Art

Intent:

At the heart of the Art and Design curriculum are the learning needs of each individual student at Sandhurst School. We aim to ensure that every student leaves our school with a secure range of skills and a broad knowledge of artists, cultures, and genres. The art department is passionate and enthusiastic practitioners and we work hard to share our love of art with students and recognise the importance of delivering lessons in a creative and energetic manner to enthuse all learners to help shape the further generation of artists.

Further information

Our Curriculum:

We have created schemes of work that suitably excite, challenge, and enthuse all learners with plenty of opportunities to work independently on the creation of artwork. We feel it is important for students to be aware of art from other cultures and deliver topics that break down prejudices through appreciation of other cultures and the art they produce. We teach students not only to have respect for their own and other student’s artwork but also the artwork from a wide range of other artists and craftspeople.

In Art, we give all students the opportunity to work with a varied range of disciplines such as drawing, painting, printing, collage, textiles, 3D work, digital art, and photography. We recognise that students will have different levels of success with each and allow them to find success with a media that best suits their personal journey of development.

Implementation: Teaching and planning

The art department is passionate and enthusiastic practitioners and we work hard to share our love of art with students and recognise the importance of delivering lessons creatively and energetically to enthuse all learners to help shape the further generation of artists. Schemes of Work are constantly evaluated and updated to keep up to date with the current interests of year groups. Student feedback is of vital importance regarding the enjoyment of topics and always have fresh ideas to develop topics further. Shared presentations within our team that include exemplar material & videos of techniques ensure high standards of lesson delivery.

Assessment:

Students require and receive constructive feedback in every lesson. Instant feedback has to be given in order for students to make improvements as final pieces progress. Grade descriptors and examples of each are shared throughout their journey. Feedback will be shared with the entire class or individually. Final pieces are graded at the end of each term in which KS3 students complete a self-assessment and set targets to move forward on a sticker on their folder so that both student and teacher can track progress to achieve their target grade. KS4 follows a similar model but has an overview sheet in the front of their portfolios. Grades for individual studies are given and tracked, in which an average grade is populated and compared to their target grade. HW is set once a week for KS4 and once a fortnight for KS3.

Impact:

We constantly develop our ambitious curriculum to allow for the highest achievers to make excellent progress whilst at the same time supporting, nurturing, and building on the skills of the lower achievers. Throughout their studies we will support and develop students’ literacy and oracy skills, these are key for students to become commentators, analysts, and reviewers in the field of art and design. The benefits of creating artwork can be therapeutic and promote well-being which is an important part of all students' emotional development, in which our SEND students thrive.

We help students to recognise that a wide range of careers can be pursued within the arts to give their art lessons a sense of purpose. We embed information about contemporary artists and creative careers within the arts in our schemes of work and make clear that the skills learnt in art and design are transferable. KS4 students have the opportunity to visit Kew Gardens and Tate Britain to enrich their learning experience and expand their cultural capital.

As independent thinkers, pupils will become effective in applying a wide range of media, resources, techniques, creative and technical skills, experimentation, and innovation. We encourage constant review and refinement of work to achieve better outcomes and to develop students’ resilience. Celebration of pupils’ achievements ensures they have a sense of pride in their work and understand what ‘good looks like’. We achieve this by displaying work during lessons, in displays within the department, around the school, and in the school newsletter. This models successful outcomes for students and shows them how proud they should be of their work.

Curriculum time allocation:

KS3 (Years 7, 8 and 9) - 2 hours per fortnight

KS4 (Years 10 and 11) - 5 hours per fortnight

Art