Curriculum
Intent
The Art and Design Technology curriculum at Rainford is a stimulating, rigorous and practical subject area encompassing the specialist areas of Art and Design, Food, Graphics, Product Design and Textiles.
Throughout Key Stage 3, our curriculum presents a range of opportunities for students to develop their creative, practical and technical skills as they design, create and make prototypes and outcomes.
We encourage students to take risks in their creative design approaches and aim to develop resourceful and enterprising young learners who can develop into the next generation of innovative artists, designers and practitioners.
Implementation
The Art and Design Technology curriculum aims to enrich the quality of our student’s experiences, providing rewarding activities that inspire, inform, stimulate, challenge and entertain. Activities help develop the capacity to formulate and communicate ideas and feelings; they enhance perceptual skills through responding, developing and evaluating, and control through practiced physical skills.
Involvement in Art and Design Technology helps to foster a positive attitude among students by developing a wide range of qualities such as cooperation, enthusiasm, passion, inspiration, resilience and ambition. We also emphasise that this is an inclusive environment, which helps students acquire an important sense of belonging as well as building the self-confidence they need to do well and make their first steps towards higher education and employment.
The Art and Design Technology curriculum at KS3 introduces key formal elements and practical skills to students through a series of projects. These projects encourage students to work both solely and as part of a group. They are introduced to basic key skills and then these are built on throughout the three year key stage. Each project is designed to enhance and build on initial skills taught going into greater depth whilst encouraging creative thinking, risk-taking and confidence.
Impact
Our aim to create a culture of exploring and learning that is accessible to all students and allows them to embrace and enjoy the subject matter across all disciplines as they develop skills, knowledge and understanding.
As our students mature and move on from Rainford having completed an ADT qualification, they will be equipped with a wide range of skills which will put them in a strong position to apply for a related higher level course or move confidently into the employment market.
Students will have the personal development, life-skills and careers guidance to make them employable and allow them to make a significant contribution to British and Global society.
Possible careers and opportunities
Whether you love photography, graphic design, painting or any other art-related speciality, career options are limited only by your imagination. Art education propels people towards creative and unexpected destinations – many of which have not even been discovered yet. To explore the exciting career paths that are possible for students of Art, Photography, Sculpture and 3D Design use the link below: www.studentartguide.com/articles/art-careers-list.
Facilities
The Art facilities consists of 3 teaching rooms, a photography studio and a gallery space and is well equipped for general art activities as well as containing specialist facilities for Ceramics, Textiles, Photography and Printing. The department also has a suite of computers, a printing press and 2 kilns.
The Technology Facilities consists of 8 teaching rooms with 2 dedicated to each subject specialism.
- S101/102 Graphics: Full suite of PCs, in-class printing facilities, range of graphics tools and equipment.
- S103/S105 Textiles: Full range of sewing machines, heat press, range of textiles tools and equipment.
- S105/106 Product Design: Fully equipped modern workshops, freestanding machines, traditional work benches, range of specialist tools and equipment, suite of sewing machines.
- S110/111 Food: Full range of cooking facilities, food preparation area, specialist tools and equipment, study area, refrigeration facilities, dishwasher and laundry facilities, class set of laptops.
- The department also has a further suite of computers in the open area, 2 state of the art laser cutters, a large format vinyl cutting machines, digital printing/scanning facilities and a materials preparation/storage room.
Support
The Art and Design Technology Faculty is well equipped to offer additional support to students with a range of learning needs through varied teaching approaches and with differentiated resources. The Art and Design Technology Faculty encourage students to attend additional GCSE support workshops during lunchtimes and after school, alongside their timetabled lessons.