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

St Andrews, the home of golf, is also home to the British Golf Museum.

The museum has over 16,000 exhibits telling the story of golf from its origins in the Middle Ages to the present day.

Learning at the British Golf Museum

The Bell Pettigrew Museum is the University's zoology museum.  It is a rare survival of a Victorian teaching museum, and wonderfully atmospheric.

The displays, which include examples of several extinct species, are arranged to allow the evolutionary and taxonomic relationships between animals to be clearly understood.

Schools

Visit Unst Heritage Centre in Haroldswick and discover the unique story of Unst, the northernmost island in the UK.

Bearing in mind Unst’s special position as the northernmost outpost of the UK, the centre has a display about the lighthouse at Muckle Flugga, and a range of interpretive displays about geology, crofting, fine lace knitwear, the Shelties, etc.

A community museum addressing many aspects of local history, including crofiting, fishing, Viking occupation, blackhouses, trades and crafts, archaeology and finds, and the Lewis Chessmen, with extensive genealogical information. 

Situated literally on the on the seas edge in the village of Lochmaddy, on the Isle of North Uist, Taigh Chearsabhagh welcomes countless visitors each year to experience the arts, culture and heritage of the Uists. The centre is focus for life in North Uist and dedicates itself to a constantly changing programme of heritage and art exhibitions.

Learn about Scottish history and discover how the Highlands are linked with the rest of the world.

Experience Highland contemporary art and crafts and unlock a medieval chest.

HISTORYLINKS is dedicated to the history of Dornoch and the surrounding area. It is the only VisitScotland 5 Star Museum in the Highlands and one of seven museums in Scotland to have gained this prestigious award. The permanent exhibition includes the Cathedral, feuding clans and Scotland’s last witch.

The museum is located in Strathpeffer's charming old Victorian station where trains brought visitors to the village in it's heyday as a spa. Telling the story of childhood across the Highlands of Scotland, the displays reflect the stories of children, crofters and townsfolk and explore the customs and traditions.

Pictish and Celtic Centre for Ross and Cromarty

Our lovely museum is an outstanding centre for Pictish and Celtic Art in Ross-shire. The unique display is focused on 15 carved Pictish stones which all originated in the village, an important centre of early Christianity.

Caithness Horizons Collection comprises approximately 8,050 artefacts relating to the following subjects/themes:

Archaeology: This Collection mostly consists of archaeological material from Caithness, although there is a small Collection of material from elsewhere in Scotland and from other countries

The Chambers Institution was established by William Chambers, one of the founders of the famous publishing house, in 1859. It houses a museum and gallery which present a lively programme of exhibitions throughout the year. 

Thirlestane Castle, originating in the 13th century, is one of the oldest and finest castles in Scotland. Exquisite 17th century plaster ceilings; Victorian kitchens; Historic Toy and Country Life Museum; adventure playground; woodland walk and picnic tables. Lunches and teas served in “The Old Servants Hall”.

Whilst we offer fun kids trails and activity sessions throughout Summer- a range of specially tailored school visit are available year round.

This fine example of a 16th century bastel house is set in a beautiful garden of pear trees. Displays tell the story of Scotland’s tragic queen through objects, paintings and textiles associated with Mary. One room is dedicated to exhibits relating to the Queen and her visit to Jedburgh in 1566.

Hawick Museum's parkland location and fascinating displays reflect the endeavour of the town and its people. The objects and fine works of art collected are not just about Hawick but a window on the world. 
The permanent displays allow many of our wonderful artefacts to be shown. The Jimmie Guthrie and Steve Hislop exhibitions make us a motorcyclists' Mecca. 

Deep in the heart of the Scottish Borders, beside winding glens and heathery hills, anenchanting 

The knitwear and tweed story

The Borders Textile Towerhouse tells the story of our proud industrial past in a lively hands-on exhibition. There is also an exciting taste of textile fashions here and now, in our catwalk and design studio display. Carding, dyeing, spinning, weaving, knitting, finishing and design …. learn about the processes, people, craft and history behind the clothes that we take for granted.

With more than half a million local, national and international objects, we have a Recognised Collection of National Significance to Scotland divided into Social History, Natural History and Art.

The Fergusson Gallery celebrates the life and work of the great pioneers of modern art and dance, John Duncan Fergusson and Margaret Morris.

The Pier Arts Centre was established in 1979 to provide a home for an important collection of British art donated to ‘be held in trust for Orkney’ by the author, peace activist and philanthropist Margaret Gardiner (1904 – 2005). 

An outstanding centre for art and ideas, the public art gallery of The University of Edinburgh, Talbot Rice Gallery presents original and relevant exhibitions within a unique historical context. The exhibitions exemplify creativity and ambition, seen through a distinctive programme of Scottish and International artists, with informed interpretation and lively educational events. 

An important collection of early keyboard instruments including clavichords, chamber organs and early pianos housed in a restored Georgian concert hall, built in 1762 by Robert Mylne to a unique oval plan. Paintings, textiles and tapestries are also exhibited. Musical events are held throughout the year.

Since 1826, the Academy has occupied William Henry Playfair’s magnificent landmark building on the Mound, Edinburgh. The RSA is at the forefront of promoting living artists in Scotland, through its Annual Exhibition and a series of temporary exhibitions and events.

The museum, at the Head Office of Scotland’s oldest bank, traces the history of banking and money through the story of the company. 

This fascinating museum takes a fresh look at money – and much, much more. Art & design, technology, crime, trade and security – all feature in the story of money. We are open throughout the year and admission is FREE.

When you step inside Lauriston Castle, you see it just as it was in 1926, when it was left to the nation by the last private owner, Mrs Reid.

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