Art

At KS3 all students will have 1 session a week of Art.By the end of KS3 all pupils who leave the course (whether continuing into further study at KS4 or not) will have a level of visual literacy to support them in understanding and engaging with the ever increasing visual communication of society. Students are taught early-on how to synthesise information and create personal and original outcomes, this is designed to support the whole school curriculum and encourage independent enquiry. Students will end KS3 with key skills in drawing, painting, design methodology, visual communication, creative and critical thinking and oracy. With these foundation skills, students could become lifelong learners and continue to develop at their own pace.

In terms 1 & 2 students will have a baseline assessment to ascertain prior knowledge and understanding from KS1 and 2. The drawing assessment will lead into a unit of work that teaches students observational drawing skills including checking proportions and applying directional shading to make objects appear 3-dimensional. 

In terms 3 & 4 students will explore the theme of ‘under the sea’, studying the work of Yellena James and other contemporary artists who are raising awareness of ocean conservation. Students will be taught how to use a wide range of media and processes from collage and painting to colour pencil drawing. They will also explore pattern and learn about the colour wheel and colour theory.

In terms 5 & 6 students will study the work of Sunga Parks and John Piper and create a mixed media artwork exploring architectural shapes and forms. They will learn how to take imagery, layer and overlap elements to come up with their own designs. They will then use pens and painting media in a sensitive way to highlight the main elements of the architectural shapes.

Medium Term Plans
Term 1-2
Rocket Drawing Project
Term 3
Mark Herald Project
Term 4
Under the Sea

In terms 1 & 2 students will build upon their learning of the colour wheel and practise some key painting skills before completing a painting project on citadels. They will be studying 3 key artists, from Paul Klee and Mary Blair to the contemporary graphic designer, Matt Lyon. Students will be learning about colour, composition and designing. 

In terms 3 & 4 students will be learning about textile and wallpaper design, creating their own repetitive series of prints, inspired by the historical designer and entomologist, E.A.Seguy. The project will start with the students learning how to plan a drawing, building upon key skills they learnt in year 7. They will then use the tonal drawings to create their own design for a print. Students will learn how the techniques can be applied to wallpaper, wrapping paper or textile design, so that students can begin to understand how the processes are applied in creative careers.

In terms 5 & 6, students will be using the theme of ‘sweet treats’ to learn about how historical and contemporary artists and designers play with colour versus black and white imagery. 

Medium Term Plans
Term 1-2
Citadel Project
Term 3
Repetitive Prints
Term 4
Repetitive Prints

In term 1 students will learn about one, two and three-point perspectives and develop a series of studies that applies the rules of perspective. From this starting point, they will then learn how landscape and building artists apply these rules to their work to create a sense of depth. They will then use images of the local area to design and paint their own composition, inspired by artists like David Hockney. 

In terms 3 & 4 students will be exploring architecture, focusing on the different styles of buildings found in Brighton. They will learn about the historical significance of the Royal Pavilion whilst creating a two-tone drawing and a mixed media collage inspired by contemporary artists Anastasia Savanova and Emmie Van Biervliet. 

In term 4 students will also complete a drawing assessment as well as a GCSE-style series of art lessons that allows them to explore a wider range of media and processes whilst introducing them to the KS4 art books. 

In terms 5 & 6, students explore the theme of ‘identity’, which looks at how objects, surroundings, clothing and jewellery symbolises a person’s sense of self. Students will be encouraged to bring in a photograph of their chosen role model or themselves in order to develop the project. Students will be creating artwork for the project by collaging paintings and drawings created in class and for homework. Students will also learn about the role of typography in art and how artists convey positive and powerful messages about identity using text.

Medium Term Plans
Term 1-2
Perspective and Landscape Painting
Term 3
Architecture
Term 4
Architecture

Further to the learning opportunities that Art, Craft, Design and Photography provide, this department’s core values are to provide a calm, enriching and safe environment, where students understand that they are here to learn, participate and engage. All students should feel safe to take risks creatively, both verbally and practically, without fear of ridicule or judgement.

At KS4 students have 3x 50 minute lessons per week. We follow the AQA syllabus  in GCSE Art and Design
https://www.aqa.org.uk/subjects/art-and-design/gcse/art-and-design-8201-8206/subject-content/art,-craft-and-design

Unit 1 = Portfolio is worth 60% of the final grade and is made up of the work covered in year 10 and 11

Unit 2 = Externally Set Task is worth 40% of their final grade and is set in January with the ten-hour exam sat in April.

Medium Term Plans
Year 10 - Unit 1: Distortion - Objects and Places
Year 11 - Unit 2: Light and Shadow

The students complete their main project in year 10, followed by a shorter project in year 11. The main project explores the theme of the natural world and students are encouraged to research the set artists and designers as well as exploring ones that they have chosen from a list.

They will build upon their drawing and recording skills from KS3, honing and refining their skills to create more confident and detailed studies. They will explore a range of media and processes that encourages them to develop their own independent angle of the project theme.

The students will learn how to present their artwork effectively to build a successful portfolio, whilst developing their skills in art and literacy. Towards the end of year 10, students will be designing their final piece for the project, which will be completed at the start of year 11. 

Medium Term Plans
Term 1-2
The Natural World
Term 3-4
Organic Elements

In terms 1&2 students will complete a shorter coursework project. The final outcome is completed in the 5 hour mock exam in December. The students are expected to submit all coursework in the first week of January, when they are to commence their exam preparation period. 

In the first week of January, students are given the exam papers and are to select one question from the choice of 7. The students then have approximately 12 weeks of preparation time to complete a portfolio which covers the assessment objectives before completing a 10 hour controlled exam.

Medium Term Plans
Term 1-2
World Architecture Project
 

At Key stage 3 students will be set one to two tasks per unit of work which support the learning taking place in class. Tasks are expected to take 30 minutes. The maximum time to complete and gather information will be four weeks. The tasks are intended to be completed with minimal art equipment needed at home. Students are provided with resources for the homework, which can also be found on the Google Classroom. The homeworks are fully explained in class with examples shown and students are given a week to complete a section of the homework. 

At Key Stage 4 students will have an average of 1-2 hours of homework per week. Homework is a crucial part of the course and the work the students complete extends the work done in class. Students will need to ensure that they have some basic art materials at home to be able to complete homeworks:  scissors, glue, colouring pencils and a set of acrylic paints and some paint brushes are advised. However, students are able to borrow equipment when needed. The art rooms are open most days after school and staff run intervention sessions from 3-4pm to support students who need some advice or need to use the art facilities in order to complete homeworks.