Little Sutton’s high-quality art and design curriculum engages, inspires and challenges 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 think critically and develop a more rigorous understanding of art and design. They also know how art and design both reflect and shape our history, and contribute to the culture, creativity and wealth of our nation. By providing the pupils with a rich art and design curriculum we are preparing children for the multitude of career opportunities which exist in art and design.

At Little Sutton Art is a subject that gives our children the freedom to express themselves in a way that gives them enjoyment and personal fulfilment. Children acquire the skills and knowledge of art in a systematic way so that each child is able to produce results that demonstrate the knowledge and skills they have developed. The practical art experiences excite children and give them confidence in their own creativity and use of their imagination. Art also support the pupil’s emotional wellbeing.

The aims of our curriculum are taken from the National Curriculum to ensure that all pupils produce creative work, exploring their ideas and recording their experiences, become proficient in drawing, painting, sculpture, textiles, collage, printing and digital media. They also evaluate and analyse creative works using the language of art, craft and design and know about great artists, craft makers and designers, and understand the historical and cultural development of their art forms. All classes have an art and design lesson every week. Some topics may be blocked so that the pupils have a longer session to complete a task.

A long term plan has been developed for each year group where activities, and clear learning outcomes have been identified. This provides a sound basis from which to develop our scheme of work through individual unit plans. These plans provide content ideas and a specific learning focus for each activity and Year Group. Our art curriculum is sequenced so that there is progression and continuity throughout the years. Curriculum plans have been carefully developed to build on prior learning. Staff teach sequenced art skills, knowledge and vocabulary, with the aim of embedding these into the pupils’ long term memory so that they can be built upon in subsequent years. Art is taught as a discrete subject, but some art activities are linked to other subjects, to enable children to understand art as a way of communicating ideas and exploring a topic. This helps pupils to make clear links between the subjects they are learning.

Our children experience educational visits in art and design to enhance the curriculum. Examples of educational visits include Art Galleries, Sutton Park and the Jewellery Quarter.

Art and design professionals are invited into school to work with the pupils. Having specialists into school to work with pupils greatly enhances the curriculum. Opportunities are provided for our gifted and talented pupils to enhance their skills, including being a member of the schools Arts Council. The Arts Council have specialist sessions, plan Arts Weeks and run lunchtime arts clubs for younger pupils. Links with a range of providers, including secondary schools, are utilised to provide additional opportunities for our pupils.

Staff continually monitor pupils’ progress throughout art and design lessons and units, building on and extending prior learning. In Reception, staff undertake observations throughout the year and these are used to record attainment towards the EYFS goals. In KS1 and KS2, a tracking system is used by staff to assess each child’s progress with the art and design programme of learning, identifying whether they are working towards expected, at expected or working at greater depth within that year group. At the end of each school year, an art and design report is given as part of the school’s policy on reporting to parents, which describes their child’s progress in meeting the art and design objectives for that year group.

By the end of Year 2, we aim for the pupils:

• to use a range of materials creatively to design and make products

• to use drawing, painting and sculpture to develop and share their ideas, experiences and imagination

• to develop a wide range of art and design techniques in using colour, pattern, texture, line, shape, form and space

• about the work of a range of artists, craft makers and designers, describing the differences and similarities between different practices and disciplines, and making links to their own work.

By the end of Year 6, we aim for the pupils to:

• to create sketch books to record their observations and use them to review and revisit ideas

• to improve their mastery of art and design techniques, including drawing, painting and sculpture with a range of materials (for example, pencil, charcoal, paint, clay)

• about great artists, architects and designers in history.