Art and Design
Subject Leader - Mrs Glover
Intent
At Banks Road Primary School, we value Art as an important part of our children’s broad and balanced curriculum. Through art and design, we aim to meet the needs of all of our children, ensuring that they are exposed to a diverse range of historical art and contemporary art and artists. Our curriculum engages, inspires, and challenges pupils, providing them with the knowledge and skills to experiment, invent and create their own works of art, craft, and design. Our curriculum will specialise in drawing, and painting throughout the academic year. As pupils progress through school, they will build on their knowledge and prior learning to reach clear end points. They will become confident artists that are skilled in areas of painting, drawing, printing, weaving, sculpting, and understanding the visual elements of Art (pattern, colour, texture, tone, shape, line). Banks Road endeavours to widen pupils’ knowledge through studying a diverse range of male and female artists, throughout history and of differing cultural heritages. Opportunities are given for all pupils to enjoy and appreciate visual art; developing their ability to think critically, discuss and evaluate work using the language of Art and Design.
Implementation
The implementation and teaching of the Art curriculum at Banks Road Primary school is based on the National Curriculum. From Year 1 onwards, sketchbook work is an integral part of developing skills, ideas, creativity, and ownership of their work. Art is taught as a subject throughout the year by specialist art teachers and weaved into the curriculum through creative responses within Opening Worlds ( History, Geography, RE) and English. ‘Our Drawing Journey’ runs alongside the delivery of the art curriculum and gives pupils the opportunity to engage in drawing daily. The focus on basic drawing skills in short 10 minute activities three times per week gives pupils the time to develop their mark-making skills by making mistakes, discussing their successes and most importantly, enjoying the process of creating and talking about art. The unit plans throughout the year cover one of the main skill areas with some units combining two or more skill areas. The units of work have been planned and designed by art leaders and build upon the pupil’s prior learning and units. All units of work are based around a significant artist, historical piece of art or culture. The artwork is used as a tool for discussion, inspiration, opinion and evaluation. Each unit provides an opportunity to develop key subject specific vocabulary and information about the artist. Each unit allows pupils to discover first-hand the potential of media and techniques whilst subtly developing control of a range of art tools and materials before building up to and completing a final piece. The development of skills and knowledge throughout each unit are mapped across each year group and throughout the school to ensure progression and a clear end point. The evidence of their work is collected within the art sketchbook and photographs of larger, group or 3D pieces are also kept within this book. The pupil’s creative responses through ‘Opening Worlds’, English and ‘Our Drawing Journey’ is celebrated and displayed within the classroom and throughout the school. Pupil’s development of skills and knowledge is further enhanced with creative projects and trips visiting galleries and our city that is bursting with culture and art.
Impact
As a result of delivering a well-planned curriculum all pupils will have embedded the key art and design knowledge and skills to allow them to be ready for the next stage in their education. Pupils will become creative learners and will appreciate that art can come in lots of different forms and that it can be a gateway to other learning, exploring other cultures and give them a sense of freedom. They will gain a range of knowledge about great artists from past and present. They will be reflective and evaluate their own work and the works of others, thinking about how they can make changes to keep improving. They will demonstrate artistic skills through the work produced, evidenced in their sketchbooks. They will be able to articulate subject related vocabulary which pupils will use confidently and will be transferable across the whole curriculum.