjects/zbckjxs
Theatrecrafts Drama http://www.theatrecrafts.com/home
Creative Arts Blog Creative Arts http://rmscreativearts.weebly.com/
Creative Arts Twitter Creative Arts https://twitter.com/rusheymeadCArts

Faculty Staff

Ms Hunter – Curriculum leader: Creative arts; Lead Teacher in Drama. [email protected]
Mr Piper Curriculum leader: Music [email protected]
Mr Bacon – Teacher in Music
Ms East – Lead Teacher in Dance; Teacher in PE. [email protected]
Mr Peach – MIS Assistant Manager; Creative Arts Technician; Registered Arts Award Advisor