At Peninsula East Primary Academy, we believe that the creative arts are a vital part of the curriculum and the high quality education that our children are entitled to as it gives the scope for personal expression and allows students to explore and construct a sense of self and develop an understanding of the world around them. We ensure that Art and Design at Peninsula East provides students with a wide range of opportunities and means to respond to their experiences and engage with historical, social and cultural perspectives.
Children will learn to respond to a range of media and materials and develop their understanding of them in order to manipulate and create different effects. They will be able to use different media and materials to express their own unique ideas and explore colour and use for a particular purpose. The children will also be able to use simple tools and techniques competently and appropriately. Each art form is a means of communication or language where children learn to ‘read’ different ideas about the world.
At Peninsula East Primary Academy, we aim to deliver a high quality arts provision where lessons are engaging, meaningful and purposeful whilst encouraging the development of active and independent learners. We are also committed to ensuring children understand the value and importance of the arts in the wider community. The children are able to develop their learner profile attributes through creative opportunities, they develop an appreciation and awareness of the world through artistic representation and an understanding of the power of art to communicate and influence change.
At Peninsula East Primary Academy, Art is taught and implemented based on the National curriculum and Development Matters which is delivered through the philosophy of the IB to allow the children to experience a well-structured approach to this creative subject.
In EYFS, pupils are encouraged to explore and use a variety of media and materials through a combination of child initiated and adult directed activities. They have many opportunities to learn by exploring the textures and colours, movement, feel and look of different media and materials.
When children reach key stage one, children will develop and build on previous skills as well as learning new skills. They will begin to research and discuss artists’ work by looking at how they have created different media by using different colours, shapes and lines. Each child is given an art skills book starting in year 1, which travels throughout the school with them where the children are encouraged to develop their skills such as to experiment and explore mixing colours whilst developing a wide range of art and design techniques in using colour, pattern, texture, line, form and space. Pupils are taught to use a range of materials creatively whilst working through the design process to make products. They will be able to use drawing, painting, printing, collage and the use of our digital learning strategy to develop and share their ideas.
Once children reach key stage two, they will have a bank of knowledge and skills that will be further developed. They will develop their skills further in drawing, painting, sculpting and collaging using a wide range of materials. They will have an understanding of great artists and designers in history. Children will be encouraged to record, review and revisit their observations and discussions about the mastery of art and design techniques.
The children’s learning is further enhanced with a whole school Art days throughout the year, extra-curricular opportunities such as arts clubs and where possible, the opportunity to work with local artists and get involved in projects in the wider community.
At Peninsula East, we aim to encourage our pupils to become more open minded and reflective learners who have a web of different art and design skills which they can apply to a variety of tasks. Where possible, classroom and school displays reflect the children’s sense of pride in their artwork and this is also demonstrated by creative outcomes across the wider curriculum.
Children will have embedded the key art and design skills needed to allow them to produce pieces of work which they take care creating and can communicate to others how they have produced a piece of work. Children work on their own and in collaboration with others to produce work. We are able to measure children’s engagement and commitment to their artwork which is displayed in our whole-school art gallery to reflect on their inquiries throughout the year. We are able to share this impact with parents through termly assemblies, awarding children with “Artist of the Term”.
The sketchbooks provide teachers and leaders with a window into the provision across the school and are a great way to see progression through the year groups.