Art and Design
Why do we teach art at Westcliff?
In Art, we want to develop and extend the pupils' visual curiosity, creativity, enquiry and aesthetic sensitivity to both the natural and synthetic world. We will enable the children to respond and enjoy expressing their ideas, feelings and imagination using visual media and practical manipulative skills. Children work individually and within a group to develop the social and personal skills. Art is taught as part of our curriculum through blocking. Wherever appropriate, it is linked to other areas of the curriculum and gives children opportunities to develop specific art skills. Our high-quality art and design lessons intend to engage and inspire children, equipping them with the knowledge and skills to experiment, invent and create their own works of art. They should also know how art and design contributes, shapes and reflects our history.
How do we teach art at Westcliff?
In Early Years, we focus on developing children’s creativity through exploration. Children have the opportunity to engage with a range of different materials and medium through continuous provision. They can explore their own techniques and ways of work, as well as having specific skills such as mark marking and early modelling techniques taught alongside this. fsfs
Children develop artistic skills each year building on their prior knowledge. Art is taught primarily in isolation but where appropriate it will be linked to areas such as history, geography through the ‘Dream Big’ curriculum. Children are taught about historical and cultural development, learning about significant artists and designers. Children have opportunities to create works of art, explore ideas and evaluate creative works using language of art and design. Children have access to a wide variety of Art resources and have opportunities to use a range of media, notably celebrating the local pottery industries by embedding the creative use of clay throughout the school curriculum.
By the end of each key stage, pupils are expected to know, apply and understand the principles, skills and processes specified in the relevant programme of study. Children collate their ideas and progression in their sketchbooks, which provide valuable evidence of the impact through the art skills progression. Also, the profile and importance of the creative visual arts is raised, maintained and celebrated through the Art Gallery displayed on Parents Evening and within the corridors around our school.
Art Curriculum
