Art & Design

Curriculum – Art and Design

Years 7 and 8 Programme of Study

In Years 7 and 8 students build up the core skills in Art and Design of:

• - Generating Ideas: skills in designing and developing ideas
• - Making: skills of making in two and three dimensions
• - Evaluating: skills of judgement
• - Knowledge: about art processes and context

Students will develop these skills through a series of thematic projects which allow them to build up their confidence and own visual ‘language’. They are encouraged to take ownership of their work and will be guided to use a sketchbook as an ongoing record of their developments.

Students will experience a range of processes and techniques throughout each project and will be encouraged to reflect upon how materials can be used to make images or artefacts. Through the course of two years students will learn about how other artists, craftspeople and designers respond to the world around them and this will help students to build up their knowledge of different types of Art. During the year students will experience working collaboratively in groups and with a visiting artist. They will share their success in Art through displaying their work around school and engaging with the ‘Work of the Week’. Art is taught for one hour per week.

For SLD learners we look at building up foundation skills in pencil and brush control and students have one single lesson per week. Learning links to the ‘topic’ being studied each half term. 

 Thematic Framework:

Assessment Framework: Years 7 and 8

 Years 9-11 Programme of Study

Some students decide to build upon their interest in Art and Design and will opt to follow an Art course in Years 9, 10 and 11. Students will have one and a half hours per week in Years 9 and 10, and three hours per week in Year 11. In Year 9 students follow a GCSE preparation programme of study which develops both practical and written skills to allow them to meet the specification.

The GCES thematic curriculum are:

Work done in Year 10 contributes to the full AQA GCSE Art and Design qualification. This would entail a ten hour practical examination which is worth 40% of the course. The other 60% is made up of a coursework portfolio that shows forty five hours of practical work including three fully completed projects. For those who follow a GCSE Pathway the themes in Year 11 will be as follows:

Assessment Framework for GCSE:

AO1 DEVELOP: develop ideas by investigating and demonstrating understanding of appropriate sources

AO2 EXPERIMENT: refine ideas through experimenting with appropriate resources, media, materials, techniques and processes

AO3 RECORD: record ideas, observations and experiences in visual, and, if appropriate, other forms. Use written annotation to record observations and ideas.

AO4 PRESENT: present a personal response, realising intentions and make connections with selected sources, such as the work of artists, craftspeople and designers.