COBS Secondary Centres
April 2018 – April 2019

What did the music sessions involve?
Lyric writing
Melody writing
Performing & Sharing
Singing
Song writing
Composing & Improvising
Recording
Music Technology
Logic Pro
Midi Keyboard
Drum machines
Beat boxing
Sampling
Audio editing
Sequencing
FX incl. delay and echo
Band work
Keyboard, Guitar and Drums
Examples of genres and themes explored
90s RnB
Pop
Sound Tracks
Gaming
Grime
Dance
Hip Hop
Rock
Rap
Dubstep
House
Trance
Musical Objectives
1. To develop song writing, lyric writing, composing techniques.
2. To encourage young people to use their voices as part of their music making.
3. To develop an understanding and competency of using technology to support music making/production.
4. To encourage self-expression through creative music making.
Social Objectives
1. To gain group working skills
2. To improve communication skills
3. To encourage listening to each other
Personal Objectives
1. To impact on self confidence
2.To improve self-esteem and feel proud of achievements
Feedback from Staff

“Pupils willing to show patience, show confidence through active ‘failure’ towards gradual success and reward through positive praise (great session leadership from Sarah). Pupils keen to stay in the session to produce good work and enthused about working with Sarah and politely asking for more sessions.”
“Many young people overcame confidence issues to perform in front of their peers.”
“All pupils made some level of progress whether trying a new instrument for the first time (with an actual practitioner which is very useful) or spending time on making a full original composition. In some cases, pupils made more than one original composition which is a massive accomplishment.”
“For one of our young people, the choice to be able to write lyrics and perform them away from his peers gave him a rare opportunity to enjoy ‘his moment’. This was a huge step-forward for someone who barely speaks in class and stays on the periphery of school life.”
“Our pupils enjoy listening to music, this was their first opportunity to develop skills to make music, it provided excellent opportunities for them to widen their range of musical experiences.”
“The project has made me think about finding out what musical genres influence the students. We have since taken part in discussions about music and its influence on behaviour and mood.”
“Due to the nature of the group work and their desire to make music, pupils rapidly developed their team working skills and effective communication skills. They also developed a range of technical music related vocabulary.”
“Nicole was extremely accommodating and supportive of our needs in centre and in identifying individual support required by and interests of the pupils. The opportunity for the pupils to visit the MAC and share their performances and meet with artists was excellent. The project has been of great benefit to the pupils and really appreciated by centre. We would love to participate in future similar opportunities.”
Secondary Pupil Comments
“I only come in for your class…it was good, miss, makes me laugh.”
“This was very interesting; I’m going to continue making music in the future.”
“I didn’t think I would be teaching other people. I rock!”
“It helps me with my anger when I sing and write songs.”
“I didn’t know that I would be that good.” “I like music, it takes my mind off stuff.”
“I just want to do this all the time. Gotta get me a Launchpad.”
“Thanks I really enjoyed the performance it was inspirational to hear someone who understands us”
“We need this at least 2 days a week, it makes me feel better”
“We sound like a real band!”
“I wish I hadn’t wasted so much time not learning”
“I can’t believe I’m letting people listen.”
“I want to do music in the future.”
“I wish I was better at drums but it’s so difficult and I get frustrated. I’m gonna keep trying though.”
0121 446 3222 | jen.loffman@macbirmingham.co.uk | @macmakesmusic
