Art & Design

“Everyone then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock.” Matthew 7:24

Just as the wise builder chose to build his house on solid foundations, so a well-lived, successful life requires solid foundations. Through our curriculum, we aim to give our children the knowledge and skills – the foundations - they need to become fulfilled, successful, loving adults in their world.

Intent

At Netheravon All Saints, we aim to nurture curiosity about the world. Through our art and design curriculum, children are able to explore the world, make careful observations and express themselves in a range of creative ways. We intend to provide children with the skills, techniques and knowledge to express themselves in a range of media and styles. Our rural locality allows us opportunity to explore nature through art and we aim to provide children with the observation skills and creative techniques to celebrate this and provide opportunities to share this with our village and military community. Art also opens a window to the wider world, different cultures, times and forms of expression. We intend to broaden our children’s cultural capital through our art curriculum and teach respect for other cultures.

Implementation

Our curriculum, based on Kapow, allows skills to be revisited, deepened and practised, with each year group studying drawing, painting, printing and sculpture. In this way, skills, techniques and knowledge are developed and built upon. This supports children joining our school, as their starting points can be catered for. The role of the teacher is to introduce key skills, materials and ideas to learners in a way that each child can explore their own creativity without implementing a prescriptive outcome.

All children will be able to use drawing, painting, printing and sculpture techniques to bring their ideas to life. As the children progress through the school, they will develop their skills including: colour, pattern, texture, line, shape, form and space.

Each unit is supported by exploration of a key artist. These have been selected to broaden children’s experiences and knowledge of cultures from around the world. Throughout each unit, children are encouraged to think critically, not only about the work of prominent artists, but also about their own work. They make suggestions for ways to develop it further, and self and peer-assess their final pieces.

Our rural locality means we are surrounded by a landscape that changes dramatically with the seasons. Our children are encouraged to explore this and use the natural world as a stimulus for their art work.

The Art curriculum develops the children’s appreciation of the work of artists, craft makers and designers from a range of backgrounds and the diverse roles that they fulfil in contemporary life, in different times and cultures. Across the school, children are encouraged to take creative risks and to learn from their journey in a safe and nurturing environment. Our curriculum aims to give all children the opportunities to develop themselves as individuals and enable them to find other ways of expression.

Impact

Through high quality first teaching, children leave Netheravon All Saints with an appreciation of the diversity and beauty of art. They have developed a range of techniques and skills to be able to express themselves through a range of media. They have a rich understanding of artists from across the world and can articulate which artists’ work resonates with them and why. They can also celebrate the natural art all around them and take time to reflect upon the awe and wonder of this.

Reviewed January 2024