Welcome to Year 7 Visual Arts

The aim is to stimulate interest in and awareness of the expressive and creative potential of art, craft and design: to enable students to become visually literate: to use and understand art as a form of tactile communication and to have confidence and competence in evaluating visual images and artefacts.

Objectives
Students will be given opportunities to:

  • Record responses, including observations of the natural and made environment.
  • Gather resources and materials, using them to stimulate and develop ideas.
  • Explore and use two and three dimensional media, working on a variety of scales.
  • Review and modify their work as it progresses.
  • Develop understanding of the work of artists, crafts people and designers, applying knowledge to their own work.
  • Respond to and evaluate art, craft and design, including their own and others' work.
  • Contribute to the school ethos through shared events such as drama productions, displays of work and links with other schools and countries.


Year 7-9 Programme of Study
Investigating and Making
Students will be taught to:
  • Develop ideas from direct experience and imagination, and record and analyse from first-hand observation.
  • Select and record observations and ideas, and research and organise a range of visual evidence and information.
  • Experiment and select from visual and other source material to stimulate and develop ideas for independent work.
  • Select from and experiment with materials, images and ideas, and extend their knowledge and experience of a range of materials, tools and techniques.
  • Select and interpret visual elements and realise their intentions in a range of media.
  • Modify and refine their work and plan and make further developments in the light of their own and others' evaluations.

Knowledge and Understanding
Students will be taught to:
  • Recognise the diverse methods and approaches used by artists, crafts people and designers.
  • Identify how visual elements are used to convey ideas, feelings and meanings in images and artefacts.
  • Relate art, craft and design to its social historical and cultural context.
  • Express ideas and opinions and justify preferences, using knowledge and art, craft and design vocabulary.

Work in Year 7
Project work to include linear drawing techniques, with an introduction to tone, form and composition A basic introduction to colour theory, aimed at improving students' ability to mix colours accurately and to change colours subtly, understanding the difference between transparent and opaque. An introduction to 3D work, involving the opportunity to develop a piece of work from 2D to 3D, to enable them to understand how to modify and refine their work. The work of various artists and crafts people will be referred to throughout. A Project Evaluation Form should be completed as part of at least one of the project areas undertaken. This is to initiate the process of pupils being able to assess their own work in relation to certain criteria.
The following must be incorporated into schemes of work:-
• Pencil - appropriate grades and tone.

• Pencil crayons - colour selection and blending.

• Brushes - correct use for watercolour etc.

• Use of light, shade and shadow to give illusion of form (e.g. consideration of light source and intensity).

• Colour names.

• Difference between synthetic and natural pigments.

• Colour wheel (using Magenta, Cyan Blue, Lemon Yellow).

• Description, understanding and application of colour terminology (e.g. primary, secondary, tertiary, tint, hue, shade etc.).

• Continuous use of correct vocabulary.

• Warm and cool colours.

• Creation of the illusion of depth using warm / cool colours, scale, colour intensity and enhanced detail. Foreground, middle ground and background.
N.B. No attempt must be made at this stage to teach formal perspective.

Links & Resources

http://www.keqms.co.uk/learning/page/year-7-art-curriculum-plan