VOC AL

D E V E LOP I N G VOC AL S K ILL S T HROUGH T HE

VOC A L - EAS E PROGRAMME

Leicester-Shire

Music Leicester-Shire Schools

Education Hub Music Service
W H Y I S S I N G I N G I M P O R TA N T ?

The voice is the most accessible of all instruments: it is built-in, fully portable and waiting to be developed. Singing
has been proved to support language development enabling children to practise listening and speaking, repeat
words and connect them with an object or an idea. It is the perfect accompaniment to core subjects, especially
reading and maths – singing enhances learning retention, listening skills and concentration. Singing in a group
can boost your mental health. There have been many studies that have measured increased oxytocin levels and
a general sense of wellbeing from those who sing, particularly when in a group or class environment and perhaps
most importantly, it’s fun!

The Vocal-ease programme offers training for teachers as well as encouraging all young people to improve on how
they produce a vocal sound whilst also building on their musical learning.

HOW ARE TEACHERS SUPPORTED THROUGH THE

V O C A L- E A S E P R O G R A M M E ?

Teacher Training Programme

A singing specialist will undertake two twilight training sessions for your whole staff.

This will be tailored to the needs of your school – be it curriculum or topic themed, PHSE or whole school cohesion
and will aim to develop class teachers’ confidence and competence in the teaching of singing.

The programme includes a singing day for all children in the school to sing fun, action songs while modelling the ideas
from the staff training session.

Teachers will be given practical resources and advice so that good practice can continue after the training has ended.

H O W I S S I N G I N G L E A R N T I N T H E V O C A L- E A S E P R O G R A M M E ?

Vocal-ease programmes are about helping children improve their singing in a way that is fun, builds on musical
learning and protects their vocal health. They are also about learning songs from different traditions and also using
their voices creatively. During the course of the programme children will develop their vocal skills by focusing on:

Posture- what good posture looks like and how it Tone- how to make a good healthy vocal sound and
improves the sound how to control this (voice placement)

Breathing-how to take a deep breath without Diction- good articulation

creating tension and how to support the sound
Performance – expression and understanding of
Pitch- extending range and developing pitch control the music
A typical Vocal-ease lesson is full of music making and might follow this pattern:

• Begin within a physical warm-up. This will include will be encouraged to think of how to improve the
body percussion, clapping back rhythms and performance e.g. through thinking about the quality
vocal exercises of the sound, diction and phrasing

• Vocal warm-up. This could begin simply with spoken • Now to learning something new: the teacher will
words to focus on energy and engagement. Here talk about the song: its context, what it’s about and
the children will explore different aspects of music where it comes from and what these mean for how it
such as how to produce different vocal colours should be performed
and qualities
• The lesson will then conclude with a favourite song
• Then the lesson recaps something already known or something well-known but adding an extra
in order to reinforce previous learning and improve demand or challenge
on this. Any errors will be corrected and the children

However, Vocal-ease lessons are not just about vocal technique. They are also about supporting children to act in
a creative and musical way and to help them develop self-esteem. Children are frequently asked about their views
about music and singing. Most of all, Vocal-ease programmes are FUN.

V O C A L- E A S E P R O G R A M M E S AVA I L A B L E

The 6 or 10 week individual Individual or Groups of Schools The group of schools

school programmes Large Scale Performance programme

This phase compromises six or
ten bespoke ‘in-school’ sessions
with our singing specialist.The
conclusion of the programme will
be an ensemble performance led by
our singing specialist together with
the class teachers.
This option provides a large scale
performance opportunity
Our singing specialist will hold three
rehearsal sessions in each school
to prepare up to two classes for a
massed choir performance often at
the De Montfort Hall.
This provides a cluster of schools
with the opportunity to work
together on a singing project, whilst
at the same time receiving CPD
training on singing development.
Our singing specialist holds three
rehearsal sessions in each of the
schools with support from the class
teacher to work in between visits.

This is followed up by a massed

rehearsal of all the schools prior to a
performance for parents, in the
feeder secondary school or another
suitable local concert venue.