Subject: Art, Craft and Design
Art is one of the very best ways that we as humans interact with the world around us. Art helps us to look inward and outside of ourselves in order to make meaning of what we experience and to express our understanding of it. At Paddington Academy we aren’t just interested in making good looking images and objects. We’re keen to explore the relationship between theory and practice and to understand how art connects us to our world and cultural history. Art creates openings and horizons to new ways of seeing, thinking, doing and being. Knowledge and experience of media, techniques and processes are the building blocks for visual communication.
What will students learn?
We begin with foundation skills and formal elements (shape, colour, line, tone, form, pattern, texture) alongside accessible concepts like symbolism (so the students know from their very first lesson that art is about visual communication and ideas rather than technical mastery). We aim to break the ‘I can’t draw, therefore art isn’t for me’ that appears to be apparent following Y6 transition. The learning becomes more complex as years go by – building on existing skills, interleaving learning to deepen students’ knowledge and skills. By year 9, students are addressing much more complex ideas and using intelligent making as a vehicle to communicate their ideas and responses.
In KS3 students will study
Year 7
In year 7, students begin by exploring the formal elements of art, craft and design through experimental drawing, painting and sculpting technique. They also learn traditional art making skills with the aim that they build the blocks for visual communication. They will explore historical and contemporary artist practitioners in order to gain a broad understanding of the purpose and power of art.
Year 8
Building on learning in year 7, students will utilise traditional drawing techniques, including the Loomis method for portraiture, and, once confident, will transform them into semi-abstract lino prints. There is opportunity to work with clay and to explore subjective mapping, when navigating through a challenging project about decolonisation and art, which has strong cross-curricular links with history.
Year 9
Learners begin in year 9 by learning about the work of Kathe Kollwitz, who made artwork in Germany in the early – mid twentieth century. This project enables students to develop their empathy for the victims of poverty, hunger and war as they make personal visual responses in the style of Kollwitz. Students will also explore how artists have responded to conflict through an investigation into the Spanish and Syrian civil wars. They will then have the opportunity to explore the importance of context in the art world through mixed media outcomes before completing a GCSE style mini project that draws together learning from across years 7, 8 and 9.
How will students receive feedback?
At Paddington, all students will receive regular feedback from formative assessment tasks. Within the curriculum, specific tasks are allocated for feedback. This ensures all students gain regular feedback. Teachers will mark student work and provide targeted feedback that enables students to improve their work and make progress. To support student understanding, teachers plan high-quality re-teach time to prepare students for their feedback. Across each term, students will receive feedback from multiple tasks.
What resources can be used to support learning?
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There are curriculum books for each cycle of learning. These books contain all the knowledge that will be covered in lessons.
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The 100% books contain the knowledge organisers with core knowledge for each cycle.
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Students can use this to revise key information through self-quizzing.
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BBC Bitesize This website has lots of useful information about: