Art & Design

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Art & Design at our school

Intent (The ‘why’)

“The true purpose of arts education is not necessarily to create more professional artists. It is to create more complete human beings who are critical thinkers, who have curious minds, who can lead productive lives.” - Kelly Pollock, Executive Director, COCA

Rationale:

Arts education is increasingly important in order to foster well-rounded, confident, enthusiastic and appreciative pupils.

Children must be given the opportunity to improve their skills, knowledge and understanding in art and design, music, dance and drama so they have a full range of tools available to them for communication and development as people. With a broad and balanced arts education, children are given choices and opportunities which can enrich their lives. Schools have a commitment to the arts to ensure a full and rounded education for all pupils. It is important that all children have an entitlement to a range of high-quality arts experiences whatever their background and ability.

Art is a practical subject. Children learn to think creatively and become problem solvers, both as individuals and as part of a team. Art helps children to become informed consumers. Children acquire a broad range of subject knowledge and draw on disciplines such as mathematics, science, engineering, computing and design technology. High-quality art and design education makes an essential contribution to the creativity, culture, and wellbeing of the nation.

Through our art and design curriculum, pupils will be provided with opportunities to create with a real purpose. Furthermore, pupils will also be afforded time to evaluate their work allowing them to reflect on its impact.  

Aims:

Our art and design curriculum aims to:

• raise the confidence andself-esteem of pupils through opportunities to be involved in every art form;
• improve skills, knowledge and understanding in arts activities;
• foster an imaginative, creative and progressive approach to learning through experiencing the arts;
• develop deeper experience and understanding of different cultures within the school, the community and the wider world through involvement with the arts;
• encourage an enthusiasm and appreciation of the arts which will stay with pupils throughout their lives;
• promote creative self-expression;
• support children in creating different artworks, making critical judgements and exploring values, attitudes, feelings and meanings.

Implementation

Curriculum Organisation:

Our Art and Design curriculum is structured to ensure full coverage of the National Curriculum. All Art and Design teaching is taught through Cornerstones’ Curriculum 2022 learning journeys. The curriculum has been designed to ensure that knowledge and skills within the subjects are taught progressively and revisited over time; this revisiting of knowledge and skills leads to deeper learning. All lessons have clear learning objectives which are shared and reviewed with the pupils.

Although we teach Art and Design through Cornerstones Curriculum 2022 learning journeys, our teachers adapt the content to make it relevant to our locality.

Planned Content – Early Years Foundation Stage (Expressive Arts and Design)

Children are supported to safely use and explore a variety of materials, tools and techniques, experimenting with colour, design, texture, form and function. They share their creations, explaining the process they have used and make use of props and materials when role playing characters in narratives and stories.

Planned Content – Key Stage One

Pupils should learn to use a range of materials creatively to design and make products, learning to use drawing, painting and sculpture to develop and share their ideas, experiences and imagination. They will develop a wide range of art and design techniques in using colour, pattern, texture, line, shape, form and space. Pupils will learn about the work of a range of artists, craft makers and designers, describing the differences and similarities between different practices and disciplines, and making links to their own work.

Planned Content – Key Stage Two

Pupils should learn to create sketch books to record their observations and use them to review and revisit ideas. They will be encouraged to improve their mastery of art and design techniques, including drawing, painting and sculpture with a range of materials [for example, pencil, charcoal, paint, clay]. They will also continue to develop their knowledge of great artists, architects and designers in history.

The Cornerstones curriculum encompasses the key skills needed for progression in art and ensures that there is continuity in both skills and content across the school. The art curriculum is taught progressively, and children will develop their skills as they progress through the school. This enables children to build on their knowledge and learn the value of each art and design technique. Children are provided with many opportunities to engage in art and design activities, and these are embedded across subject areas. Art education is valued by all staff and the children are encouraged to share this view. 

For further information on the Art curriculum, please contact our subject leader, Amy Copland, on [email protected].

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