Music Maker Pitch

KS1 (Years 1 - 2)

Music

This product is published by Resource Education (Tel: 01509 672222)

I feel this is an excellent piece of software for Key Stage 1 Music. It operates at a level, which would be enjoyed from Reception to Year 2 (and beyond!). It has been well thought out so that navigation is extremely simple and can be managed independently, even by the youngest age group, following a short introduction. Although simple to navigate, it does involve a lot of varied activities - all interactive -, which could be used at all levels individually, or even by the whole class.

Music Maker has proved to be a very enjoyable and educational program that children of all abilities have worked on with success. The way it is set out makes it very easy for children to access and all levels of ability can work on the program quite independently. A mouse that is in good order is essential as there is only a need to use the keyboard when saving a composition.

Following Music lessons on pitch using voices and instruments, I introduced Music Maker in a whole class session using a PC with a 21-inch screen. We went through the various activities together, with the children offering their contributions either making tunes, or guessing answers to the games. We discussed the icons and where they would lead. This was followed by either directed pairs, or free access at a single PC over a week, set up as an activity in an integrated reception classroom. During the second week, directed, mixed ability pairs sat with an adult who assessed their ability to move around the software and then recorded and played back tunes with them.

The children who are mixed Year 2 and 3 were working in pairs on the computer within the classroom. They could already launch their personal working desktop and could access programs listed on it.