Our Intent 

How many schools can say they are the setting of a book by Michael Rosen? Thanks to our connection with the book’s illustrator, our school is beautifully captured in ‘Monster’, where detailed drawings bring familiar spaces to life. In Year 1, these illustrations are revisited during the Great Waterfront City project, where children use them as a stimulus for high-quality observational drawing and painting. 

Our Art curriculum is designed to inspire creativity, nurture imagination, and develop confidence in self-expression. 

We aim to foster a lifelong appreciation of the arts, recognising their importance in supporting creativity, wellbeing, and cultural understanding. Pupils are encouraged to view themselves as artists, developing both their technical skills and their individual creative voice. 

Across Key Stage 1, children are provided with a wide range of opportunities to explore and apply artistic techniques, including drawing, painting, collage, sculpture, and printing. The curriculum is enriched through the study of diverse artists, whose work serves as both inspiration and a model for artistic exploration. For example, pupils study the work of local artist My Dog Sighs during the Year 2, I Do Like to Be Beside the Seaside project and explore the collage techniques of Megan Coyle to create detailed animal artwork in the Year 1 Woodland Wonders topic. 

Through this carefully sequenced approach, pupils build knowledge, refine skills, and develop an enduring enthusiasm for art.