Creative Arts
There are two main core strands to our programme of study: Art and Design, Music & Computing. These strands interweave with each other to offer our students the most appropriate and relevant breadth of learning.
Within this curriculum students study threads of Music and Computing, Cooking & Nutrition, Art & Design, Graphics and Textiles. These areas cross reference each other, allowing students to combine skills and see how these can be applied to real life outcomes and future job applications.
Art and Design
The Art and Design curriculum is developed to allow for curiosity, creativity and self –expression. Resilience is an essential aspect of this and is taught to encourage confidence when applying the practical and critical thinking elements of Art. This is nurtured to form the foundation of how our young people become unique and exciting artists. In developing a wide range of skills and types of artwork, the aim is then to transfer these to other areas of the curriculum. Visual Arts and Design Technology enhance every subject area and bring learning to life. Creative thinking skills are highly sought after for jobs in many leading industries as well as holding relevance for both further study and creative industry jobs.
Practical skills sit at the heart of our curriculum, where core component knowledge in the mediums of drawing, painting, 3D, printing, photography and textiles is sequentially built upon. When pupils progress onto KS4, they will have mastered a range of tools, techniques and processes, motivating them to continue their journey as young artists. Opportunities to discover and work with contemporary and historical artists are offered with trips to galleries such as The Tate in Liverpool, HOME in Manchester and The Lowry in Salford. These enrichment opportunities not only broaden an understanding of Art and the world we live in but also how Art can bring communities together, offer different perspectives and cement cultural and spiritual understanding.
Graphics
Our graphics lessons focus on how design and branding is developed, advertising, building consumer profiles and confidence, market trends and innovation. Students will tap into colour theory and understand design elements to create lettering and packaging ideas. They will sketch by hand and through the use of digital applications to bring their design ideas to life.
Textiles
Using carefully honed research skills, students will sketch and design based on artist and designer influences. These ideas will be developed with soft furnishings and fashion in mind and be explored and tested against consumers preferences. Understanding both digital and hand created ideas, repeat patterns and prints, will allow our students to evaluate and select the most appropriate design and make outcomes.
Cooking and Nutrition
The Cooking and Nutrition curriculum instils a love of cooking in all pupils and explores healthy eating, nutrition and Food Science. Learning how to cook is a crucial life skill for pupils now and in later life. We suitably challenge them by offering a range of recipes from the UK and around the world, through exploring a range of cooking techniques and experimenting with unfamiliar ingredients. Throughout their time at Eden, we aim to encourage independent learning through practical participation. The department ensures that our pupils have a wider understanding of environmental impacts of our choice of foods to prevent food waste. Our pupils learn about multicultural foods and experience how different cultural foods influence our everyday food choices. This equips our pupils with the knowledge and cultural capital to succeed in life.
Music and Computing
Within Music and Computing our students learn how to listen, appraise and analyse different genres, perform as an ensemble using instruments, and interpret treble and bass clef notation. Students play basic chord progressions using keyboards as well as using audio sequencing software to capture and manipulate sounds. Students have the opportunity to create overlaid compositions and ideas using Foley sounds, SFX, voice overs and Music for a given moving image project. They then begin to apply their knowledge of musical elements to analyse Music for Film in moving Image projects. Computing as part of our creative curriculum is embedded in all projects. These strands support students’ creativity in designing, making and evaluating their outcomes as well as developing their digital literacy and online safety. These quickly evolving areas hold a distinct relevance to how our young people will use these skills in the future and have utmost importance in keeping young people safe online. Built into the structure of these lessons are teachings which students will utilise practically both at school and in the context of wider community.
Art & Design at KS4
At KS4 pupils have the option to study AQA GCSE Art, Craft and Design which will allow them to further build upon their knowledge, skills and understanding of the creative curriculum explored at KS3. They will put into practice project ideas and develop artwork which is multidisciplinary under Art, Craft or Design. This title has been chosen to reflect the personal direction some of our students will take, allowing them to create work in Fine Art, Textiles, 3D, Craft, and Graphics. This broad approach further supports our young people in attaining their chosen path towards further education, apprenticeships or employment.
Food at KS4
The Food course we offer at KS4 comprises BTEC Level 1 and 2 pathways. Pupils will build upon their prior knowledge of food health and safety gained from KS3, to inform their further study into professional food hygiene and safe food preparation. The course also aims to develop awareness of global issues such as, food poverty, consumerism, food waste, ethical purchasing and the environmental effects of meat production, which closely links to PSHE and Geography.
Curriculum Maps
