Art

Vision Statement

As a young artist in the Blue School, I am entitled to:

Have the opportunity to use different tools and a broad range of media including ink, paper, collage, clay, paints, pastels & acrylics
Learn different techniques – eg cutting, sticking, building, printing, painting, sketching, shading and the use of perspective
Make mistakes, experiment and refine my skills
Learn how to evaluate my work and have the opportunity to make a better version
Be exposed to a broad range of artists and designers and understand their historical and social context
Access work in class, regardless of my ability or need
Understand art in the context of my own life and culture – including artists with links to our local area.
Express myself in a visual way without fear of censure
Have a curriculum that focuses more on skills learnt and less on outcome
Stretch my imagination and challenge myself
Make a mess! (and clear it up again)
Have fun

This page provides prospective parents and visitors with a glimpse into our curriculum. Parents of Blue School pupils are provided with detailed guides to subject planning in the form of ‘Knowledge Organisers’ in Parent Zone.

Art Sequence

Aims

The Blue School aims to adhere to the new art curriculum, to ensure that all pupils; produce creative work, exploring their ideas and recording their experiences, become proficient in drawing, painting, sculpture and other art, craft and design techniques, evaluate and analyse creative works using the language of art, craft and design, know about great artists, craft makers and designers, and understand the historical and cultural development of their art forms. By the end of each key stage, pupils are expected to know, apply and understand the matters, skills and processes specified in the relevant programme of study.

Early Years Foundation Stage

The development of children’s artistic and cultural awareness supports their imagination and creativity. In Early Years, children have regular opportunities to engage with arts, enabling them to explore and play with a wide range of media and materials. Pupils will be given opportunities to self express and communicate through arts. By the end of Reception, children will be able to use and refine a variety of artistic effects to express their ideas and feelings. Pupils will gain a key skill of sharing their creations and explaining the process they have used. In addition, pupils would have had the opportunity to safely use and explore a variety of material, tools and techniques, experimenting with colour, design, texture, form and function. Some of these techniques include, still life drawings and paintings, sculpture, collage and printing.

Key Stage 1

In KS1, children will continue to explore and develop different techniques and skills to create and invent their own works of art, craft and design. Pupils will be given the opportunity to express their creativity and develop techniques, including their use of materials, experimentation and awareness of different forms of art. Art lessons will equip pupils with a wealth of knowledge and vocabulary that will enable them to evaluate and analyse their creative work using appropriate language of art and craft. Pupils will discuss and examine the work of many great artists which will support them to develop their own techniques such as sculpture, drawing and painting. Pupils will develop a wide range of skills such as paper art, sketching, tone and shape through the use of a range of materials and techniques. Pupils will experiment with charcoal, pencil, clay and paint in order to create and represent colour, pattern, form space, shape, texture and line.

Lower Key Stage 2

Lower Key Stage pupils will begin to use sketch books to record their observations, using them to review and revisit ideas. They will learn about great architects, artists and designers and their cultural and historical significance. Children will become more proficient in using a range of media, including paint, charcoal and clay. LKS2 pupils will study colour and colour mixing and learn about form and shape in portraiture. Children will be introduced to the idea of composition in their art work and be encouraged to plan out their art. LKS2 pupils will learn to create 3D sculptural structures using everyday materials.

Upper Key Stage 2

In UKS2, children will develop their sketching techniques, using charcoal and sketching pencils to create depth and texture by hatching, cross-hatching and shading. They will increase their understanding of perspective and scale and composition – learning about foreground, midground and background. We will continue to study portraiture and begin to convey expression and emotion in the face. Upper key stage pupils will learn about colour theory, complimentary and contrasting colours on the colour wheel and become more sophisticated in their mixing of colours and tones, using watercolours, acrylics and poster paints. Pupils will learn about diverse art movements, such as Pop Art, Impressionism and the Renaissance and learn about their place in history. Above all, pupils will be encouraged to take the techniques they have learned throughout their time at The Blue School and use those skills to express themselves in independent artwork across a range of media.