Art and design

Our art and design curriculum

Intent

At St Nicolas’ School we value art and design as an important part of children’s entitlement to a broad and balanced curriculum. Art and design provides the children with the opportunities to develop and extend skills and an opportunity to express their individual interests, thoughts and ideas.

A high-quality and memorable art and design education should engage, inspire and challenge pupils, equipping them with the knowledge, skills and confidence 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 product design. They should also know how art both reflects and shapes our history, and contribute to the culture, creativity and wealth of our nation.

Implementation

All children follow the same steps to achieving an understanding of art and design. Pupils engage in meaningful research of artists, create their own art and achieve this through exploration, designing, producing and evaluating.

Impact

Our approach is consistent, ensuring progression of skills. Children gain an understanding of artists and the art production process and take this with them throughout their time with us. By the time children reach the end of year 6, they have been exposed to a number of artists and the process of making artwork.

Our art at St. Nicolas'

You can find the art galleries for each individual class under the class pages. This way you can see all the wonderful art we have been creating.

Ways to develop art skills outside of school

• Try to visit art galleries and exhibitions whenever possible
• Encourage your child to paint, draw or take part in artistic activities
• Create artwork from a range of materials, including art outside in nature.
• Visit websites where children can take part in digital art exercises, such as, https://www.scholastic.com/parents/school-success/learning-toolkit-blog/4-websites-where-kids-can-create-digital-art.html
• Encourage children to become more familiar with great artists from history by visiting museum websites, such as, http://gws.ala.org/tags/art-history