Our Vision

At St Stephen's C of E Primary School, we believe every child should become a confident artist, an imaginative creator and a reflective learner with a love of art. Through our art curriculum, pupils develop the knowledge, skills and confidence to express themselves creatively, explore ideas and value art from a range of cultures, traditions and periods.

At St Stephen's C of E Primary School, we believe every child should become a confident artist, an imaginative creator, a thoughtful critic and an appreciative learner. 

Intent

At St Stephen's C of E Primary School, we follow the Kapow Primary Art & Design scheme, which provides a carefully sequenced curriculum that meets the requirements of the National Curriculum and ensures knowledge and skills build progressively from EYFS to Year 6.

Our curriculum develops pupils' understanding across five key strands:

• Generating ideas
• Using sketchbooks
• Making skills and formal elements
• Knowledge of artists
• Evaluating and analysing artwork

Pupils explore drawing, painting, sculpture, craft, textiles, printing, digital art and mixed media while developing creativity, resilience and an appreciation of artists from diverse cultures, historical periods and artistic traditions.

Implementation

Curriculum Progression

Our curriculum overview demonstrates how pupils revisit the key disciplines of drawing, painting, sculpture, craft and design throughout their time at St Stephen's. Each unit builds on previous learning through a spiral curriculum, enabling children to deepen their understanding, refine technical skills and become increasingly independent artists.

Children begin in the Early Years by exploring materials, making marks and developing fine motor control through play and continuous provision. As they move through Key Stage 1, they develop confidence with colour, line, shape, form and texture while learning about influential artists and experimenting with a range of media. In Key Stage 2, pupils tackle increasingly ambitious projects, including printing, textiles, digital art, photography, installations, mixed media and sculpture, applying their knowledge creatively while evaluating and refining their work.

Across every year group, pupils study significant artists, designers and craft makers from different cultures and historical periods. These carefully chosen artist studies broaden children's cultural understanding while inspiring them to develop their own artistic style and creative voice.

Key Concepts

Learning is centred around creativity, technical skill and critical thinking. Pupils generate ideas, experiment with materials and techniques, use sketchbooks to develop and refine their thinking, and evaluate both their own work and that of others using increasingly sophisticated artistic vocabulary.

Cross-Curricular Links

Art enriches learning across the wider curriculum by providing opportunities to respond creatively to history, geography, English, science and RE. Many projects make meaningful links with topics studied in class, while gallery visits help pupils connect classroom learning with the rich artistic environment around them.

Impact

By the end of Year 6, our pupils are confident, creative and reflective artists. They leave St Stephen's equipped with the knowledge, skills and confidence to continue their artistic journey at secondary school and beyond.

Our pupils will:

• Use a wide range of artistic techniques and media confidently
• Develop and communicate their own creative ideas
• Evaluate and reflect on their own work and the work of others
• Understand the work of significant artists, craft makers and designers