At St. Patrick’s, we believe that art is a vital part of children’s education, with a significant and valuable role in the taught curriculum and the enrichment opportunities we offer our pupils. We ensure the National Curriculum and our whole-school curriculum drivers are at the forefront of our Art learning.

At St Patrick’s we believe all children should:

Have opportunities to develop and extend their art skills and have the opportunity to express their individual interests, thoughts and ideas
Be engaged, inspired and challenged – to equip them with the knowledge and skills to experiment, invent and create their own art, craft and design
Have opportunities to express themselves through their own art work – giving them a chance to communicate creatively
Be given opportunities to experience and participate in a range of creative activities and events
Learn about a variety of artists from local artists to worldwide – giving them opportunities to develop their appreciation of the diverse cultural heritage within the school, local community and wider world
Be allowed to develop an appreciation of the arts that will last a lifetime

The national curriculum for art and design aims 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

Implementation

The teaching and implementation of the Art Curriculum at St Patrick’s Catholic Primary Academy is based on the National Curriculum Programmes of Study for Art. We use our whole-school Curriculum Drivers, Knowledge Organisers and Plan Bee Art Schemes, to ensure a well-structured and detailed curriculum is provided for all children regardless of their starting points. The skills and knowledge that children will develop throughout each art topic are mapped across each year group and throughout the school to ensure progression.

The emphasis on knowledge ensures that children understand the context of artwork, as well as artists that they are learning about and being inspired by. This enables links to other curriculum areas, for example; Year 2 study the Great Fire of London in History whilst studying the Plan Bee topic Sparks and Flames in Art, Year 3 look at Henry VIII in History and complete the Portraying Relationships Art topic and in Year 4 Children study the country of India in Geography whilst looking at Indian Art, in their Art sessions. Children explore a range of famous artists and the impact they have had on the world today. Some of the famous artists we look at across school are Giuseppe Arcimoldo (Year 1), Andy Goldsworthy (Year 2), Salvador Dali (Year 3), Andy Warhol (Year 4), Frida Kahlo (Year 5) and Paul Nash (Year 6). As well as these famous artists, the children have the opportunity to explore other artists linked to the style of art or skill they are learning. Whilst studying the Colour Creations unit in Year 1, the children have the opportunity to explore and recreate the works of Wassilly Kandinsky and Piet Mondrian. In year 6 whilst studying Street Art, the children have the opportunity to explore the works of Banksy and have a go at creating their own street art in a similar style.

A similar focus on skills means that children are given opportunities to express their creative imagination, as well as practise and develop mastery in the key processes of art, including: line, tone, texture, shape, form, space, pattern, colour, contrast, composition, proportion and perspective. These skills will be developed through activities such as; drawing, painting, printing, textiles and sculpture.

Learning is further enhanced with children participating in: whole school Art competitions, such as our Christmas class room decorating and Fairtrade art competitions; community initiatives, such as making cards for elderly residents in our local community and participating in Wednesfield in Bloom. At St Patrick’s we are aiming to implement an Art week within the summer term. This will give all of the children the opportunity for collaborative learning in Art, further opportunities to explore different styles and techniques of a range of artists and the chance to showcase artwork they have produced to the rest of the school.

The school’s high-quality art curriculum is supported through the availability of a wide range of quality resources, such as; easels, sketch books, charcoal, pastels and a variety of collage materials which are used to support children’s confidence in the use of different media.

Impact

At St Patrick’s, the learning of Art is enjoyed by teachers and children across school. Children are keen to learn new skills and work hard to improve and apply what they have learned. The structure of the art curriculum ensures that children are able to develop their knowledge and understanding of the work of artists, craftspeople and designers from a range of times and cultures and apply this knowledge to their own work. They learn to understand and apply the key principles of art: line, tone, texture, shape, form, space, pattern, colour, contrast, composition, proportion and perspective. The opportunity for children to refine and develop their techniques over time is supported by effective lesson sequencing and progression between year groups. This also supports children in achieving age related expectations at the end of their cohort year.

Pupil’s work reflect their sense of pride in their artwork and this is also demonstrated by creative outcomes across the wider curriculum. The school environment also celebrates children’s achievements in art and demonstrates the subject’s high status in the school, with outcomes, including sculptures, enhancing the outdoor as well as indoor environment. The Art curriculum at St. Patrick’s contributes to children’s personal development in creativity, mental wellbeing, independence, judgement and self-reflection.

Art Documents

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Art Long Term Plan.pdf pdf127.2 KbSep 12th, 2023

Please view the additional documents in school:

Art Knowledge and Skills Progression
Art Vocabulary Progression
Art Unit Markers
Art Knowledge Organisers