GREENSLADE SCHOOL ART AND DESIGN POLICY
Introduction
This document is a statement of the aims, principles and strategies for
the teaching and learning of art at Greenslade Primary School. It should
be read in conjunction with our teaching and learning policy.
At Greenslade School we believe art to be important in its own right and
as a valuable learning process across the whole curriculum. As so many
learning experiences are initiated, developed, assimilated and reinforced
visually, art can be used as a valuable learning tool in almost every area
of the primary school.
Aims
 To foster an understanding and enjoyment of art and design
 To stimulate children’s creativity and imagination by providing
visual, tactile and sensory experiences
 To develop children’s sense of colour, form, texture, pattern and
their ability to use materials and processes to communicate ideas,
feelings and meanings.
 To develop their visual language and the ability to express their
ideas and feelings in order to evaluate their own work and that of
others
 To encourage children to value the contribution made to their world
by artists, craft workers and designers from both genders and from
many cultures and to give opportunities to children to share their
cultural knowledge and skills. This policy should be read in
conjunction with the school’s Equal Opportunities policy.
 To ensure that the curriculum we offer is suitably challenging for
children of different aptitudes and abilities and that it caters for
diverse learning needs
 To train children in the safe and appropriate use and maintenance
of tools and techniques in accordance with health and safety
requirements.
Objectives
 To improve the children’s control of materials, tools and techniques
and to develop their awareness of safe handling techniques
 To develop children’s ability to observe, investigate, respond to and
record the world around them through a variety of forms and media
 To give children the opportunity to use art to record their feelings
and express their creative imagination
 To increase their critical awareness of the roles and purposes of art
in different times and cultures by commenting on the work of
artists and asking questions
 To make use of sketchbooks to record children’s initial ideas and
research.
 To enable children to make increasingly informed and creative
choices of media, tools and techniques for a given purpose.
 To give children a wide range of purposes for drawing, for example,
to explore and explain ideas and to record information about what
has been observed.
Principles for the teaching and learning of art and design
As far as possible we plan and set our work in meaningful contexts,
starting from concrete sensory experience or by exploring the work of
artists. We use the QCA units and units from ‘Reworking the Picture’ as a
basis for planning our art and design work. The units have been linked
with other areas of the curriculum. Our scheme of work is flexible and
can be changed to fit in with special events and celebrations.
The teaching style employed is dependent on the activity. It may involve
whole class teaching, group, or individual methods. We plan
opportunities for children to work both individually and in groups.
We ensure continuity and progression in the development of children’s
skills in the art processes by planning for drawing, painting, printmaking
and sculpture over each key stage.
Visits to galleries and museums are planned to explore the work of
artists, sculptors and craftspeople and to examine relevant artefacts.
Children are given opportunities to use ICT to express their ideas, through
paint programmes and use of the digital camera. Internet websites and
galleries are also used to research the work of a range of artists.
Management of the subject
Staff responsible for the development of art and design at Greenslade
will:
 Seek to enthuse pupils about art and design and promote high
achievement
 Advise and support staff in the planning, delivery and assessment of
art and design
 Manage and develop all art and design resources through the
strategic deployment of the art and design budget.
 Monitor and evaluate art and design throughout the school through
work scrutiny and learning walks
 Monitor the Art and Design Curriculum and update the school’s
policy and schemes of work in accordance with national guidelines
and curriculum statements
 Attend courses and disseminate this information to staff through
planned INSET and informal conferencing
Organisation of Resources
A basic range of materials is provided in each classroom to ensure
continuity of experience as the child progresses through the school.
These materials can be supplemented according to need from the central
art stock cupboard and the central paper cupboard.
More specialised resources, such as clay or batik materials are kept in the
central art stock room.
Each classroom computer has a range of graphic software and access to
the internet.
The school library houses a range of books for both teachers and pupils to
refer to and use in the classroom to support their work. Further books
can be borrowed from the local library.
We are building up a bank of resources, including natural forms,
reproductions and artefacts reflecting art from different times and
cultures for stimulating and informing work. These will be stored
centrally.
Assessment
We assess children through direct observations and discussion as much as
possible. At times we may make written comments in the children’s
sketchbooks as appropriate.
Teachers use the end of unit expectations to assess children over the year
and a summative assessment of each child’s progress is recorded on the
child’s annual report.
Children’s achievement in art will be matched against the National
Curriculum end of Key Stage descriptions.
We have begun developing a portfolio of children’s work showing
outcomes from the end of units. The examples of work will show how the
children have met the expectations in exploring and developing ideas,
investigating and making art, craft and design and evaluating and
developing work. Teachers may also use the skills sheets to check
progression in the different art processes. See Appendix II.
This policy will enable our school to meet our aims and objectives and to
ensure that we foster an understanding and enjoyment of art. Displays
reflect the quality work that is being produced.
Updated – February 2013
Review – February 2016
Appendix I
Display
Display in school is a response to children’s work and a reflection of the
teacher’s attitude to the way we view children as learners. The creation
of an environment which is both functional and stimulating shows that we
value the children and their work by giving both a worthwhile and valued
place in our classrooms and school as a whole.
Display is possibly the most powerful message we give in terms of the
value we attach to children’s backgrounds, our belief in equal
opportunities and the high expectations we have of all children.
We believe that displays in school should:
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Arouse the children’s curiosity
Pose questions and stimulate enquiry
Foster participation and suggest areas for further exploration
Reflect our high expectations of children’s work
Value the work that is presented
Promote equal opportunities by: breaking down gender stereotypes
Reflect the multi-cultural nature of the school
Display can be used throughout the school:
As a resources for learning across the curriculum
As a means of imparting information
To present educational materials well
As a means of creating a visually stimulating environment
As an initial stimulus for a topic
As a way of encouraging the efforts that children have made and raising
self-esteem
As a way of reflecting and valuing different cultural backgrounds
As a way of depicting people with disabilities positively
As a way of communicating to parents, visitors and governors the value
we place on the children’s work and the importance of the environment
in which they learn.
Design/Planning of Display
The basics of good display are:
 Simple well planned arrangements often around a theme
 The planning of the layout and consideration of the overall effect
before the display is started
 Simplicity and no over crowding
 Avoidance of overlapping or cutting around children’s work and the
use of Sellotape and drawing pins
 Standard lettering, headings etc
 Better to use neutral tones for backgrounds to focus attention on
the children’s work
 Teachers may use the wooden letters for the title of a display.
Black sugar paper tends to look most effective for this. Other
labels or information can be handwritten or typed.
 When creating a 3D display a variety of boxes could be used to
create different levels.
 Draped fabric can enhance a display
 Consider the audience for your displays and ensure that written
work is at children’s eye level
 Successful displays often exhibit children’s work alongside that of
great artists and could also include photographs, fabrics books and
other appropriate objects.