Intent
Art and Design is a creative subject that enables children to communicate ideas, experiences and emotions through a range of artistic disciplines. It develops children’s imagination, creativity and confidence whilst providing opportunities to explore the world around them and express their own unique perspectives.
The breadth of our Art and Design curriculum is designed with three goals in mind:
- To provide appropriate experiences that develop children as confident, creative and reflective individuals.
- To provide rich cultural capital through the study of significant artists, designers and craftspeople from different times and cultures.
- To provide a coherent, structured Art curriculum that leads to sustained mastery of artistic skills and knowledge for all pupils, with opportunities for greater depth and creative independence.
Our curriculum ensures that children develop a secure understanding of artistic techniques, processes and vocabulary whilst fostering curiosity and enjoyment. Through carefully sequenced units, pupils explore drawing, painting, sculpture, printing, textiles and mixed media. They learn how artists have influenced the world around us and apply this knowledge to create their own purposeful artwork.
By studying artists and craftspeople alongside practical experiences, children develop an appreciation of creativity and culture. They are encouraged to make choices, take risks, evaluate their work and celebrate both the creative process and final outcomes.
Implementation
Our Art and Design curriculum is based on the Chris Quigley Essentials Curriculum and is underpinned by our curriculum drivers. It is organised as a progressive, year group specific programme from Early Years through to Key Stage One, ensuring knowledge and skills build systematically over time.
Throughout the curriculum, children revisit and develop skills in:
- Drawing
- Painting
- Sculpture and 3D Form
- Printing
- Textiles and Collage
- Evaluating and Appreciating Art
As children progress into KS2 (Years 3-6), they continue to build upon the knowledge and skills developed in EYFS and KS1. They refine their understanding of drawing, painting, sculpture, printmaking, textiles and digital art whilst studying a wider range of influential artists, designers and artistic movements. Children increasingly develop their own artistic style, creativity and critical thinking as they progress through the primary phase.
The threshold concepts are what pupils should understand and the skills they should develop. In Art and Design, these are revisited throughout all year groups and underpin children’s artistic development. These include:
- Master practical skills
- Develop ideas and creativity
- Take inspiration from artists, craftspeople and designers
- Evaluate and refine artwork
- Develop knowledge of artistic styles and movements
Returning to these concepts repeatedly allows children to strengthen understanding, make connections and achieve deeper learning over time. This process is known as interleaving.
The detailed progression can be found in the document below.
Impact
Through the explicit teaching of artistic skills and knowledge, teachers and pupils continually assess learning throughout each lesson. Children are encouraged to reflect on their work, discuss artistic choices and evaluate outcomes against success criteria.
To help children achieve a deep level of understanding, we regularly revisit the threshold concepts throughout the curriculum. As children revisit drawing, painting, sculpture and other artistic disciplines, they build upon prior learning and develop increasing confidence, knowledge and technical proficiency.
For example, in Year 1 children may begin by experimenting with colour and texture through the work of Vincent Van Gogh. By Year 2, they apply these skills with greater independence whilst making informed artistic choices inspired by artists such as Yayoi Kusama and Henri Rousseau. Over time, children become increasingly skilled in creating, evaluating and discussing artwork using appropriate artistic vocabulary.
The impact of our curriculum is demonstrated through the quality of children’s artwork, sketchbooks, discussions and creative outcomes. Children leave each phase equipped with the knowledge, skills and confidence to appreciate, create and respond to art as informed and creative individuals.
