Lark Hill Primary School

Art and Design at Lark Hill Primary School

At Lark Hill Primary School, we believe that a high-quality Art and Design curriculum should engage, inspire and challenge children. It equips them with the knowledge and skills to experiment, invent and create their own works of art, craft, and design. Using the Kapow Primary Art and Design scheme of work, our curriculum is structured to build a lifelong appreciation for the visual arts while developing individual creativity, technical fluency and critical thinking.

Alignment with Our Core Values

Our Art and Design curriculum is deeply rooted in our four core school values:

• Respect: We explore, appreciate, and discuss diverse artists, craft makers, designers, and cultural movements across history and from around the globe. Children learn to respect different artistic perspectives, expressions, and choices.
• Responsibility: Children take ownership of their creative ideas and sketchbooks. They learn how to safely use, care for and store tools, media and equipment, adhering to our golden rule: Look after each other, look after our school, look after yourself.
• Creativity: Through open-ended exploration, experimentation and personal reflection, children express their unique artistic voice and develop innovative solutions to visual challenges.
• Challenge: Children are challenged to master complex techniques, evaluate their own and others' work constructively, push beyond their comfort zones, and embrace mistakes as part of the creative process.

How We Teach Art & Design: Our Approach

Art and Design at Lark Hill alternates with Design and Technology every half-term, providing dedicated time for children to submerge themselves in the creative process.     

Substantive & Disciplinary Knowledge

Our curriculum balances two critical areas of learning:

• Substantive Knowledge (Practical & Theoretical Knowledge): Children learn specific artistic facts, formal elements (line, shape, colour, tone, texture, pattern, form), technical skills with varied media (pencil, paint, clay, textiles, digital media) and knowledge of key artists, movements and movements in art history.
• Disciplinary Knowledge (Thinking Like an Artist): Children learn how to generate ideas, experiment, evaluate, refine and reflect upon artwork. They learn how artists make decisions, how visual art communicates meaning and how to critique artwork using academic vocabulary. 

A Spiral Journey Through Mixed-Age Learning

Our curriculum operates on a 2-Year Rolling Cycle (Cycle A and Cycle B) for mixed classes.

Our Kapow-aligned curriculum follows a spiral model. Key formal elements and skill strands (Drawing, Painting & Mixed Media, Sculpting & 3D and Craft & Design) are revisited in every cycle. Each time a child encounters a medium or concept, they build upon prior skills, developing greater mastery, technical independence and conceptual understanding.

Inclusion, Multi-Sensory Learning, & Oracy

Inclusive & Multi-Sensory Approach

Art and Design at Lark Hill is inherently visual, tactile and practical, ensuring full accessibility for all learners, including those with SEND or EAL. We provide:

• Physical scaffolding (e.g., adapted grips, varied brush sizes, templates).
• Visual prompts, step-by-step pictorial guides, and working walls.
• Sensory exploration of materials (tactile clay, textured textiles, mixed-media collage).

Oracy in Art (Voice 21)

Talk is key to artistic reflection. Using the Voice 21 Oracy Framework, children learn to articulate their creative decisions and offer constructive peer critique:

• Cognitive: Evaluating artistic choices, analysing composition and justifying media selection.
• Linguistic: Actively using academic art vocabulary (e.g., shade, tint, proportion, motif, armature, composition) via structured talk frames.
• Physical: Adapting presentation style and posture when showcasing sketchbooks or final outcomes.
• Social & Emotional: Giving and receiving sensitive, respectful feedback.

British Values

Through Art & Design, pupils explore Individual Liberty by making independent, creative choices in their sketchbooks. Mutual Respect and Tolerance are developed as pupils analyse artistic expressions across global cultures, traditions, and belief systems.

Class Structure & Rolling Curriculum Map

EYFS: Goldcrest (2-Year-Olds, Nursery, Reception)

In EYFS, expressive arts and design are delivered through continuous provision, direct teaching, and sensory exploration.

EYFS End Goal (ELG: Creating with Materials): Safely use and explore a variety of materials, tools, and techniques, experimenting with colour, design, texture, form and function. Share their creations, explaining the process they have used.

Key Stage 1 & Lower Key Stage 2: Robins & Starlings

Robins (Year 1 / Year 2)

        Cycle A

• Autumn: Drawing: Exploring Line and Mark-Making (Using pencils, pastels, and chalk to create varied textures and boundary lines).
• Spring: Painting and Mixed Media: Primary Colour Mixing & Washing (Exploring primary colours, tinting with white and painting on varied surfaces).
• Summer: Sculpture and 3D: Manipulating Paper & Clay (Rolling, pinching and shaping clay; paper folding and construct modelling).

• Cycle B
  • Autumn: Drawing: Texture and Tone (Shading, hatching and using drawing tools to show dark and light).
  • Spring: Craft and Design: Pattern, Collage and Printing (Stamp printing, repeated patterns, tearing/cutting materials for collage composition).
  • Summer: Sculpture and 3D: Expressive Form & Junk Modelling (Combining reclaimed materials to construct stable 3D visual structures).

Starlings (Year 2 / Year 3 Bridge)

Note: Starlings bridges Key Stage 1 and Lower Key Stage 2. Year 2 pupils focus on mastering core technical execution, while Year 3 pupils apply deeper analytical thinking, sketchbook exploration and refined technique.

• Cycle A
  • Autumn: Drawing: Observational Drawing and Shape (Y2: Basic outlines and proportions; Y3: Sketchbook experimentation with cross-hatching and shading to show volume).
  • Spring: Painting and Mixed Media: Secondary Colours, Tints, and Shades (Y2: Mixing secondary colours accurately; Y3: Creating colour wheels, tint gradients and atmospheric backgrounds).
  • Summer: Sculpture and 3D: Structural Clay & Relief (Y2: Joining clay using pinch/press techniques; Y3: Using score-and-slip to attach components securely).
• Cycle B
  • Autumn: Drawing: Expressive Drawing and Movement (Y2: Representing gesture and motion through dynamic lines; Y3: Combining media like charcoal and ink to capture fluid figures).
  • Spring: Craft and Design: Textiles and Surface Printing (Y2: Simple relief printing and basic threading; Y3: Block printing, pattern repeats and simple stitch work).
  • Summer: Sculpture and 3D: Mixed Media Forms and Armatures (Y2: Free-standing paper/wire structures; Y3: Building wire/card armatures covered with papier-mâché).

Upper Key Stage 2: Kestrels & Skylarks

Kestrels (Year 4 / Year 5)

• Cycle A
  • Autumn: Drawing: Power of Perspective and Proportion (Y4: 1-point perspective basics and measuring proportions; Y5: Complex 1-point perspective and foreshortening techniques).
  • Spring: Painting and Mixed Media: Layering, Texture and Warm/Cool Palette (Y4: Colour temperature and wet-on-wet paint mixing; Y5: Glazing, texture building with impasto and narrative composition).
  • Summer: Sculpture and 3D: Wire, Clay and Architectural Forms (Y4: Clay slab building and relief tiles; Y5: Complex wire sculpture and spatial architectural models).
• Cycle B
  • Autumn: Drawing: Shadows, Tone, and Realism (Y4: Tonal shading with graded graphite pencils [2B-6B]; Y5: Chiaroscuro effects, highlights and directional light sources).
  • Spring: Craft and Design: Digital Art, Photo-manipulation and Printmaking (Y4: Multi-layer block printing; Y5: Combining digital photo editing with hands-on mixed-media techniques).
  • Summer: Sculpture and 3D: Installation and Environmental Art (Y4: Natural site-specific sculptures inspired by Andy Goldsworthy; Y5: Scale installation art exploring social or environmental themes).

Skylarks (Year 6 - Single Year Group)

Year 6 follows a dedicated, single-age Kapow progression to prepare pupils fully for Key Stage 3 art environments.

• Autumn Term: Drawing and Sketchbook Mastery: Advanced Portraiture, Expressive Mark-Making and Concept Development (Mastering proportion, human expression and independent sketchbook research on diverse artists).
• Spring Term: Painting and Mixed Media: Artist Interpretation and Narrative Art (Using acrylics/watercolours to convey emotion, symbolism and personal narrative; analysing historical art movements).
• Summer Term: Sculpture and Craft: 3D Expressive Sculptures and Legacy Exhibition (Designing, building and finishing a major 3D project using mixed media, culminating in a curated end-of-year gallery exhibition).

Skills & Vocabulary Progression Across Strands

 Strand Breakdown

Robins (Y1/2)

• Drawing & Mark-Making:
  • Core Vocabulary: Line, Shape, Pattern, Soft, Hard, Pencil, Pastel, Smooth, Rough.
  • Kapow Stretch (Y2 Focus): Texture, Tone, Hatching, Cross-hatching, Shade.
• Painting & Mixed Media:
  • Core Vocabulary: Primary colours (Red, Yellow, Blue), Brush, Mix, Palette, Wash, Bright.
  • Kapow Stretch (Y2 Focus): Secondary colours (Orange, Green, Purple), Tint (adding white), Shade (adding black).
• Sculpture & Craft:
  • Core Vocabulary: Clay, Model, Roll, Pinch, Press, Cut, Collage, Glue, Repeat.
  • Kapow Stretch (Y2 Focus): Sculpture, Structure, Form, 3D, Relief, Print block.

Starlings (Y2/3)

• Drawing & Mark-Making:
  • Core Vocabulary (Y2 Focus): Outline, Texture, Tone, Detail, Shading, Media.
  • KS2 Disciplinary Words (Y3 Focus): Proportion, Sketchbook, Cross-hatching, Contour, Volume, Observation.
• Painting & Mixed Media:
  • Core Vocabulary (Y2 Focus): Secondary colours, Tint, Shade, Secondary palette, Layer, Stroke.
  • KS2 Disciplinary Words (Y3 Focus): Warm/Cool colours, Palette choice, Hue, Gradient, Background, Foreground.
• Sculpture & Craft:
  • Core Vocabulary (Y2 Focus): Pinch pot, Surface pattern, Tear, Overlay, Stamp, Motif.
  • KS2 Disciplinary Words (Y3 Focus): Score and Slip, Armature, Relief sculpture, Warp/Weft (Textiles), Block printing.

Kestrels (Y4/5)

• Drawing & Mark-Making:
  • Core Vocabulary (Y4 Focus): 1-Point Perspective, Vanishing point, Horizon line, Tone range, Graded pencils (2B-6B).
  • UKS2 Disciplinary Words (Y5 Focus): Foreshortening, Chiaroscuro, Directional light, Proportion, Anatomic accuracy.
• Painting & Mixed Media:
  • Core Vocabulary (Y4 Focus): Colour temperature, Wet-on-wet, Wet-on-dry, Wash, Opacity, Complementary colours.
  • UKS2 Disciplinary Words (Y5 Focus): Glazing, Impasto, Palette knife, Symbolism, Visual mood, Narrative painting.
• Sculpture & Craft:
  • Core Vocabulary (Y4 Focus): Slab technique, Relief tile, Multi-block print, Motif repeat, Wire framework.
  • UKS2 Disciplinary Words (Y5 Focus): Spatial design, Installation art, Site-specific, Photo-manipulation, Digital canvas.

Skylarks (Y6)

• Drawing & Sketchbooks:
  • Core Disciplinary: Concept design, Continuous line, Portraiture, Anatomic proportion, Media experimentation.
  • Advanced Conceptual: Historiography of art, Aesthetic commentary, Visual ideology, Independent curation.
• Painting, Sculpture & Craft:
  • Core Disciplinary: Acrylic medium, Gouache, Mixed-media installation, Exhibition design, Armature engineering.
  • Advanced Conceptual: Artistic intent, Critique, Contextual analysis, Modernism/Abstract expressionism.

Assessment, Impact, & Sketchbooks

Sketchbooks as Working Documents

From Year 1 to Year 6, every child maintains an active sketchbook. Sketchbooks are not meant to be pristine, finished product books; they are working spaces for experimentation, testing media, recording research, making mistakes, and documenting personal progress.

SKETCHBOOK ASSESSMENT FLOW               1.      Prior knowledge / initial Ideas (Pencil Entry). 2.      Media Exploration and Technique (Pink / Active Annotation)3.      Final Outcome Reflection and Self-Evaluation (Independent review)                                                          

  Assessment Approach

Art and Design is assessed holistically by the class teacher at the end of each unit using professional judgment:

• Formative Evaluation: Ongoing observations during practical tasks, monitoring sketchbook reflections, and listening to pupil dialogue during task execution.
• Summative Evaluation: Review of final artistic outcomes against topic learning objectives.
• Pupil Voice & Oracy: Children regularly participate in gallery walks and pupil voice discussions, articulating their creative journey, techniques used, and how past artists influenced their work.

Assessment Rationale & Kapow Alignment

In line with Kapow Primary, assessment in Art and Design at Lark Hill focuses on evaluating both Substantive Knowledge (practical skills, formal elements, artist facts) and Disciplinary Knowledge (sketchbook thinking, evaluating, generating ideas).

Assessment is designed to be formative, manageable, and continuous. We do not grade every piece of artwork; instead, we assess the artistic journey captured in sketchbooks, pupil talk, and final outcomes.

Assessment Methods in Practice

Formative Assessment (Day-to-Day)

• Assessment for Learning Prompts: Every Kapow lesson plan includes targeted assessment guidance cards. Teachers use these during active task time to observe technique and ask probing questions.
• Sketchbook Annotations: Teachers annotate or verbally feedback on process (e.g., "Great use of cross-hatching to build tone") rather than giving numerical marks.
• Oracy & Peer Critique: Using Voice 21 talk frames, children take part in mini-gallery walks or group evaluations. Teachers listen to pupils' use of subject-specific vocabulary (e.g., tint, contrast, composition, armature).

Summative Assessment (End of Unit)

• Unit Quizzes & Knowledge Catchers: Administered at the end of each unit to verify retained substantive knowledge (e.g., primary vs. secondary colour rules, key facts about studied artists).
• End-of-Unit Descriptors: Teachers evaluate pupils against the four core strands (Making Skills, Formal Elements, Knowledge of Artists, and Evaluating)

How to Assess in Mixed-Age Classes

When assessing mixed-age classes (Robins Y1/2, Starlings Y2/3, Kestrels Y4/5), teachers assess pupils against their National Curriculum Key Stage Milestones, not a single blanket year-group checklist.

Assessment Grids by Class & Key Stage

Goldcrest (EYFS: 2s, Nursery, Reception)

Assessed against the Early Learning Goal (ELG): Creating with Materials and Development Matters milestones.

Robins (Year 1 / Year 2 Focus) & Starlings (Year 2 Benchmark)

Focus Strand Expectations: Key Stage 1 Milestones

Starlings (Year 3 Focus) & Kestrels (Year 4 / Year 5 Focus)

Focus Strand Expectations: Lower Key Stage 2 Milestones

Skylarks (Year 6 Focus)

Focus Strand Expectations: Upper Key Stage 2 / End of Key Stage 2 Milestones

Assessment Tracking & Reporting Sheet Example

To streamline teacher workload, teachers complete a single summary sheet per class at the end of each half-term unit.