Curriculum Framework

Cambridge Primary
Art & Design 0067

Version 1
Why choose Cambridge International?

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Contents

1  Why choose this Curriculum Framework? ......................................................................... 2

Key benefits 2
Supporting teachers 3
Progression through the Cambridge Pathway 3
Teaching time 3

2  Curriculum overview ...............................................................................................................4

Aims 4
Overview of the strands 6
Overview of teaching approaches 7

3  Learning objectives ..................................................................................................................8

4 Progression.................................................................................................................................9
Stages 1 and 2 10
Stages 3 and 4 13
Stages 5 and 6 16

5 Glossary ....................................................................................................................................19
Cambridge Primary Art & Design 0067 Curriculum Framework.

1  Why choose this Curriculum Framework?

Key benefits
Cambridge Primary Art & Design will enable learners to explore the limitless possibilities that exist both in art and
in their own creativity. As art and design is a wide-ranging discipline that brings together skills and intellectual
thought processes from across the curriculum, learners will also become experimental, reflective, critical and
decisive thinkers. They will understand the benefits of concentration, perseverance and collaboration, as well as
developing the motor skills that are generally associated with producing art. The enjoyable and collaborative nature
of art and design will also provide them with many opportunities for social development.

Throughout history, art and design has evolved, embraced opportunities and made bold statements, therefore
Cambridge Primary learners are encouraged to explore, push boundaries and express themselves through their
artistic work. They will view the work of others with increasing curiosity and make connections between different
perspectives, different genres and between art that has been created in different historical, geographic and cultural
contexts. They will embrace art’s potential for expressing things that cannot be captured in words and the links that
exist between human feeling and creative output.

Through experimentation with materials and media, learners will begin to master techniques and processes.
However, the focus is that they work with increasing autonomy to produce individual outcomes that articulate
personal responses to stimuli, the available materials and their own imaginations. This personal and autonomous
approach challenges negative views of failure or lack of natural artistic ability and allows learners to reflect upon
and appreciate their progress, both as an artist and as a creative thinker.

Cambridge Primary Art & Design provides a platform for personal expression and encourages learners to embrace
every opportunity to pursue their own ideas. Learners will also benefit from regular opportunities for collaboration,
sharing ideas and learning from others. They will collaborate with peers to solve problems, share experimentation
and celebrate outcomes. The Cambridge Primary Art & Design classroom allows learners to work creatively with
the confidence that comes from knowing that they have the support of their classmates.

As well as collaborating with peers, learners seek inspiration, solve problems, increase their understanding of the
world and develop visual appreciation through viewing, reflecting upon and responding to the work of other artists.
Learners should approach each encounter as an opportunity to gain inspiration, to consider approaches to solving
problems, to pursue new approaches to their own work, and to make informed responses to what they see and
feel. The ability to articulate their responses and to recognise the creative possibilities afforded by reflection will
help learners throughout their education and as they move towards careers in a world where creative thinking is
becoming increasingly valued.

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 Cambridge Primary Art & Design 0067 Curriculum Framework.  Why choose this Curriculum Framework?

Supporting teachers
We provide a wide range of practical resources, detailed guidance, and innovative training and professional
development so that you can give your learners the best possible experience of Cambridge Primary Art & Design.

You will find most of these resources on the Cambridge Primary support site
(https://primary.cambridgeinternational.org). Ask the Cambridge coordinator or exams officer in your
school if you do not already have a log-in for this support site.

Teaching resources Assessment

•• Curriculum Framework •• Assessment guidance (to support classroom
assessment)
•• Teacher Guide
•• Schemes of work
Cambridge
Primary
Training  Community
•• Online training You can find useful information, as well as
share your ideas and experiences with other
•• Cambridge Professional Development
teachers, on our social media channels and
Qualifications
community forums.
Find out more at
www.cambridgeinternational.org/social-media

Progression through the Cambridge Pathway

Cambridge Primary Art & Design has been designed to support learners to develop the skills required for success in
their primary education and to progress to the next stage of the Cambridge Pathway. The curriculum framework is
typically for learners aged 5 to 11, but it may be appropriate to use it for slightly different ages to suit your context.

Guidance on what that progress could look like against each of the learning objectives is provided in Section 4 of
this document.

Teaching time
For guidance, this curriculum framework is based on learners having about 1 hour of art and design per week
(i.e. about 30 hours per stage). Your actual number of teaching hours may vary according to your context.

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Cambridge Primary Art & Design 0067 Curriculum Framework.

2  Curriculum overview

Aims
Following the Cambridge Primary programme helps learners to lay the foundations for lifelong learning, including:
•• curiosity about the world around them and enthusiasm for learning
•• knowledge, understanding and skills that can be applied in and across subjects
•• effective and confident communication skills, including in English
•• understanding of their personal and local context, as well as having global awareness.

In Cambridge Primary Art & Design, learners:

•• see themselves as artists and become increasingly independent and reflective
•• develop the skills needed to express creative ideas and to communicate visually
•• understand their place and the place of others in an interconnected, creative and innovative world
•• make increasingly informed decisions about creative practices and products and about the art and design they
encounter, engage with and generate
•• understand the roles of creative arts in society
•• analyse and reflect on creative intentions and ideas, practices and outputs from different perspectives.

The Cambridge approach encourages learners to be:

fident
Con
d
Engage

Cambridge
learner

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 Cambridge Primary Art & Design 0067 Curriculum Framework.  Curriculum overview

Cambridge Primary Art & Design supports learners to become:

Responsible – They begin to take responsibility for their own learning, for their own research and for developing
the competencies and creative thinking that will begin their development both as an artist and as a learner.

Innovative – They understand the benefits of experimenting and of taking risks with ideas and materials in order to
develop and refine their intentions.

Confident – They are able to recognise their own strengths by building upon their initial ideas and stimulus to
create artworks and designs that demonstrate originality and increasing technical competence.

Engaged – They investigate, disrupt and reform primary and secondary sources to engage with and create work
that demonstrates both their research and their own personal vision.

Reflective – They review their own ideas and the artistic expressions and practices of others to create work that
not only reflects local and global culture, but that also demonstrates their own recognition of themselves as an
artist. They are also able to reflect upon the emotional and affective benefit of art and design.

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Cambridge Primary Art & Design 0067 Curriculum Framework.  Curriculum overview

Overview of the strands

The curriculum framework provides a comprehensive set of learning objectives for Cambridge Primary Art &
Design. These give a structure for teaching and learning and a reference against which learners’ attainment and
skills development can be checked.

The learning objectives are divided into four main areas called ‘strands’. These are:
•• Experiencing
•• Making
•• Reflecting
•• Thinking and Working Artistically.

Although each strand is discrete, they are all intimately connected due to the holistic focus on the development of
the learner as an artist and upon the overall artistic process. These connections, and the role of each strand in the
artistic process, is illustrated by the following diagram:

Experiencing

Thinking
and Working
Artistically

Making Reflecting

The Experiencing, Making and Reflecting strands represent the stages of the artistic process, which can take
place in any order and in an iterative way. The ‘making’ of each piece of work will be informed by ‘experience’ of
encounters with materials, processes and stimuli. The making process will also allow learners to develop their
technical artistic skills. ‘Reflection’ considers all of the aspects of the process and, as well as informing a learner’s
future work, allows them to celebrate their learning and achievements and provides them with an opportunity to
share their developing knowledge for the benefit of their peers.

The Thinking and Working Artistically strand represents the broad principles that are incorporated throughout
the curriculum. The learning objectives in this strand require that curiosity be applied to each piece of work and
that learners explore the limitless possibilities that are presented by each new task. The learning objectives within
the Thinking and Working Artistically strand therefore require each learner to personalise their work, by expressing
their own intentions, and by making constant checks to ensure that those intentions are being conveyed.

The fundamental concepts and approaches of art and design apply equally to learners at all stages of their artistic
development. For this reason, the same set of learning objectives is used through all of the primary and lower
secondary stages. Learners will demonstrate their progress, their evolving creativity and their ability to express
themselves as they work with more skill on more complex pieces (see Section 4 for more information).

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 Cambridge Primary Art & Design 0067 Curriculum Framework.  Curriculum overview

Overview of teaching approaches

Cambridge Primary Art & Design is taught through a broad range of investigative, art-making and reflective
activities. These include a range of study areas, for example painting, print making, model making or digital art, but
you can also apply the curriculum content to your local context and to the resources that you have available.

Overall, a learner’s experience of Cambridge Primary Art & Design should be one of stimulating possibilities.
Therefore support them to experiment with the resources that are available and, as they progress through the
stages, to seek resources of their own. The journey should be as much about the creativity and experimentation as
it is about the development of technical excellence.

When preparing for this freedom to experiment, it is important to consider the potential for risk. The Cambridge
Primary Art & Design classroom should be a space in which learners are free to move around in order to gather
resources, view the work of their peers and to express themselves through movement. Therefore it is important
that a risk assessment be carried out and that appropriate safeguards are in place.

It is also advisable to have a clear set of rules that learners must adhere to in every Cambridge Primary Art & Design
lesson. These rules can range from safety aspects, such as not walking while carrying scissors, to a list of expected
behaviours related to the support and encouragement that they provide to their peers within the creative space of
the Cambridge Primary Art & Design classroom.

You can find more information and ideas for teaching and learning activities in the Cambridge Primary
Art & Design Teacher Guide and schemes of work available on the Cambridge Primary support site
(https://primary.cambridgeinternational.org).

The teacher guide will support you to plan and deliver lessons using effective teaching and learning approaches.

The scheme of work for each stage of Cambridge Primary Art & Design contains:
•• suggested units showing how the learning objectives in the curriculum framework can be grouped and ordered
•• at least one suggested teaching activity for each learning objective
•• a list of subject-specific language that will be useful for your learners
•• sample lesson plans.

You can use each scheme of work as a starting point for your planning, adapting them to suit the requirements of
your school and the needs of your learners.

The activities within the schemes of work are suggestions to illustrate how Cambridge Primary Art & Design
could be delivered. However, you should aim to support learners, as far as time and resources allow, to explore
possibilities to their fullest extent.

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Cambridge Primary Art & Design 0067 Curriculum Framework.

3  Learning objectives

The learning objectives for Cambridge Primary Art & Design describe the concepts and approaches that apply to
artists of all ages and levels of expertise. For this reason, the same learning objectives are used to structure learning
from Stage 1 to Stage 6.

These learning objectives are:

Experiencing
•• E.01 Encounter, sense, experiment with and respond to a wide range of sources, including a range of art from
different times and cultures.
•• E.02 Explore media, materials, tools, technologies and processes.
•• E.03 Gather and record experiences and visual information.

Making
•• M.01 Learn to use a range of media, materials, tools, technologies and processes with increasing skill,
independence and confidence.
•• M.02 Select appropriate media, materials, tools, technologies and processes for a purpose.

Reflecting
•• R.01 Celebrate artistic experiences and learning.
•• R.02 Analyse, critique and connect own and others’ work as part of the artistic process.

Thinking and Working Artistically

•• TWA.01 Generate, develop, create, innovate and communicate ideas by using and connecting the artistic
processes of experiencing, making and reflecting.
•• TWA.02 Embrace challenges and opportunities, working with growing independence.
•• TWA.03 Review and refine own work.

Although the learning objectives are the same in each stage, learners will be expected to show progression in the
knowledge, skills, competence and independence that they demonstrate.

Descriptions of how learners might demonstrate progression against each learning objective are given in Section 4.

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 Cambridge Primary Art & Design 0067 Curriculum Framework.

4 Progression

Each learning objective of the Cambridge Primary and Lower Secondary Art & Design curriculum is underpinned
by the same core principles throughout all nine stages. As learners progress through each stage, they should be
able to demonstrate and appreciate their growth both as an artist and as a rounded learner. This approach will help
learners develop and display increasing levels of confidence, technical skill and independence. It will also help them
to refine their judgement when taking creative risks, when imaginatively embracing creative opportunities and
when reflecting upon their own work and that of other artists.

The diagram on the right provides an overview

of how learners will progress in Art & Design
through the six primary stages. Learners will
start by working spontaneously as they begin to
understand the skills of an artist. They will then
start to make links between their knowledge
and skills through experimentation. By Stages
5 and 6 they will be able to assume the
independence that enables them to apply their
knowledge and skills and to feel empowered to
be creative.

Learners’ skills in all the areas that run through

the centre of this diagram are expected to grow
as they progress through the six primary stages
and this growth will continue as they move
through lower secondary and beyond.

Throughout the primary stages, learners should

experience a broad range of activities that will
inform their future creative development. They
will have imaginative ideas but may lack the
dexterity to translate those until they are older.
However, creative thinking and problem solving
are important aspects of their development
throughout the primary stages and these will
help to prepare them for the transition to lower
secondary.

On the following pages, you will find examples of how learners may demonstrate their progress through each of
the learning objectives at the primary stages. Some learners will become proficient artists more quickly than others,
but progression in terms of understanding and adopting the artistic process should be evident for all.

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Cambridge Primary Art & Design 0067 Curriculum Framework. Progression

Stages 1 and 2
The following guidance provides examples to illustrate the
attainment that learners can be expected to demonstrate as they
progress through Stages 1 and 2.

These are not a teaching plan and suggested teaching activities

are included in the scheme of work for each stage.

Experiencing
Encounter, sense, experiment with and respond to a wide range of sources, including a range of art from
different times and cultures.
Simple formal elements of art, such as texture, are encountered and discussed, as is art and design in a range of
forms, and from different times and cultures. Learners should make experimental responses to the ideas that
they encounter.
Encounters can be introduced through a visit to a local gallery or by having an ‘art corner’ in the classroom that
contains a range of artists’ work. Encounters can also include visits to natural environments, such as parks and
gardens.
Visual journals are used to collect sources of inspiration and so that learners have an early opportunity to see
and to talk about progression in their own work.

Explore media, materials, tools, technologies and processes.

A range of media and materials are explored spontaneously while core processes, such as joining and connecting
materials in model making, are demonstrated to the learners. Learners are encouraged to touch, feel and
experience the materials and begin to understand their properties.
It is important that learners have opportunities to talk about the materials, tools and processes so that they can
gain confidence, self-correct and work collaboratively with others, while reflecting on what they have learned.
Responses to simple questions, relating to materials, properties, the senses and about their own emotions are
expected from learners while they work.
Common materials and tools, for example water-based paints and brushes, chalks, clay, scissors and glues, are
introduced in a way that will build learners’ confidence and will allow easy and safe use in the classroom.

Gather and record experiences and visual information.

A wide variety of gathering and recording experiences and visual information is shared and the experience of
each should encourage inquisitiveness, enjoyment, problem solving and celebration.
Experiences and observations are recorded in spontaneous, visual and multi-sensory ways. This could be through
mark making or by producing imaginative representations in a range of media, such as clay, paint and technology
or learners could even manipulate their bodies through dance or movement.
Guidance is given about different ways to gather and record experiences. Gathering may involve sorting or
ordering in response to the formal elements of art (e.g. line, tone, colour, pattern, texture, scale), while recording
may involve film, photography, audio, mark making or the keeping of a visual journal.

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 Cambridge Primary Art & Design 0067 Curriculum Framework. Progression

Making
Learn to use a range of media, materials, tools, technologies and processes with increasing skill,
independence and confidence.
As wide a range of media, materials, tools, technologies and processes as possible are introduced. These could
include media such as paint, print and sculpture; materials such as paper, clay and felt; tools such as drawing/
animation applications, brushes, sponges and rollers; technologies such as computer devices, microscopes,
musical instruments, sound recorders and cameras; and processes such as weaving, felting and sculpting.
Basic skills in using the selected media, materials, tools, technologies and processes are also demonstrated.
Learners are encouraged to develop their skills, both independently and with support, and should be praised for
trying new things, and for showing confidence.

Select appropriate media, materials, tools, technologies and processes for a purpose.
Simple decisions about the creation of artwork are encouraged. For example, from a prepared selection of media,
materials, tools and technologies, learners choose those that are appropriate to represent an object or feeling.
Experimentation with materials that show different textures (e.g. hard, soft, squashy), or with the mixing of
colours are also encouraged.
Learners are encouraged to review their selections through discussion with others.

Reflecting
Celebrate artistic experiences and learning.
Learner responses to artistic encounters are spontaneous and can be expressed visually, verbally and physically.
Each experience is also celebrated through recording, such as by making marks to capture ideas, and by revisiting
these recordings in later contexts. In some environments, learners could also collect items, for example fallen
leaves when visiting woodland, to represent their experience.
Simple strategies for celebrating and reflecting on learning and experiences are shared. These include making
basic comparisons, ordering work into colours or categories, or grouping work in response to the feelings that
they generate. Learners are also supported to make celebratory comments so that they begin to understand the
language and vocabulary of art.

Analyse, critique and connect own and others’ work as part of the artistic process.
Experimentation will lead to mistakes and learners should reflect on these. Guidance and positive support is
provided through the asking of questions such as ‘Why wouldn’t those two items join together?’ or ‘Let us try
mixing red and blue. What happened?’
Learners begin to critique and connect their own and others’ work as part of the artistic process, for example
by suggesting simple reflections about their creative work, by making basic changes to alter their work or by
forming connections between their own work and that of a peer or other artist.
Basic strategies for analysing and making connections between works of art are introduced. For example,
learners connect their work with that of another artist by being asked to describe the similarities and differences
and to give a reason for their answers.

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Cambridge Primary Art & Design 0067 Curriculum Framework. Progression

Thinking and Working Artistically

Generate, develop, create, innovate and communicate ideas by using and connecting the artistic
processes of experiencing, making and reflecting.
Learners begin to generate and communicate ideas artistically. For example, they may spontaneously create a
painting that shares their personal feelings on a particular classroom topic.
Simple ways for developing work are introduced, but learners are also encouraged to innovate by exploring
simple strategies of their own. As examples, they may decide to add collage to a painting to show texture, such
as to create their subject’s hair on a painting of a person, or they may decide to add another tone of paint to
make their observation more accurate.
Thinking about artistic processes begins to occur but may need to be encouraged or supported. For example,
learners could be questioned about their successes and challenges and be encouraged to consider innovative
techniques that are being trialled by others.

Embrace challenges and opportunities, working with growing independence.

The broad purpose of materials, techniques and tools are identified and discussed. Learners will be shown skills
that will enable them to embrace opportunity and begin to demonstrate independence. For example, they may
investigate the creation of different textures of paint by adding rice, flour, sugar, water, etc.
Learners will collaborate to solve simple challenges and will make simple choices of their own, such as the
selection of collaging materials based upon the representation of colour.

Review and refine own work.

Simple ways that work may be refined are identified and shared throughout the process of working on a
particular task. Learners are encouraged to discuss how they have solved problems in different ways.
Work is reviewed and refined collectively so that discoveries, progression and suitable strategies are shared.
Comparisons of quality across learner work or in learners’ and artists’ work are avoided. The process of review
and refinement should be a positive experience that focusses upon enjoyment and development.

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 Cambridge Primary Art & Design 0067 Curriculum Framework. Progression

Stages 3 and 4
The following guidance provides examples to illustrate the
attainment that learners can be expected to demonstrate as they
progress through Stages 3 and 4.

These are not a teaching plan and suggested teaching activities

are included in the scheme of work for each stage.

Experiencing
Encounter, sense, experiment with and respond to a wide range of sources, including a range of art from
different times and cultures.
Talking about and responding to artistic experiences, possibly through using visual journals, is encouraged. For
example, learners discuss their emotional responses to works of art and discuss, trial or document the materials,
techniques and processes that an artist has used, before applying these observations to their own work and
experiments.
Comparisons are made between works of art and design from different times and cultures, to identify features
such as the use of media or the subject that is being represented.
Interconnections start to be seen between experiencing the formal elements of art and experimenting with
materials. Learners begin to combine knowledge and skill when learning about and making art.

Explore media, materials, tools, technologies and processes.

Opportunities for exploration are extended, including the revisiting of materials from previous stages so that the
level of understanding can be deepened. For example, a range of graphite pencils of various hardness could be
explored to develop the representation of tone.
Considered explorations are made with a select range of media and materials. For example, charcoal could be
used to capture tone when drawing in response to first-hand experiences.
Skill development will also occur. For example, if learners were previously introduced to simple ways to
manipulate clay, they would now be taught how to join clay, how to make marks and how to create reliefs.

Gather and record experiences and visual information.

A repertoire of ways for recording experiences and gathering visual information is developed and used with
growing independence.
The use of a visual journal to support the process of gathering and recording experiences, that can be developed
into other artworks or used to solve problems, is encouraged. For example, using a visual journal to record the
patterns found on the surfaces of different buildings and then developing this in a print design could be one way
of gathering, recording and developing artwork.
The visual journal also becomes a growing document that is used to explain progressions in a learner’s work.

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Cambridge Primary Art & Design 0067 Curriculum Framework. Progression

Making
Learn to use a range of media, materials, tools, technologies and processes with increasing skill,
independence and confidence.
Knowledge and understanding of a range of media, materials, tools, technologies and processes is demonstrated.
For example, simple inferences are made about effective media, materials, tools, technologies or processes for
a specific task or intention. Learners may also demonstrate that an outcome can be achieved in several ways,
suggest reasons for differences or make basic judgements about effectiveness. Some learners may achieve this
independently but others may require support and guidance.
Development of work is demonstrated, for example by showing a series or sequence of stages towards an
outcome in a visual journal or portfolio. These recordings may draw out developments in knowledge, skill and
creative independence.

Select appropriate media, materials, tools, technologies and processes for a purpose.
Strategies are developed that will assist with decision making, for example trialling experiments in visual
journals, making mock-up designs, creating plans or reflecting on developments using annotations or peer
review.
Decisions about media, materials, tools, technology and process selection is informed by experience and through
teaching. For example, learners recognise that the parts of a model that come under stress will need to be made
of thicker cardboard.
Visual journals and portfolios are used to document knowledge, experimentation, development, process and
reflection. These are revisited, independently and with peers, in order to review and progress work and to make
comparisons between the approaches used in different projects. For example, learners may show a photographic
diary of sculptural development and use this to revise construction techniques for model making in a later
project.

Reflecting
Celebrate artistic experiences and learning.
A range of strategies and processes are used for celebrating works of art and these are applied to a learner’s
own work and to that of their peers and other artists. This could include the use of reflective statements, the
identification of personal progress in a visual journal, the creation of art in response to the work of another or
the use of a technique or skill from the work of another.
Practice is celebrated through recognition of how changes can help to bring success. As a result, simple
alterations will be made to work, such as changing a colour scheme or the scale of a component in their drawing.
The learner’s voice, both visual and verbal, is valued and they should feel confident when sharing or articulating
their experiences. They begin to do this to help others and should offer praise and guidance with confidence.

Analyse, critique and connect own and others’ work as part of the artistic process.
The trialling of different ideas, techniques or outcomes in the artistic process is demonstrated, as a means of
analysis and critique.
Simple strategies for critiquing work are developed to help support progress. This could include self-assessment
against success criteria or against a set of developmental skills. A learner could also document their personal
reflections about their progress in drawings, annotations or notes within their visual journal.
Preferences and justifications, which are informed by analysis, critique and connections made to the work of
others, are reflected in artistic processes and outcomes. For example, a learner may be able to articulate how the
work of peers or other artists has helped them to move forward.

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 Cambridge Primary Art & Design 0067 Curriculum Framework. Progression

Thinking and Working Artistically

Generate, develop, create, innovate and communicate ideas by using and connecting the artistic
processes of experiencing, making and reflecting.
The range of materials, skills and techniques that learners use will increase, and this will be done experimentally
at times. Some outputs may show original ideas (e.g. using a skill that has not been demonstrated) or be
developments upon existing techniques (e.g. discovering that layers could be added to a painting by adding pen
marks on top).
Work is created for different purposes and in response to different problems or stimuli. This could include a
mural design to enhance a wall or an individual print that will then form part of a collaborative textile work.
Processes and developments are articulated. This could include learners explaining the stages that they followed
when making a printing block and the resulting print, or how they changed their mural design after they had
considered both their audience and their intended message. Some support or modelling may be required to help
and encourage learners with this.
Learners spontaneously connect the artistic processes and confidently seek advice or share ideas about how
tools can be used effectively.

Embrace challenges and opportunities, working with growing independence.

Learners use their knowledge of artistic terms, processes and the work of other artists in refined ways to
challenge themselves in their own art making.
New opportunities are embraced and learners use their developing skill set and knowledge of artistic terms,
processes and the work of other artists to respond to challenges with independence. They have the confidence
to share a number of outcomes to a problem, for example by showing that a simple textile design could be
produced through weaving, sewing or by fusing materials together. Learners will therefore be using the skills that
they have previously discovered, or have been shown, during all of the stages of their learning to date.

Review and refine own work.

Visual journals may be used to help review or refine work that is in progress or to evaluate, adapt or enhance
either final work or the processes that have been used. Positive development and review is fostered throughout
the teaching and learning.
As well as working by themselves, learners will engage with group work. They will learn to express their ideas in
positive and supportive ways, by helping to refine ideas, skills and art making together.

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Cambridge Primary Art & Design 0067 Curriculum Framework. Progression

Stages 5 and 6
The following guidance provides examples to illustrate the
attainment that learners can be expected to demonstrate as they
progress through Stages 5 and 6.

These are not a teaching plan and suggested teaching activities are
included in the scheme of work for each stage.

Experiencing
Encounter, sense, experiment with and respond to a wide range of sources, including a range of art from
different times and cultures.
Understanding of materials and processes is extended through structured exploration of two- and three-
dimensional opportunities. Learners experiment with, and then select, appropriate materials.
While independently working with and selecting materials, learners confidently use appropriate vocabulary when
describing formal elements. For example, they collaboratively create a transient sculpture by selecting natural
materials and to produce a work that adheres to guidelines about geometric shape, line and tone.
Learners research art and design using books, the internet and, where possible, gallery visits. Appropriate
vocabulary is used to describe findings and to discuss art from a number of contexts. Contrasting responses to
art are also researched and this could then be used as the basis of a role-play debate.
Understanding of sources is evident throughout the visual journals and verbal interactions, and will be
demonstrated through the creation of interpretations of the original rather than the making of direct copies.

Explore media, materials, tools, technologies and processes.

Experiments with media, materials, tools, technologies and processes are conducted without prompt, and
learners ask appropriate and focussed questions in order to enrich their knowledge and understanding. A
number of possible developments are tested before settling on an idea to pursue to completion and choices are
articulated, with reference being made to a range of experiential activities.
The full range of experiences are articulated and understanding is demonstrated through experiments that make
use of the formal elements in visual journals. For example, learners experiment with representing the tonal
changes, scale and texture of the inside of a piece of fruit, using different media, in preparation for producing an
enlarged study of that fruit.

Gather and record experiences and visual information.

Learners can explain the importance of experimenting. Enjoyment of the artistic process, including the benefit of
learning from experiments and mistakes, is demonstrated through pride in and ownership of visual journals and
portfolios.
A wide variety of ways of gathering, recording and applying visual information is evident in a learner’s portfolio,
while the visual journals hold a record of all ideas and attempts to find solutions.

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 Cambridge Primary Art & Design 0067 Curriculum Framework. Progression

Making
Learn to use a range of media, materials, tools, technologies and processes with increasing skill,
independence and confidence.
Skill and independence is applied through curious and creative thinking and through the recognition of the
development stages needed to make a final piece. This includes learning from previous mistakes and recognising
how these have enabled the current levels of attainment and confidence to be reached.
Developing skill and independence is demonstrated through visual journals and through discussion with others,
including through the considered guidance that is sought.

Select appropriate media, materials, tools, technologies and processes for a purpose.
Through a series of related projects, appropriate strategies for selecting and using materials and processes are
demonstrated.
Learners can justify the decisions that they make about the selection of process and materials. Learners work
more independently and, although guidance may still be needed, this is far less than in the previous stages. For
example, learners are able to discuss what they know about the properties of oil pastels and, with support, they
are able to model techniques for using them to blend, layer and to create tones and textures.
The benefit of learning from mistakes is acknowledged and visual journals are enhanced by the decisions and
experiments that have proved to be unhelpful.

Reflecting
Celebrate artistic experiences and learning.
Visits to galleries and table top galleries, and the selection of work to keep in a portfolio are conducted with
confidence. Learners may also engage in curating exhibitions. For example, a letter could be written to invite a
gallery to display one piece of a learner’s work. This letter will include an explanation and critique of the work
and suggestions for how it should be displayed and of other artists whose work could be displayed alongside it.
Thoughts and feelings are explained and the relationship between artworks and the artists that produce them is
recognised.
An understanding of scale, perspective and sculptural forms is used and described when celebrating
achievement.
Positive encouragement is regarded as an essential aspect of development and mutual praise, appreciation and
celebration is expected.

Analyse, critique and connect own and others’ work as part of the artistic process.
Strong reflective practice is demonstrated when discussing art, art making and appreciation. Learners question
what they see, what they understand and the skills needed to make art. They will make appropriate associations,
such as considering that there is more than one way of interpreting a work of art and being aware that people
could have different perspectives towards a particular work. They may even be able to articulate where they
position their own opinion in comparison with the other perspectives that they encounter.
How other artists take inspiration from their surroundings, experiences and peers is understood and appreciated.
Overall, learners speak confidently about their own development and that of others. Critical appreciation is
positive, encouraging and demonstrates knowledge and understanding. Learners also appreciate that all of their
peers are engaged in the same development process.

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Cambridge Primary Art & Design 0067 Curriculum Framework. Progression

Thinking and Working Artistically

Generate, develop, create, innovate and communicate ideas by using and connecting the artistic
processes of experiencing, making and reflecting.
All work demonstrates confidence and some originality. It communicates ideas well and demonstrates some
audience awareness. For example, learners create a poster that aims to convince their community to think about
an issue that is of interest to them personally.
Learners can describe the processes they are using and how their ideas are developing. For example, if they are
felting, learners are able to explain both the felt-making process and the formal art elements that they are using.
They demonstrate autonomy by testing ideas and embracing artistic practices without encouragement or
prompt.

Embrace challenges and opportunities, working with growing independence.

Independence is demonstrated through the enjoyment of new challenges and through the application of
experience, knowledge, skills and understanding when meeting those challenges.
Learners demonstrate personal control by making sure they invest time and effort to extend their experiences
through every project. For example, when painting on canvas, learners will choose a painting style that they
think is most appropriate to the subject (e.g. pointillism or impressionism) and will then employ that style with
skill and refinement.
Despite their increased autonomy, learners also have the confidence to seek help and advice when trying out
new ideas.

Review and refine own work.

Visual journals document the stages of each development and demonstrate an appreciation of the need for
review and refinement.
Refinements are undertaken willingly and should demonstrate the full range of a learner’s prior learning. The
considered views of others should be actively sought and a positive approach taken to all discussions with peers.
When work is improved through self-correction, any resulting insights are readily offered to other learners.
Convincing reasons are given for why each particular insight is useful.

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 Cambridge Primary Art & Design 0067 Curriculum Framework.

5 Glossary

This glossary is provided to support your understanding of the content of this curriculum framework. The
definitions are intended to be sufficient to guide an informed reader.

Annotations – written explanations that are added to art to communicate explanation or further thought.

Blend – the technique of gently combining two or more colours at their edges to create a soft graduation from one
to the next.

Enlarged study – an artwork which depicts an object at a scale that is larger than the object’s normal proportions.

Formal elements – the parts used to make any piece of art. The formal elements in art are line, shape, form, tone,
texture, pattern, colour and composition. The application of these elements determines the appearance of a final
piece of work.

Layering – the application of layers of paint on top of one another. For example, the first layer could be the
background colour, the second layer could create the outline shape of the object that is being represented and
subsequent layers could add various levels of detail to that object.

Learning objectives – statements from the curriculum framework of the expectations of knowledge, understanding
and skills that learners will develop; they provide a structure for teaching and learning, and a reference against
which to check learners’ attainment and skills development.

Mark making – the lines, dots, patterns etc. that are made in the process of making art. The term can apply to any
material that is used on any surface.

Materials – the specific items that are used to make art. For example, if working in the media of collage, the scraps
of paper, fabric and other items involved in creating the work, including the glue, are the materials.

Medium or media – the dominant material(s) that are being used to create art. For example, paint, collage or clay.

Mixed-media – the combined use of two or more media in a single artwork.

Perspective – has two meanings in art and design, as follows:

•• the representation of space, size or distance within a work of art
•• the different backgrounds, experiences or views that can influence an individual’s opinion about, or approach
to, a work of art.

Portfolio – a compiled collection of an artist’s work.

Scheme of work – support materials for each stage of Cambridge Primary Art & Design. Each scheme of work
contains a suggested long-term plan, a medium-term plan with suggested teaching and learning activities and
sample short-term (lesson) plans.

Stimulus or stimuli – anything that is used by an artist or designer to generate new ideas. This could include
another work of art or design, a piece of text or music, a person or place, a historical event or period, or an entire
culture.

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Cambridge Primary Art & Design 0067 Curriculum Framework. Glossary

Strand – a collection of learning objectives in the curriculum framework that forms an area of learning.

Tabletop gallery – a small scale display used to present artworks to learners, including those that have been
produced by the learners themselves. This is very helpful for generating discussions about the development of next
steps.

Teacher guide – a document providing support in using the curriculum framework to plan and deliver lessons using
effective teaching and learning approaches.

Tools – the items used by an artist that are not consumed in the art-making process. For example, paint is
consumed as soon as it has been applied, whereas the brush that was used to apply the paint can be washed and
used again. The brush is therefore the tool in this example.

Transient sculpture (or any transient art) – non-permanent work that can be manipulated. Loose parts are an
important aspect to any transient art.

Visual journal – a book which contains both words and artistic expressions to create a record of an artist’s
thoughts and experiments.

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