Art

Art

Culture enriches lives, and participation in creative and cultural activities can have a significant impact on young people, by developing their appreciation, their skills and helping them to learn.

This has been shown repeatedly in international studies, and has also been backed up by recent evaluations of major programmes such as Creative Partnerships and Museums’ Strategic Commissioning. What these evaluations have shown is that culture and the arts can help young people achieve all of the Every Child Matters outcomes.

Cultural activities also gives young people the chance to develop important life skills such as creativity.

As well as being valuable and enjoyable in its own right, participation in cultural activities also gives young people the chance to develop important life skills such as creativity, confidence, self-discipline, effective communication and the ability to work in teams. These skills are particularly important in a world of rapid technological and social change where the cultural and creative industries are increasingly important to our economic future.

That is why a commitment was made in the Children’s Plan to work towards a position where all children and young people — no matter where they live or what their background — have the chance to participate in at least five hours of high-quality culture per week, in and out of school. The Find Your Talent programme looks at different ways of offering young people a range of cultural experiences.

The aim is to give young people the chance to develop as:

  • informed spectators (through attending top quality theatre and dance performances, world class exhibitions, galleries, museums and heritage sites)
  • participants and creators (through learning a musical instrument, playing and singing in ensembles, taking part in theatre and dance performances, producing artwork, making films and media art, or curating an exhibition).

Arts and cultural activities are also an important stimulus to develop young people’s creativity. Learning Outside the Classroom activities which give children and young people the opportunity to work on real-life challenges; handle risk; develop their capacity to think imaginatively and creatively; define and explore complex problems; use and adapt multiple resources both within their community and beyond in order to experiment and devise solutions to these problems — all of these experiences nurture the mix of thinking, imagining, facing the unknown and making things happen which are the ingredients of creativity.

School Art and Design courses provide students with a wide range of creative, exciting and stimulating opportunities to explore their artistic interests and design skills in ways that are personally relevant.

All schools aim to develop students’ ability to engage in practical ways with the processes of Art and Design. And at examination level all courses build on students’ innate creative skills through learning and doing in order to develop imaginative ways of working. They aim to enhance students’ knowledge and understanding of media, materials and technologies in historical and contemporary contexts, societies and cultures.

The educational visits that can enhance the learning experiences outside the classroom obviously include art galleries and studios, but there are now many opportunities to have hands-on experiences in a variety of skills, including sculpture, wood carving, furniture making, weaving, jewelry making, and pottery.

The BBC offer a fabulous section of their website called Your Paintings. It boasts a superb schools section which grew out of a Your Painitings Masterpieces in Schools event that took place across the country. The event gave thousands of UK school children the opportunity to experience great art close-up when a masterpiece visited their schools for the day. To support the project the BBC have curated a host of online resources including: slideshows of paintings with ideas for use in the classroom; profiles of careers in the art world; and a guide to artistic styles and movements. These cover many areas of the curriculum including History, Music, Geography, English and Drama as well as Art.

Main organisations:

Arts Council

Engage

National Society for Education in Art and Design

National Foundation for Educational Research

Inclusion: NASEN, and the Royal Academy of Arts runs regular sensory workshops for SEN students.

Thought of visiting?

The National Gallery

National Portrait Gallery

Royal Academy of Arts

Tate Modern

The Tate, St Ives

Victoria and Albert Museum

Birmingham Art Gallery

Cardiff Art Gallery at the National Museum Cardiff

The Eden Project, Cornwall

Keith Harding’s World of Mechanical Music, Gloucester

Sir Richard Arkwright’s Cromford Mill, Derbyshire

Snibston Discovery Park, Coalville, Leicestershire

Centre for Alternative Technology, Machynlleth

The National Stone Centre, Wirksworth

Articles about Art, Education and Trips on SchoolTripsAdvisor

Find out about the National Portrait Gallery's exhibition: Real Tudors: Kings & Queens Rediscovered

Read Turner Prize-winning artist Grayson Perry's thoughts on Art Education, published recently in the TES.

Venues for this Curriculum

Superb early 18th-century mansion with unique family history

Discover the story of a family who became caught up in the extraordinary events of the English Civil War. Their history is bound up in this beautiful house, which is still the home of the Carew Pole family today.

Milford House Museum is located at 57 William Street. Housing an old master paintings, beautiful furnishing and family possessions. Discover the extraordinary world of Milford House and the people who lived there. Across the street is the William McCrum Park where football's penalty kick was invented.

The 17th-century Queen’s House represents a turning point in English architecture. It was originally the home of Charles I's queen, Henrietta Maria. It now showcases the Museum's outstanding fine art collection and provides a unique and beautiful environment for its exhibitions.

Schools at Royal Museums Greenwich

Bursting with history, art from all ages and a first hand glimpse into life on a working farmyard, plus so much more. A school trip to Chatsworth makes for a rewarding day of learning for pupils and teachers alike.

There's so much to see and do

147 acres of lakes, parklands, over 35 rides and attractions including Rocky River Falls, our famous Waterchute, Train, Double Pirate ship and largest free playground in the UK offering a perfect day out for young and old.

The delightful Row Houses at Row 111 and the Old Merchant’s House are rare remnants of Great Yarmouth’s original distinctive ‘Rows’ which were a network of narrow alleyways linking Yarmouth’s three main thoroughfares.

Discover how much fun painting ceramics can be. Choose from a fantastic range of tableware, figurines and wall plaques: over 150 different pieces. Set in Derby’s premier park, Markeaton, so enjoy a full day out. Just drop in, no need to book.

History, religious studies, art, architecture, maths, tourism… Winchester Cathedral brings a world of academic subjects to life with our bespoke educational tours and workshops.

The National Media Museum is home to over 3.5 million items of historical and cultural significance, and our diverse Collection encompasses some of the finest and most compelling visual material to be found anywhere in the world.

You and your class can explore art and architecture both on-site and in the classroom

The Royal Academy of Arts is an art institution based in Burlington House on Piccadilly in London. It has a unique position as an independent, privately funded institution led by eminent artists and architects; its purpose is to promote the creation, enjoyment and appreciation of the visual arts through exhibitions, education and debate.

The Imperial War Museum, London has been newly refurbished and now features a vast array of weapons and vehicles as well as a range of exhibitions, including RAF planes, tanks and amphibious vehicles.

Offering tours of the steam pumping engines, rides on London's only narrow gauge railway, education in the Waterworks interactive gallery, and the Splashzone hands on water engineering play lab!

Come and discover the story of London's water supply and witness stationary steam pumping engines in action.

Our Arts in Education provision has been maintained through a specific emphasis on Youth Theatre, Dance and Visual Art Courses (see below), Sandfield Theatre and a considerable expansion of the Music Service.

Medieval Norwich comes alive here

Dragon Hall is a beautiful, Grade 1 listed medieval trading hall, renowned for its spectacular timber crown-post roof and intricately carved and painted dragon. 

Built by a Norwich merchant with an international trading empire, Dragon Hall dates from a time when Norwich was England’s second city. In its heyday it would have been filled with wool, cloth, timber, spices and pottery.

Welcome to Bath's art museum for everyone. We are open daily 10am to 5pm (Sunday and Bank Holiday 11am to 5pm). Admission to our permanent collection, as well as to many temporary displays, is free.

Come and explore the Wallace Collection at Hertford House with your school, where a team of skilled freelance Gallery educators will help you to get more from your visit.

A 210 hectare nature reserve with a diverse mosaic of habitats including marshes, ponds, pools, woods and grasslands. Find the Kingfisher Tearooms nestled in the middle of the reserve serving delicious homemade food. Lots of accessible paths and hides to view the brilliant wildlife. Take a session out with the education team to find out more!

Oriel y Parc Visitor Centre and Gallery is located in St David's, Britain's smallest city, and is in the UK's only truly coastal National Park.

Our gallery, home to Amgueddfa Cymru - National Museum Wales in Pembrokeshire, displays works of art from the national collection, with exhibitions drawing inspiration from Pembrokeshire’s incredible landscapes.

Opened in 1865 the Watercress Line connected rural Hampshire to the heart fo London by rail. It got its name from the fresh produce it carried to the city making the movement of fresh produce in bulk a realistic possibility allowing urbanisation and fuelling the Industrial Revolution.

The brand new Belfairs Woodland Centre offers your school the perfect base to discover the natural world. With guidance from our skilled education team, children will experience hands-on learning in both an exciting and safe environment.

EYFS: 

Exploring Senses, Pond Power, Go on a Bug Hunt, Teddy Bears Picnic, Natural Art

Brings together an award winning archaeology museum and one of the region's premier art galleries, the Usher Gallery, in the heart of historic Lincoln. Play at The Collection is an exciting free activity centre for younger visitors which encourages learning through play!

Wimbledon Lawn Tennis Museum is the largest tennis museum in the world. The museum was inaugurated at The Championships centenary event in 1977. Exhibits from as far back as 1555 form part of a huge collection of artefacts from the days of real tennis to the modern game.

In a fantastic waterside location at the heart of Bristol’s harbourside, Arnolfini is one of Europe’s leading centres for the contemporary arts, presenting innovative, experimental work in the visual arts, performance, dance, film, music and events, accompanied by a programme of learning and participation activities.

Discover Basingstoke and Deane's rich archaeological heritage including the unusual Iron Age burial found at Viables, the Roman burial from Winklebury and reconstructions of nationally important Saxon buildings at Cowderys Down.

You can paint your own pottery in our beautiful studio or we can come to you! It’s a fun and interactive activity for all the family to enjoy with a great range of pots to choose from!

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