Art and design
Art and design intent
Pablo Picasso once said that ‘every child is an artist’ and at Derwentwater we believe every child has a wealth of imagination and creative ideas. Through our art curriculum, we aim to give our children opportunities and skills to bring their ideas to life, and create art work they can be proud of. No matter who you are, or where you come from, art is a language everyone can speak. Through art, children can communicate what they see and feel, without the pressure of written language or spoken word.
At Derwentwater, we have an Art Week every other half-term. Each Art Week has an overarching theme: drawing, painting or craft. During Art Week we look at a range of artists, who represent the diversity in our school community, seeking inspiration to develop key skills, whilst using a range of materials. This allows the children to build on the formal elements of art: colour, line, form, shape, texture, tone and pattern. We follow the Kapow scheme of learning for Art, and adjust the curriculum where necessary to better reflect our school’s values.
Our curriculum ensures that there is a seamless progression of learning as our pupils move up the school. Each year group revisits and builds upon skills learnt previously. We document our ideas and development of skills in sketchbooks, showing the creative journey leading up to the ‘Big Finish’.
We aim to raise the profile of art within Derwentwater by: having art workshops with local Artists, such as Kate Fishenden, displaying our ‘Big Finish’ work on gallery walls in the hallways, and awarding Art prizes to pupils who really shine during Art Week.