Art and Design

National Curriculum Purpose of Study

Art, craft and design embody some of the highest forms of human creativity. A high-quality art and design education should engage, inspire and challenge pupils, equipping them with the knowledge and skills to experiment, invent and create their own works of art, craft and design. As pupils progress, they should be able to think critically and develop a more rigorous understanding of art and design. They should also know how art and design both reflect and shape our history, and contribute to the culture, creativity and wealth of our nation.

National Curriculum Aims

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.

Art and Design at Eastwick - Intent

The art curriculum at Eastwick meets the requirements of the National Curriculum and the school’s Curriculum Ethos. Therefore, it prepares children to be ‘Ready for Everything’ in their futures in terms of: 

• Success in the next stage of their education and beyond: by equipping children with the knowledge to experiment, invent and create their own works of art, craft and design; by developing knowledge of artists, craft makers and designers.
• their ability to navigate life’s personal Challenge: by providing children with opportunities to think critically; by developing self-worth and confidence through artistic expression.
• understanding their place in communities at global, national and local levels and seize the Opportunity of the future: by deepening their understanding of how art and design both reflect and shape our history, and contribute to culture, creativity and wealth of our nation.

Art and Design at Eastwick - Implementation

• In Reception, pupils are taught elements of art and design that prepare them for the Year 1 curriculum.
• Our curriculum in Years 1-6 uses the Kapow Art and Design scheme of work. 
• Knowledge is built progressively throughout Key Stages 1 and 2.  For each unit, the following is identified:
  • 'knowledge end points' ('I know (that)...' or 'I know how to...' outcomes that children are expected to master by the end of the unit)
  • ‘substantive knowledge strands’  (key themes and vocabulary that form the basis of children’s mental mind maps or schemas, which enable pupils to recall and build on prior knowledge)
  • 'disciplinary knowledge', which is taught implicitly and enables children to ‘walk in the expert’s shoes’.
• Pupils revisit the substantive knowledge strands as they progress through the school.  Each time a strand is revisited, prior knowledge is recalled before it is covered with greater complexity or in a different context, therefore increasing children’s breadth and depth of knowledge.  
• Across Key Stages 1 and 2, pupils are taught three units per year, which equates to one per term.    
• Provision is made for all pupils, including those with SEND, by teachers providing suitable access arrangements as part of their 'Quality First Teaching' offer, adapting resources and activities to meet individual children’s needs.

Curriculum Progression

Please visit the Subject Progression Documents page for details of curriculum progression in knowledge end points, substantive knowledge strands and disciplinary knowledge from Reception to Year 6. 

Art and Design at Eastwick - Impact

• The art and design subject leader, in conjunction with senior leaders and others, carries out monitoring of provision. This takes the form of pupil voice, lesson observation and work scrutiny.  
• We know that teaching is impactful on children’s progress when:
  • children demonstrate that they have built progressively complex ‘schemas’ in their long-term memory for each of the substantive knowledge strands. This is demonstrated when they can recall prior knowledge and learning, and master the knowledge in each progressive step in the curriculum because they have mastered the knowledge gained in previous steps and built on it
  • children show increasing mastery of disciplinary knowledge as they progress through the curriculum
  • children therefore show that they 'know more and remember more' after each unit of learning.