Art

Art and Design Curriculum

Art & Design Curriculum Statement

At St Austin’s Catholic Primary School we want every child to be happy and enthusiastic learners of Art & design, and to be eager to achieve their very best in order to fulfil their God-given talents. We firmly believe that the recipe for success is high quality first-wave teaching in Art & design, which is central to the life of our happy, caring school.

Intent – What we are trying to achieve?

Our principal aim is that children leave St Austin’s Catholic Primary School with a wide range of happy and rich memories in Art & design formed through interesting and exciting experiences driven through vehicles that enhance a child’s awareness of their own abilities and strengths as a learner; thus ensuring that children see learning in Art & design as an ongoing process not a one-off event.
Children will meet the National Curriculum expectations in Art & design, which will be taught by staff who will support children to develop mastery of concepts and inspire enthusiasm and interest in Art & design.
All children will study Art & design for ½ hour per week.
Opportunities will exist for children of all ages to experience learning beyond the classroom. This will allow them to enrich their knowledge by, for example, visits to art galleries, artists/designers to visit school, historical places of artistic relevance, local craft workshops/exhibitions such as the Potteries museums and World of Wedgewood, architectural places of interest
Children will develop a deep understanding of the Art & design they are studying. They will increasingly use their prior knowledge to solve problems and develop the sophistication of art & design.
Children will understand how Catholic virtues and British Values relate to Art & design.
In Art & design, children will develop the skills and knowledge to experiment, invent and create their own works of art, craft and design.
Children will develop the skills to be able to think critically and develop a rigorous understanding of Art & design.
Children will develop a real understanding and appreciation of the world learning from the best that has been developed and said. For example, Picasso, Monet, Renoir, David Hockley.
Children will know how art & design both reflect and shape our history and contribute to the culture, creativity and wealth of our nation.

Implementation – How do we translate our vision into practice?

The curriculum hours in Art & design are non-negotiable and will be followed by all staff in the school. Fixed timetables will be set before the academic year and monitored by the Senior Leadership Team of the school.
Art & design specialists from our partner secondary school, Blessed William Howard, are and will continue to be integral to the planning process. Specialist teachers from Blessed William Howards will be teaching art at St Austin’s Catholic Primary School. This will aid transition to Key Stage 3.
The Subject Leader for Art & design will meet the Senior Leadership Team on a monthly basis to evaluate provision in order to ensure that teaching and learning in Art & design is outstanding. Where necessary, staff will receive coaching and training in Art & design.
Carefully designed schemes of learning in Art & design ensure consistency and progress of all learners.
Vehicles drive learning throughout the term. Therefore, Art & design is taught through the vehicle.
Vehicles include guest speakers who are specialists in their field, trips to businesses, fieldwork to relevant places of interest, innovative use of technology to name but a few.
Art & design is taught individually but plays a key role in the achievement of the learning aims of the vehicle. For example, a focus on the local housing market could include, after visiting an actual show home, children designing their own interior and presenting this to an interior designer.
Success criteria in every Art & design lesson are set in order to guide children to achieve their potential. This ensures work is demanding and matches the aims of the curriculum.
High quality teaching responds to the needs of children. Spiral learning is a key focus of all formative and summative assessment with teachers actively marking work in lessons in order to identify misconceptions early.
High quality input from experts and educational resources complement the delivery of specialist learning admirably. Children understand how Art & design is used in the wider world including careers.
High quality teaching will develop their mastery of art and design techniques, including drawing, painting and sculpture with a range of materials for example, pencil, charcoal, paint clay.
Children will use sketchbooks to record their observations and use them to review and revisit ideas, recording their ideas through drawing, writing and photography.
Children will learn about the work of a range of artists, craft makers and designers, describing the differences and similarities between practices and disciplines, and making links to their own work all taught through the vehicle.

Impact – What is the impact of our curriculum on the students?

Children are happy learners within Art & design. They experience a wide-ranging number of learning challenges in the art and know appropriate responses to them.
Through Art & design, children deepen their appreciation of their faith and fulfil their God-given talents.

Visits within Art & design have enriched the lives of the children and they are able to discuss how the experience impacted their knowledge and understanding.
Children of all abilities and backgrounds achieve well in Art & design, reflected in outstanding progress that reveals a clear learning journey. Children talk enthusiastically about their learning in Art & design and are eager to further their learning in the next stages of their education.
There is a proven track record of test success that reflects the impact of deep learning.
Clear outcomes focus and guide all Art & design development plans and drive improvement.
Children are confident, resilient and actively engaged in the wider society.
Fundamental British Values are evident in Art & design and children understand how Art & design can celebrate difference.
Children will develop a wide range of art and design techniques in using colour, pattern, texture, line shape, form and space, experimenting with and refining their use of different materials.
Children will be able to write/think and talk about art (in terms of the formal elements colour, line, tone, shape, pattern, texture) and be able to record their ideas (drawing from observation).
Children will become proficient in drawing, painting, sculpture and other art, craft and design techniques, producing creative work, exploring their ideas and recording their experiences. They will be able to evaluate and analyse creative works using the language of art, craft and design.
Children will be able to develop ideas from looking at the work of others and famous pieces of artwork giving opinions. They will develop the key skills of commenting, adapting, exploring, collecting and responding.
Through wider reading in Art & design, children will know about great artists, craft makers and designers, and understand the historical and cultural development in their art forms. Through this exposure, children will produce work that is influenced by the best of the best.
Children will be familiar with the opportunities available in the workplace in terms of Art & design such as in graphic design, fine art,photography, fashion/textiles and Spatial design.
Children will develop higher level thinking skills and skills for the workplace such as sustained focus/problem-solving/creativity/resilience.