Visual Arts - Curriculum

1 arts EducationVisual ArtsPrimary SchoolCurriculumCuraclam naBunscoileD U B L I NPUBLISHED BY THE STAT I O N E RY OFFICETo be purc h ased dire c t ly from theG OVERNMENT PUBLICATIONS SALE OFFICESUN ALLIANCE HOUSEM O L E S WO RTH ST R E E TDUBLIN 2or by mail order fro mG OVERNMENT PUBLICAT I O N SP O STAL TRADE SECTION4-5 HARC O U RT ROA DDUBLIN 2( Tel: 01 - 6476834-5; Fax: 01 - 4752760 )or through any booksellerD esign Consulta n cy :B ra d l ey McGurk Pa rt n e rs h i pD esigned by :The Identity Busines sTy p es e tt i n g :Spectrum Print ManagementP r i n ted by :Mozzon Giuntina - Florence andOfficine Grafiche De Agostini - Nova ra 1999 Government of Ire l a n dVisual ArtsArts EducationCurriculumC o n te n tsIntroductionArts education2 The arts education curriculum2 Aims 4 The Visual arts5 Aims9 Broad objectives10 Infant classesOverview13 Planning14 Concepts and skills development16 Content18 First and second classesOverview25 Planning26 Concepts and skills development28 Content30 Visual arts CurriculumThird and fourth classesOverview43 Planning44 Concepts and skills development46 Content48 Fifth and sixth classesOverview61 Planning62 Concepts and skills development64 Content66 AssessmentAssessment80 AppendixGlossary90 Membership of the

2 Curriculum Committee for arts Education93 Membership of the Primary Co-ordinating Committee94 IntroductionThe arts are organised ex p ressions of ideas, feelings and ex p e r i e n c es ini m a g es, in music, in language, in ges t u re and in movement. They prov i d efor sensory, emotional, intellectual and cre a t i ve enrichment and contri-b u te to the child s holistic development. Much of what is finest in societyis developed through a va r i e ty of art forms which contribute to cultura lethos and to a sense of we l l - b e i n g .A rts education enables the child to ex p l o re alte r n a t i ve ways of commu n i-cating with others. It encoura g es ideas that are personal and inve n t i ve andm a kes a vital contribution to the development of a range of inte l l i g e n c es.

3 A purposeful arts education at primary level is life-enhancing and isi nvaluable in stimulating cre a t i ve thinking and in promoting capabilityand adapta b i l i ty. It emphas i s es the cre a t i ve pro c ess and so ensures thatthe child s wo rk is personal and has quality. Atte m p ts at artistic ex p res s i o na re valued, self- es teem is enhanced, sponta n e i ty and risk- taking aree n c o u raged and difference is celebra ted. It is this affirming aspect of thec re a t i ve arts that makes participation such a positive experience. Artseducation is inte g ral to primary education in helping to pro m o te thinking,imagination and sensitivity, and arts activities can be a focus for social andc u l t u ral development and enjoyment in education encompasses a range of activities in the Visual arts , inmusic, in drama, in dance and in literature.

4 These activities andexperiences help the child to make sense of the world; to question, tospeculate and to find solutions; to deal with feelings and to respond tocreative arts education curriculumThe arts education Curriculum provides for a balance between expressionand the child s need to experience and respond to the Visual arts , tomusic and to drama. Dance is outlined within the physical educationcurriculum, and the contribution that literature makes to the emotionaland imaginative development of the child is described within thelanguage Visual arts Curriculum comprises interrelated activities inmaking artand inlooking at and responding to presents a range of activities inperceiving, exploring, responding to and appreciating the Visual involves looking with awareness and understanding of thevisual elements and their interplay in the environment and in art works.

5 arts education2 This awareness is fundamental to the development of Visual expressionand to the child s personal response to creative experience. Making artinvolves two and three-dimensional work in a range of promotes understanding of the inherent qualities in artworks and aesthetic enjoyment. In developing the programme, theexpressive or making activities are balanced with opportunities to see andto make a personal response to Visual art forms of different styles, periodsand cultures. Regional craft traditions and their modern developments, aspart of the national heritage, are among those art music Curriculum compriseslistening and responding, performingandcomposing activities.

6 Focused listening is emphasised, both for its sheerenjoyment potential and for its essential role in composing andperforming. The child is encouraged to listen with attention to sounds inthe environment and gradually to become aware of how sound isorganised in music. Performance incorporates a balance of singing andinstrumental playing of his/her own work and the work of others. Ways ofusing sound are explored in composing, both with the voice and with awidening range of musical instruments. In developing the programme,performance is balanced with opportunities to hear and to make apersonal response to music of different styles, periods and cultures,including the national repertoire in its varied national and regionalforms.

7 Interrelated activities for listening, performing and composing aresuggested in the Curriculum drama Curriculum comprises interrelated activities which explorefeelings, knowledge and ideas, leading to understanding. It explores themesand issues, creates a safe context in which to do so, and provides foropportunities to reflect on the insights gained in the process. It draws onthe knowledge, interests and enthusiasms of the child. In drama, the childexplores the motivations and the relationships between people that existin a real, imagined or historical context, to help him/her understand theworld. The child is encouraged to make decisions and to takeresponsibility for those decisions within the safe context of the provides the child with opportunities to organise and develophis/her natural enjoyment of expressive movement in dance dance, the child is encouraged to explore and experiment with avariety of body movements and to communicate a range of moods andfeelings.

8 The dance programme comprises activities in the exploration,creation and performance of dance and in developing understanding ofdance arts CurriculumThrough literature, the child is guided to explore the world of theimagination and to discover how language brings it to life. Expressivelanguage, both oral and written, is fostered for its enjoyment value and tohelp develop aesthetic aims of arts education are to enable the child to explore, clarify and express ideas, feelings andexperiences through a range of arts activities to provide for aesthetic experiences and to develop aesthetic awarenessin the Visual arts , in music, in drama, in dance and in literature to develop the child s awareness of, sensitivity to and enjoyment ofvisual, aural, tactile and spatial qualities in the environment to enable the child to develop natural abilities and potential, to acquiretechniques.

9 And to practise the skills necessary for creative expressionand for joyful participation in different art forms to enable the child to see and to solve problems creatively throughimaginative thinking and so encourage individuality and enterprise to value the child s confidence and self-esteem through valuing self-expression to foster a sense of excellence in and appreciation of the arts in local,regional, national and global contexts, both past and present to foster a critical appreciation of the arts for personal fulfilment is a way of making and communicating meaning through imagery. It isa unique symbolic domain and is a discipline with its own particulardemands and core of learning.

10 Art is a natural and enjoyable way ofextending and enriching the child s experience of the world. Visual arts activities enable the child to make connections between theimaginative life and the world and to organise and express ideas, feelingsand experiences in Visual , tangible form. In drawing, painting,constructing and inventing, the child assimilates and responds toexperience and tries to make sense of arts education provides for creative and aesthetic experiencesthrough exploring, investigating, experimenting, inventing, designing andmaking in a range of media. It promotes observation and ways of seeingand helps the child to acquire sensitivity to the Visual , spatial and tactileworld and to aesthetic experience.