The Art and Design Technology department has developed a curriculum which seeks to provide students with an inspiring yet accessible journey in their creative education. At Armfield, we operate with explicit thoroughness across all areas of the academy to ensure that the starting points of our learners’ journeys are well scaffolded and meet the highest standards under the Art and Design Technology umbrella. At KS4, we further scaffold students’ learning by providing clear pathways into Further Education, equipping them with the knowledge, skills, and confidence to succeed beyond school.
Art and Design Technology at Armfield offers far more than creative skills alone – it provides students with opportunities to develop transferable skills such as teamwork, problem-solving, resilience, and communication, which are essential for real-life success. Our curriculum also highlights the breadth of opportunities within the creative industries and beyond, helping students to understand the many careers available to them, ranging from architecture, animation, and fashion design to product design, graphic communication, and more. By embedding these pathways, ADT offers a unique opportunity in this school for students to achieve real-life careers and become confident, adaptable learners prepared for the future.
Design Technology Intent
Design and Technology is an inspiring, rigorous and practical subject. Design and Technology encourages pupils to learn to think and intervene creatively to solve problems both as individuals and as members of a team. At Armfield, we encourage pupils to use their creativity and imagination, to design and make products that solve real and relevant problems within a variety of contexts, considering their own and others’ needs, wants and values. We aim to, wherever possible, link work to other disciplines such as mathematics, science, engineering, computing and art. The pupils are also given opportunities to reflect upon and evaluate past and present design technology, its uses and its effectiveness and are encouraged to become innovators and risk-takers. Through a variety of creative and practical activities, we teach the knowledge, understanding and skills needed to engage in an iterative process of designing and making. The pupils design and create products that consider function and purpose and which are relevant to a range of sectors for example, the home, school, leisure, culture, enterprise, industry and the wider environment.
Food Technology Intent
Food technology is an inspiring, rigorous and practical subject. The intent of our Food curriculum at Armfield is to apply the principles of nutrition and healthy eating, instilling a love of cooking in all pupils. Learning how to cook is a crucial life skill for pupils now and in later life. Throughout their time at school, we aim to encourage independent learning through practical participation. The department ensures that our students have a wider understanding of environmental impacts on our choice of foods and why there should be more encouragement to buy in season. Our students will also learn about multicultural foods and experience how different cultural foods influence our everyday food choices. Students also have a clear understanding relating to food choices and the impact on the environment relating to food waste.
Art Intent
Art is an inspiring, rigorous and practical subject. The intent of our Art curriculum at Armfield Academy is to provide high-quality Art lessons will inspire pupils to think innovatively and develop creative procedural understanding. Our Art curriculum provides pupils with opportunities to develop their skills using a range of media and materials.
Pupils learn the skills of drawing, painting, printing, collage, textiles, 3D work and digital art and are given the opportunity to explore and evaluate different creative ideas. Pupils will be introduced to a range of works and develop knowledge with a focus on reading and literacy to develop of the styles and vocabulary used by famous artists. The skills they acquire are applied to their cross-curricular topics, allowing pupils to use their art skills to reflect on and explore topics in greater depth; for example, by sketching historical artefacts in detail, researching geographical locations to support their work on landscape painting or using art as a medium to express emotion and thought to enhance their personal, social and emotional development. Many areas of art link with mathematical ideas of shape and space; for example, when printing repeating patterns and designs and thinking about 3D shapes to support structures. It is paramount that art work be purposeful; be this as a means of expression or to explore the styles of other artists that inspire our own work. Pupils should be clear what the intended outcomes are and have a means to measure their own work against this.
In Art, pupils are expected to be reflective and evaluate their work, thinking about how they can make changes and keep improving. This should be meaningful and continuous throughout the process, with evidence of age-related verbal and written refection. Pupils are encouraged to take risks and experiment and then reflect on why some ideas and techniques are successful or not for a particular project.
Art & Design Technology Curriculum