Starting the new academic year as a music teacher or taking on the role as a music subject lead is exciting but can also feel overwhelming.
One of the challenges facing music educators is finding reliable resources; when time and money is at a premium it is often tempting to stay with ‘old favourites’ rather than trying something new. A quick google search for materials will yield many results but raise an equal amount of questions - will this actually work with my class?
As an advocate for music education in schools and as a response to this challenge, Jazz North has launched the Learning Resources area on their website. These free, downloadable materials are designed for curriculum music teachers (Key Stages 1-4), instrumental tutors and lifetime learners. Rather than being aimed at experienced jazz educators they offer simple yet effective pathways to help and encourage all teachers and students to engage with improvisation.
For ease of navigation the resources are split into 6 sections - Instrumental, Vocal & Singing, Aural & Listening, Model Music Curriculum, Lifetime Learners and Jazz North recommends (signposting existing jazz resources from other providers)
The initial batch of resources will be released on Tuesday 15th October with follow up resources added in response to stakeholder feedback.
Website link to create a free account and access the resource bank.
https://www.jazznorth.org/learning-resource-area
Helena Summerfield, Jazz North’s Learning and Participation project manager and Parliamentary Jazz Educator of the Year 2022 says:
“To many people working in music education jazz can be a bit of a scary word and I want to try and change that perception. I would encourage all educators to view improvisation as a valuable musicianship skill rather than it being an exclusive to jazz skill. My aim with our Learning Resources Area was to create a batch of fun, user-friendly materials that all educators could engage with to start their journey with jazz.”
