Our Art & Design curriculum aims to help all pupils build the necessary academic and intellectual habits that will help them apply a wide range of practical skills, techniques and processes. Through the study of both historical and contemporary artists, designers and craftspeople, students will gain a greater philosophical knowledge and understanding of how and why humans express creativity as a form of communication. Acknowledging the spectrum of creative expression in our past and present society, students decode, question and express their own creative language as they prepare to enter the adult world.
Through our Art & Design curriculum, pupils will become confident in examining and developing links across the core subjects and the wider world. Students will see how Art & Design has and can be applied to express emotion, question civilisations and united nations. Nurturing a freedom of expression, imagination and creative thinking ensures students can become independent learners, gain a sense of self and a recognition of the validity of their own ideas.
The Art & Design Curriculum at King’s Leadership Academy Hawthornes is research informed. We have organised the various Art & Design curriculum topics and associated concepts in appropriately sequenced steps. This is so that pupils can build their knowledge systematically over time towards ambitious creative end points.
We aim to ensure that all our pupils who are disadvantaged or have any special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) have access to a carefully planned curriculum. Our curriculum aims to provide pupils with SEND with explicit systematic teaching and rehearsal of knowledge. We also ensure that these pupils have the time they need to study important subject content in Art & Design
The King’s Leadership Academy Hawthornes Art & Design curriculum has been developed to ensure that all pupils:
produce creative work, exploring their ideas, recording their experiences as they look to solve real world problems or present their thoughts and emotions in an expressive way.
become proficient in drawing, painting, sculpture and other art, craft and design techniques including those in increasing technologically advancing areas.
evaluate and analyse creative works using the language of art, craft and design
know about great artists, craft makers and designers, and understand the historical and cultural significance of their work
build and apply a repertoire of knowledge, understanding and skills in order to make high quality outcomes.
For each curriculum overview, additional documentation is available upon request. This documentation outlines more precisely the exact subject knowledge that your child must know and remember. These documents also include the types of teaching activities that subject staff have chosen to help your son/daughter learn the curriculum here at King’s Leadership Academy Hawthornes.
In order to check how well our pupils are learning the curriculum, teachers use a full range of assessment techniques. These include diagnostic questions to reveal your child’s Art & Design preconceptions and common misunderstandings, questioning and end of topic/learning cycle assessments.
AQA Fine Art & Design
Assessments: Component 1: Portfolio = 60%, Component 2: Externally Set Assignment =40%
Component 1: Portfolio. They begin by working on a guided project. Knowledge is taught by continuing to build schema over time, re-visiting the formal elements (Foundation Knowledge) and key concepts, prior knowledge and sticking it to something new. Both the substantive and disciplinary knowledge is Increased and stepped up allowing a steady progression of students confidence and knowledge of art and design from Year 7 and throughout Year 10. In Year 11 students are taught to develop their ideas, personal investigations and responses to prepare them for life beyond school.
Component 2: Externally set assignment. They are encouraged to create, explore, discuss, analyse and evaluate from a broad range of art and art mediums. At the beginning of the Spring Term in Year 11 students begin the Externally Set Assignment and are taught and prepared for the final 10 hour assignment in a logical and sequential way to ensure all of the 4 assessment objectives are explored fully and met.