Art

“Art should be something that liberates your soul, provokes the imagination and encourages people to go further.”

Keith Haring, Artist

  

At BSCA Primary we are artists! We want our children to love art and design. We want them to have no limits to what their ambitions are and grow up wanting to be artists, illustrators and graphic designers and so on.  

 

Our art and design curriculum embodies our vision: we create a place where all can achieve life in its fullness. 

 

Our children BELIEVE they are artists who STRIVE to know more and remember more. They CARE for each other and the world. Finally, they ACHIEVE their excellence by working hard- at the end of their time in primary school they are artists ready to continue their learning journey in key stage 3 and beyond. 

 

By living our vision and values we achieve our Trust vision: through our art curriculum our children will have: 

Life in all its fullness. 

 

Our art curriculum has been carefully crafted so that our children develop their art capital. We want our children to remember their art lessons in our school and to have amazing memories to look back on. We turn our corridors into our Art Gallery so we can celebrate our successes. 

 

Curriculum Intent 

The art curriculum promotes curiosity and a life long love of learning. It is ambitious and empowers our children to become independent and resilient – like all our curriculum areas. We promote the use of a knowledge-rich curriculum to serve the key principles of cognitive science. Research has shown that those who are rich in knowledge gain new knowledge quicker and more effectively. Hirsch writes, knowledge should be thought of as mental velcro. People who have lots of subject-specific knowledge find that new knowledge ‘sticks’ to it, helping them commit the new information to long-term memory. 

We therefore place the acquisition of knowledge at the heart of the learning process. 

 

We want to equip them with the statutory requirements of the art National Curriculum and prepare them for the opportunities, responsibilities and experiences of later life. Spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is central to the development and growth of our pupils and is also at the heart of our art curriculum alongside learning more and remembering more. Through the study of art they can grow their creativity and cultivate their imaginations and every opportunity is taken to do this across the curriculum. For example, when studying RE they explore artists’ impressions of key religious stories and events. In their one of their computing units they develop their substantive and disciplinary knowledge of the role of digital art. 

 

Our aim is for all children to access challenging curriculum content that covers a range of art concepts. We seek to achieve this through the use of high-quality curriculum materials and knowledge organisers, that lay out specific, detailed, coherent knowledge and to use pedagogical practices that seek to ensure that knowledge is not just encountered but fixed in the long-term memory. We know that learning has not taken place if there has not been a change to long term memory. 

 

The children’s art learning starts in the early years with opportunities to build the children’s knowledge and vocabulary of art and being an artist. They are encouraged to explore and create with a wide range of materials. 

 

The KS1 curriculum has been designed to lay the groundwork of substantive knowledge and disciplinary knowledge to prepare them for further study in KS2. It is our intent that our KS2 curriculum prepares our children to go on to study the subject at key stage 3 and beyond e.g. to university or that they will require particular subject knowledge in their future career, or need particular subject knowledge or skills to enable them to be active members of society. 

 

Throughout key stage 1 and 2 our pupils take inspiration from artists, using authentic sources from throughout history to explore the traditional, and use the more recent examples of modern and contemporary art to help generate ideas for their work. They explore and practice the practical skills and techniques involved in the topic and use their sketch books to record their observations and to review and revisit ideas before producing a final piece. The way each discipline is taught in our school has also been adapted so that the disciplines are revisited, at a progressively deeper level. 

 

We enrich their time in our school with memorable, unforgettable experiences and provide opportunities which may normally be out of reach – these pique their interests and passions. Taking part in the annual Sky Arts Week is one such example. The whole school becomes immersed in the theme and then evidence of it is celebrated in our Corridor Gallery.  

 

Extra-curricular opportunities are offered through various after school art clubs for the different key stages and all children in Key Stage 1 and 2 can access Mindfulness Colouring at dinner time weekly. 

 

Curriculum Implementation 

 

The art curriculum has been carefully built and the learning opportunities for each year group designed to ensure progression and repetition in terms of embedding key learning, knowledge and skills. We believe that our pupils need to be actively involved in making sense of their learning and therefore an enquiry approach has been implemented, encouraging higher-order thinking and allowing our children to explore.  

  

Tier 3 subject specific art vocabulary is identified for each learning challenge. We encourage our children ‘To speak like artists’ in all lessons and display key vocabulary in our classrooms using dual coding and place it on our knowledge organisers.  

  

Our medium term plans are used to set out the learning objectives for each lesson, identifying engaging activities and resources which will be used to achieve them. 

  

We teach art through a progression of skills ensuring a coverage of a variety of different media from painting and drawing to collage, textiles, printing and sculpture. Children develop their understanding of colour and technique as well as learning about an increasingly wide range of artists, designers and architects whose work they use to inspire their own.  

 

Ultimately, our art and design education leads the children to feel confident using a range of materials and mediums to express themselves. They are able to talk about different kinds of art they like and don't like, and are enthusiastic about sharing different perspectives on life through art.  

 

Our teachers link prior knowledge to new learning in order to deepen understanding. We believe that by crafting our curriculum this way, we improve the potential for our children to retain what they have been taught, to alter their long-term memory and therefore make maximum progress. 

 

We believe art and design acts as an enhancer to our wider curriculum and thus try to make meaningful learning links with other subjects. This helps the children to strengthen schemas- revisiting learning and adding to existing schemas. For example, in year 1 when the children study the local significant individual artist LS Lowry in history they explore his works of art and techniques in their art lessons too. 

 

We use the Windows, Mirrors and Doors approach to ensure that art learning is inclusive, reflective, and inspiring: 

• Windows – Art provides windows into the wider world, allowing pupils to look outward and experience the creativity, traditions, and stories of diverse artists, cultures, and communities. Through studying a wide range of artworks, children develop cultural awareness, empathy, and respect for artistic expression beyond their own experience. 

• Mirrors – Art acts as a mirror that reflects each child’s identity, ideas, and emotions. Pupils see their own lives, experiences, and perspectives represented and valued. They use art to explore who they are and how they connect to others, building confidence, self-awareness, and pride in their creative voice. 

• Doors – Art opens doors to new possibilities by encouraging imagination, curiosity, and innovation. Pupils are inspired to take creative risks, explore new techniques, and envision how art can shape and influence the world. They come to see themselves as artists, designers, and changemakers who can express ideas and emotions with purpose and impact. 

  

Curriculum Impact 

Our Art and Design curriculum enables pupils to explore, express, and communicate ideas creatively while developing an appreciation for artistic heritage and contemporary culture. Through a rich variety of media, techniques, and artists, pupils gain the confidence to experiment, reflect, and take risks in their creative journeys. 

Art has a powerful impact on pupils’ personal, social, and emotional development. By the end of Key Stage 2, children are able to: 

• Use a range of materials and techniques with increasing skill and control. 

• Apply their knowledge of colour, pattern, texture, line, shape, form, and space to create purposeful and imaginative work. 

• Evaluate and refine their ideas, learning to think critically about their own work and that of others. 

• Talk confidently about the work of artists, craft makers, and designers from different times, cultures, and traditions, making connections to their own creative practice. 

The impact of our Art and Design curriculum is evident in pupils who: 

• Show curiosity, creativity, and originality in their work. 

• Demonstrate resilience by experimenting with materials, embracing mistakes as part of the creative process. 

• Appreciate the value of art in society and its power to express identity, ideas, and emotions. 

• Take pride in their creations and understand the cultural significance of visual expression. 

Art at our school nurtures confident, reflective, and expressive learners who see themselves as artists. By the time they leave Key Stage 2, children have not only developed technical skills but also an enduring enjoyment of creativity and a recognition of art’s role in shaping and celebrating the human experience. 

 

 Yearly Curriculum Overview

	Autumn 1	Autumn 2	Spring 1	Spring 2	Summer 1	Summer 2
Year 1	0	Colour Chaos	0	Nature Sculptures	0	LS Lowry
Year 2	Portraits	0	Fabricate	0	Landscapes and Cityscapes	0
Year 3	0	Autumn	0	British Art	0	Bodies
Year 4	Fruit and Vegetables	0	European Art and Artists	0	Insects	0
Year 5	0	Ancient Greece	0	South and Central American	0	Plants and Flowers
Year 6	Wildlife Birds	0	The Seaside	0	North American	0