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Art & DESIGN

At West Acton Primary, we believe in the value and impact of teaching Art and Design as part of a broad and balanced curriculum. We aim to provide children with opportunities to develop and extend skills to express their individual interests and ideas, whilst also contributing to the development of the child emotionally, aesthetically, spiritually, intellectually and socially.

High quality art education equips children with the skills to explore, experiment, create and invent their own work of art whilst engaging, inspiring and challenging pupils. As artists, children should be able to critically evaluate their work and the work of others, taking influence from well-known artists and adapting their work accordingly. As their skill set progresses, they should understand how art has changed their landscape, culture and history.

Intent

Our intent is to;

Fulfil the requirements of the National Curriculum for Art and Design by providing a broad and balanced curriculum.

Plan and deliver lessons that provide a progressive development of knowledge and skills, enabling children to observe and record from first-hand experience and from imagination.

Develop the children’s competence in controlling materials and tools, safely and sensibly and acquire knowledge and experience of various Art and Design techniques and processes.

Begin to develop an awareness of the visual and tactile elements including; colour, pattern and texture, line and tone, shape, form and space.

Foster enjoyment and appreciation of the visual arts and develop a knowledge of significant artists, craftspeople and designers.

Increase critical awareness of the roles and purposes of Art and Design in different times and cultures.

Build a vocabulary that enables children to analyse works using the language of Art and Design and develop a cross-curricular approach to the use of Art and Design in a range of subjects.

Implementation

Implementation:

At West Acton Primary, we split the terms between Art and Design and Design Technology, with subjects alternating each half term. Using the National Curriculum to inform our long term and medium term plans, each Year Group then plans weekly lessons to deliver these aims.

The time dedicated to Art and Design ensures that each topic can be delivered to a high standard and children can create important and expressive pieces. Art and Design is taught as part of a termly topic, focusing on knowledge and skills stated in the National Curriculum; progressing throughout their journey through the school. The school’s high-quality Art and Design curriculum is supported through the availability of a wide range of resources, which are used to support children’s confidence in the use of different media and techniques.

Our whole school curriculum provides children with opportunities to develop their skills in Art and Design using a range of media and materials. Children have the opportunity to explore and evaluate different creative ideas developing skills in drawing, painting, printing, collage, textiles, 3D work and digital art that develops as they progress through the school.

Children study a range of works by a range of famous artists, of diverse backgrounds, to develop knowledge of styles achieved through direct teaching and through cross-curricular opportunities in the classroom. The children have a sketchbook that follows them through the school. Art is displayed to motivate and inspire others and to celebrate the pupils’ artwork in their class.

As children develop their subject knowledge lessons offer opportunities to recall, revisit and use key vocabulary and knowledge, whilst feedback is given in the moment by teachers and discussion developed in plenary and evaluation sessions.

Children are given opportunities to engage in Art and Design outside the classroom, with visits from artists, workshops, museum or gallery trips and national extra-curricular competitions.

Impact

Impact:

At West Acton Primary we believe that learning Art and Design provides a valuable practical, social and cultural experiences for children of all ages and abilities. Pupils develop life skills and have the chance to extend their knowledge of a practitioner’s works.

Our Art and Design curriculum is planned to demonstrate progression and to stimulate creativity. Pupils work on clearly identified intended outcomes and have a means to measure their own work against this. Art and Design is used as a means of expression or to explore the styles of other artists that inspire our own work.

In Art, children are encouraged to be reflective and evaluate their own and each other’s work, thinking about how they can make changes to keep improving and developing a vocabulary to do so.

Each Year Group, from Nursery to Year 6 learn about selected influential artists and styles; allowing them to build a bank of artists’ work to drawn upon for inspiration and to develop their knowledge base.

Children’s learning in Art and Design impacts learning in other subjects areas; such as Design Technology, English, RE, PSHE, Science and the Humanities by encouraging children to work collaboratively and independently, to handle tools and materials with skill and care, to respond to Art and to evaluate and discuss their own and other’s art work using a broadening vocabulary.

Cultural Capital

Cultural Capital:

We build the Cultural Capital of our pupils by providing them with a means to engage in and understand the world around them and their relationship with it. Embedded in our curriculum is the exploration of the work of artists that represent a range of styles, skills and ideologies. Cultural awareness is developed through creating, investigating, making and doing. This journey gives our students a voice with which to express their thoughts, feelings about and responses to the world around them.

At West Acton Primary it is essential that children are able to experience high quality Art and Design experiences and they can answer some fundamental questions about artists, diverse cultures and how the arts can be aesthetically pleasing. The following principles are used to create beauty: balance, emphasis, rhythm, proportion, pattern, unity and contrast. Along with the visual elements: colour, line, shape, value, texture. A sense of awe and wonder is developed through discovery of the processes that the Arts create. The Arts raise many social and moral questions. Through the Arts teaching, children have the opportunity to discuss choices we make and the effect they have on the world around us. The Arts give the children the opportunity to reflect on art work, performance, music, and creative work. The Arts teach children about the reasons why people are different and, by developing the children’s knowledge and understanding of the opportunities that the Arts bring, it promotes respect for other people. It raises many social and moral questions. Through teaching, children have the opportunity to discuss choices we make and the effect they have on the world around us. This gives the children the opportunity to reflect on art work and creative work. This teaches children about the reasons why people are different and, by developing the children’s knowledge and understanding of the opportunities that this brings, it promotes respect for other people and cultures. Teaching children to celebrate different cultures from around the world.

Home Learning

Home Learning in Art and Design is encouraged through providing parents/carers and children with a wide variety of activities to develop their creative skills. As well as recommended Art and Design activities on the school website and newsletters, children all have access to interactive art and design games and learning through Discovery Espresso, Purple Mash (Mini Mash) and BBC Bitesize - which can be used at home in conjunction with individual Year group plans. Extra-curricular Art and Design competitions are shared, giving children opportunities to explore Art and Design outside the classroom and beyond our school.