"I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me" (Philippians 4:13)

Intent - How our curriculum is structured and organised

At The King’s School, Art & Design and Design & Technology aims to inspire our pupils to develop their confidence to experiment and invent their own pieces of art.  Pupils have opportunities to be innovative and creative thinkers who have an appreciation for the product design cycle through ideation, creation and evaluation. 

Our curriculum is designed to offer children of all abilities the opportunity to develop their ability, nurture their talents and express their own ideas and interests, as well as understanding and responding to the world around them. With this, they will learn about art and key creatives (artists, sculptors, designers, inventors) from different cultures and traditions throughout history.

Implementation - How our curriculum is taught

We follow the Kapow Primary scheme of work.  It supports pupils to meet the National Curriculum end of key stage attainment targets and has been written to fully cover the progression competencies.  The Kapow Primary scheme is a spiral curriculum, with key areas revisited with increasing complexity, allowing pupils to revisit and build on their previous learning.  Knowledge organisers are used to support the delivery of the units of lessons, which also encourage recall of skill processes, key facts and vocabulary.

Art & Design:

The Kapow Art and Design scheme of work is designed with five strands that run throughout our teaching:

• Generating ideas
• Using sketchbooks
• Making skills, including the formal elements of art (line, shape, tone, texture, pattern and colour)
• Knowledge of artists
• Evaluating and analysing

The units of lessons allow our children to build upon their skills and knowledge and apply them to a range of projects.  The formal elements are woven throughout the units.  Key skills are regularly revisited with increasing complexity to allow pupils to revise and build on their previous learning. Units in each year group are organised into four core areas:

• Drawing
• Painting and mixed media
• Sculpture and 3D
• Craft and design

The units of Kapow Primary’s Art and design support age-appropriate sequenced learning and can be used in cross-curricular activities across the school. Creativity and independent learning are embedded within the curriculum, which enables the children to create their own unique pieces of art. Every lesson is practical and encourages experimental and exploratory learning using sketchbooks to document their ideas. Lessons can be accessed by all pupils and there are opportunities to stretch children’s learning when required.

Design & Technology:

The Kapow Design and Technology scheme of work is designed with four strands that run throughout our teaching:

• Design
• Make
• Evaluate
• Technical knowledge

The six key areas that are revisited during their time in primary school are:

• Cooking and nutrition
• Textiles
• Mechanisms/ Mechanical systems
• Structures
• Electrical systems (KS2 only)
• Digital world (KS2 only)

The units allow for a clear progression of skills and knowledge within these strands and key areas across each year group.  Through the scheme, pupils respond to design briefs and scenarios that require consideration of the needs of others, developing their skills in the six key areas.  Each of our key areas follows the design process (design, make and evaluate) and has a particular theme and focus from the technical knowledge or cooking and nutrition section of the curriculum. Lessons incorporate a range of teaching strategies from independent tasks, paired and group work including practical hands-on, computer-based and inventive tasks.

Impact - A cohesive learning journey

As artists and designers children are equipped with the skills and knowledge to transition to the next stage in their learning journey, within The King’s school and beyond.

Learners are articulate when discussing their thoughts and ideas about a piece of work and are taught to explain the processes involved, using accurate terminology. Pupils develop the confidence to take risks, through drafting design concepts, modelling, and testing and to be reflective learners who evaluate their work and the work of others. 

Evaluations of their work are reflective, and they show respect and compassion towards others thoughts and ideas, learning the skills of being objective and justifying their opinions. The school environment celebrates achievements in art and demonstrates the subject’s high status in the curriculum.

Our Christian distinctiveness is celebrated through the many art projects displayed in the school. All learners have the opportunity to establish a lifelong interest in Art & Design and Design & Technology and move to secondary school with the skills and knowledge to pursue the subject further.

Please scroll down to the end of the page to view:  

• The King’s School Art & Design and Design & Technology Key Overview
• The King’s School Combined Progression Map (Art & Design and Design & Technology)