Art and Design – Design & Technology – Food and Nutrition

Learning Through Our Pathways

Engage

Experiencing and exploring

Pupils engage with a range of artistic materials, tools, foods and sensory experiences. They explore colour, texture, shape, sound, taste and different materials, beginning to show preferences and make choices.

Discovery

Experimenting and making choices

Pupils discover different materials, techniques and processes and become increasingly confident making choices. They explore artistic media, simple structures and mechanisms, different foods and practical activities.

Develop

Developing skills and purposeful ideas

Pupils develop practical techniques and use their growing knowledge to communicate ideas for a purpose. They make informed choices about materials, colours and techniques and develop skills in designing, making, food preparation and creative expression.

Deepen

Creating, explaining and evaluating

Pupils independently select appropriate materials, techniques and processes to realise their ideas. They research artists and designers, develop increasingly sophisticated work and explain, analyse and evaluate the choices they make.

Art & Design

Exploring creativity and self-expression

Art at Newman gives pupils opportunities to explore, experiment and communicate through a wide variety of creative media.

Pupils experience and develop skills across drawing, painting, printing, collage, textiles, sculpture and 3D form. Learning includes colour, line, tone, shape, texture, perspective, mood and movement.

As pupils progress, they become increasingly confident in selecting materials and techniques for a purpose, developing their own ideas and evaluating their finished work.

Pupils also encounter the work of different artists and creative traditions. At more advanced levels, they research artists and use this knowledge to inspire and inform their own individual responses.

Artists & Inspiration

Discovering different creative perspectives

Pupils have opportunities to explore work from different artists, eras, countries and artistic traditions.

The curriculum identifies artists including Vincent van Gogh, Francisco Goya, Paul Klee, Frida Kahlo, Michelangelo, Henri Matisse, Yinka Shonibare, Nnena Kalu, Linda Bell, Stephen Wiltshire and Mariusz Kędzierski, with consideration given to artists with disabilities.

Through research and practical exploration, pupils can experiment with different styles and techniques before developing their own creative responses.

Design & Technology

Designing, making and evaluating

Design & Technology encourages pupils to investigate how things are made and develop practical solutions to different challenges.

Pupils explore structures, mechanisms, materials, textiles, joining techniques and electrical and electronic systems.

Learning can begin through sensory exploration and simple construction before progressing towards cutting, folding, joining and strengthening materials.

As pupils develop, they encounter mechanisms such as levers, linkages, gears and cams, investigate electrical systems and learn how different components can be incorporated into products.

More advanced pupils work through the process of designing, making, analysing and evaluating, considering how successfully their finished product meets its intended purpose.

Food & Nutrition

Developing skills for healthy, independent lives

Food & Nutrition provides practical opportunities for pupils to explore food while developing knowledge and skills that can contribute directly to greater independence.

Pupils begin by experiencing different tastes, smells and textures, before learning to recognise foods, use equipment appropriately and understand kitchen safety.

As they progress, pupils learn about healthy and varied diets, food groups and where food comes from, including how ingredients are grown, reared, caught and processed.

Practical learning progresses from preparing simple foods and drinks to planning and cooking savoury dishes and desserts using a range of ingredients and techniques.

Pupils also explore seasonality and foods from around the world, developing both their practical skills and their understanding of food and nutrition.

Practical Skills

Learning through doing

Practical experience is at the heart of the curriculum.

Depending on their pathway, pupils may:

• draw, paint, print and create collages
• manipulate clay and other malleable materials
• explore textiles, layering and weaving
• cut, shape and join different materials
• construct and strengthen structures
• investigate mechanisms and electrical systems
• design and evaluate products
• use kitchen tools and equipment safely
• prepare and cook food
• create work inspired by artists and designers
• reuse recycled and man-made materials creatively.

These experiences allow pupils to develop practical skills while learning to make decisions, solve problems and become increasingly independent.

Communication • Independence • Resilience

Newman’s three curriculum drivers are embedded throughout creative and practical learning.

Communication develops as pupils use materials, colour and creative processes to express ideas and preferences. As they progress, they explain their creative decisions and discuss and evaluate their own work and the work of others.

Independence develops through choosing tools and materials, following processes, preparing food and progressively planning and completing creative projects with less support.

Resilience is encouraged through experimentation and problem-solving. Pupils learn that creative work can involve trying different approaches, adapting ideas and responding positively when something does not initially work as intended.

Art, Design & Food Across Newman

At Whiston, pupils in EYFS, Key Stage 1 and Key Stage 2 receive weekly Art learning. Within EYFS and KS1 this is likely to include continuous provision alongside explicit teaching, progressing towards specific subject lessons in Key Stage 2.

At Dinnington, Key Stage 3 pupils and some Key Stage 4 pupils access weekly Art, generally following an adapted form of the National Curriculum. Some pupils can continue creative study through options, project work and AQA Unit Awards.

At NAR, the majority of Key Stage 3 pupils access weekly Art, with individual programmes adapted where pupils follow a bespoke curriculum. Pupils in Key Stages 4 and 5 can study Art & Design, with some progressing to GCSE Art.

Creativity Beyond the Classroom

Connecting learning with the wider world

Creative learning provides opportunities to connect pupils with their school, local community and the wider world.

The subject overview identifies experiences including interactive creative activities around school, visits to galleries and creating artwork inspired by places within the local community.

As pupils progress, they encounter artists, designers and craft makers from different countries and traditions, helping them recognise creativity as something that connects people and communities around the world.