At Dallington School, the arts play a central role in school life, shaping how children explore ideas, express themselves and develop confidence in their own creativity.
Both the performing arts – music and drama – and the visual arts are an important part of each child’s experience. They are not separate from learning, but integrated into the wider curriculum, supporting children as they make sense of the world around them.
Through music, drama and visual arts, children are given time, space and encouragement to experiment, explore new ideas and take creative risks in a supportive and progressive environment. The arts at Dallington are approached as part of a broader creative curriculum, helping children to build skills, confidence and enjoyment through making, doing and reflecting.
Music and drama at Dallington
In music and drama lessons, children have the time and space to play, the opportunity to develop new skills and the freedom to experiment with ideas in a safe and nurturing environment. They are encouraged to take creative risks, explore different forms of expression and enjoy the process of learning as much as the outcome.
Music and drama also support collaboration, communication and confidence, helping children to express themselves both individually and as part of a group.
Shows are held throughout the year, including our well-known Winter and Summer Concerts. Children play an active role in creating these productions, developing the scripts themselves and helping to shape what is shared with families and friends. This gives them the opportunity to contribute their own ideas while experiencing the collaboration involved in bringing a performance together.
We also hold instrumental concerts in which every child is encouraged to perform, whether they are an accomplished musician or playing in front of an audience for the first time. These concerts are an opportunity to recognise each child’s progress and give them experience of sharing their music within a supportive community.
Through these different performances, children can participate in ways that reflect their interests and growing confidence. The emphasis is not placed solely on technical accomplishment, but on having the courage to contribute, support others and enjoy the experience of performing together.
Learning to play and musical development
Throughout their time at Dallington, children learn to play a range of instruments, from hand-held percussion through to pitched instruments.
They develop musicianship through a Kodály-inspired approach, focusing on keeping a steady pulse, understanding rhythm and pitch, and working collaboratively with others.
As their confidence grows, children progress to accompanying one another and taking part in instrumental ensembles, building both skill and enjoyment in music-making. We introduce our children to a wide range of music in their classes and when we take advantage of the London music and theatre scene, going to concerts or shows when we can.
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Music in school life and performance
Children are introduced to a wide range of music in their lessons and through opportunities to experience the London music and theatre scene, including concerts and performances.
The Dallington School Choir meets every Wednesday morning, and there are regular whole-school singing assemblies that bring the community together through music.
Private music lessons and specialist teaching
Dallington has close links with the Guildhall School of Music & Drama.
Individual piano and violin lessons are taught by Guildhall scholars, while drums and guitar are taught by an experienced session musician and teacher.
These opportunities allow children to develop their skills further if they wish, while continuing to enjoy music as part of a broader creative education.
Visual arts across the curriculum
Visual arts are fully integrated into all aspects of children’s learning at Dallington. They are used to support creative writing, illustrate diaries and bring topic work to life through 2D and 3D projects, including model-making and design-based activities. This integration helps children see how visual expression connects to wider learning, encouraging them to communicate ideas in different ways and develop confidence in their creative decisions.
Children also regularly visit museums and galleries, where they experience a range of artistic styles and approaches. These experiences help to deepen their understanding and appreciation of art in its many forms.
By the end of their time at Dallington, we hope to have nurtured both a love and appreciation of the arts, alongside the development of important creative and expressive skills.
Creative workshops
We enrich the arts curriculum with regular workshops led by external professionals such as Circus Skills, Dance Days, African drummers, jazz guitarists and world musicians. These workshops give children the opportunity to explore something completely new, often stepping outside their comfort zone and discovering abilities they may not have realised they had. They are encouraged to enjoy the process of learning, including making mistakes and experimenting freely, which we believe is an important part of creative development and a valuable tool for life.
The role of the arts in primary education
In primary education, the arts provide children with structured opportunities to explore ideas that may not always be easily expressed through writing or formal discussion.
They allow children to interpret the world in different ways, using visual, musical and dramatic forms to explore meaning, communicate understanding and respond to what they are learning.
Alongside subject knowledge, the arts help children develop the ability to observe carefully, respond thoughtfully and build ideas through exploration. This supports a broader approach to learning, where understanding is developed not only through information, but through experience and reflection.
At this stage of education, the arts also help children become more comfortable working with uncertainty and open-ended tasks – the idea that there is not always a single correct answer, but many possible ways of approaching an idea.
How the arts are taught at Dallington
The arts at Dallington are shaped by a progressive approach to learning, where children are encouraged to explore ideas in depth and develop them over time.
Rather than moving quickly towards fixed outcomes, children are supported to experiment with different materials, approaches and interpretations. This allows ideas to evolve naturally and encourages children to think more independently about their creative decisions.
Teachers guide this process by creating space for discussion, reflection and experimentation, helping children to understand that learning often develops through trial, revision and refinement rather than immediate success.
Within this environment, children are given the time and confidence to explore their own thinking, while also learning how to respond to feedback, collaborate with others and refine their work as it develops.
See The Arts in Action
The best way to understand the benefits of our unique approach to learning at Dallington is to see it for yourself. We welcome families to visit the school, experience lessons in action and see how creativity is embedded across daily school life.