Performing Arts at Hartland are a key part of our school identity, and students are introduced to the Performing Arts curriculum from the moment they arrive in the school. With specialist Drama and Music provision on staff, lessons across the school develop crucial transferrable skills, particularly within the areas of analysing, creating and realising, as well as nurturing an appreciation of the subjects themselves. Dance is also delivered through external specialist provision, which forms a part of our enrichment program.
Performing Arts Curriculum starts in Foundation Stage with singing, music and dance-based play. Students in Foundation Stage benefit from lessons delivered by specialist teachers in dedicated spaces. Foundation Stage students are involved in two performances, at the end of Term 1 and halfway through Term 3 in our state-of-the-art Theatre.
At Key Stage 1, students are taught the basic skills of music through singing, listening and performing. Students are also encouraged to begin composing their own pieces of music using a range of tuned and untuned percussion. Students in Key Stage 1 are also part of out two main concerts, the winter concert at the end of Term 1, and the summer concert at the end of Term 3.
At Key Stage 2, students begin to learn music through different instruments, focussing on Recorder (Year 3), Ukulele (Year 4) and String instruments (Years 5 and 6). Singing is still a key focus; however, students are taught the skills of listening and composition through the instrument they are focussing on. At Key Stage 2, students are also introduced to Drama lessons which take place once a week. In each year group drama students will work with script, devise their own performances and learn core skills, techniques and genres, which they will build upon year on year. Through drama students will not only develop performance skills but also improve confidence, collaboration and communication skills. Example units of work are “The Emerald Crown” environmental script, Greek Theatre and Performance Poetry.
At Key Stage 3, students continue to develop the key skills they have learned in Primary, whilst also switching the focus to preparing for their exam years. In Music, students begin to look at more topic-based units, such as Blues, Film Music and Music of African Origin. They hone their composition skills and learn what goes into making a good musical composition, as well as developing their listening and performing skills. In Drama, students continue to build on key skills and techniques, and they are introduced to a variety of world theatre genres. They will also develop a deeper understanding of theatrical elements such as style, structure, staging and technology and they will be encouraged to analyse and evaluate professional live theatre. Example units of work include Wayang Kulit, Melodrama and Commedia Dell ‘Arte.
At GCSE, for music we study the Edexcel GCSE in Music (1MU0), which covers the 3 key areas of performing (30% of final grade), composition (30%) and analysing (40%). The analysing is a listening exam which focuses on eight set works from around the world and from different time periods. In Drama, students can study Edexcel GCSE Drama, which is taught and assessed through three main components. These are devising theatre (40%), performing scripts (20%) and a written theoretical exam (40%).
At A Level, we follow the Edexcel A Level in Music (9MU0) which follows a very similar pattern to the GCSE, although students are taught the skills to listen to more complex music and understand and question what has been done. In Drama, we follow Edexcel A Level Drama and Theatre Arts. As the main areas of study and assessment, students explore two set texts as well as live professional performance for the theory exam (40%), perform extracts from two different scripts (20%), complete a portfolio and undertake a performance project in which they devise theatre from a stimulus, in the style of a recognised theatre practitioner (40%).
One of our key strengths at Hartland is our offering outside the classroom and any student from Years 3 – 13 can access our enrichment programme. Whether the medium is drama, music, dance or a combination of the three, there are avenues for all to explore. All of our students are able to participate in the two annual musical productions (recent performances include ‘Matilda Jr.’, and ‘Little Shop of Horrors’). In addition, our students are invited to participate in a variety of performances, including Primary and Secondary Plays, Theatre Under the Stars, (Shakespeare and other classic stories or play adaptations) and our Senior Plays, during which upper secondary students are able to participate in performances using more mature material and complex performance skills. There are also opportunities to participate as backstage and technical crew in many of our performances.
Our Winter and Summer concerts give our musical students the opportunity to shine, and we have a range of enrichment opportunities for these students, including Primary and Secondary Choir, Primary and Secondary Ensemble, Pop Band, Ukulele club and others. Our elite Primary choir were awarded UAE Junior Choir of the year at the 2024 Choirfest competition, the region’s premier choir festival
We have created partnerships with leading organisations and individuals within Performing Arts, which offer further challenge and experiences for our students. The Centre for Musical Arts enables provision in a wide range of instruments and the sounds of the exceptional peripatetic teachers, and their students fill our music rooms daily.
We are ISTA members (International School’s Theatre Association), and benefit from the guidance, professional development and student activities on offer. Our Choral Masterclass programmes, in association with Rob Johnston, offer students a unique opportunity to work with a world-renowned conductor, in order to develop vocal talents.
The London Academy of Music and Dramatic Arts (LAMDA) offers a range of graded examinations for Drama, similar to those offered in Music or Dance. At Hartland, we prepare and enter students for the LAMDA examinations in Acting and Public Speaking. Our successful programme saw us enter over 75 students last year, with 100% pass rate. Students must be Year 3 or above to start LAMDA and will begin with Entry Level. We then support students as they work through the grades. Students taking Grade 6 or above earn UCAS points for university applications.