This unit of work was designed for KS3 and includes background information on tulips as a Turkish cultural symbol. The project develops through drawing and painting lessons, on to design, and then collage work leading to the final lessons building a relief tile in clay, and then glazing. Each lesson has a powerpoint presentation and there are accompanying worksheets, starters and extension tasks as necessary. In all, the unit covers 7 lessons including a final one on evaluation. This is a fairly speedy project and could easily be extended to cover more lessons. Initial primary observation lessons use real tulips to draw from, though this could be adapted to work from secondary imagery. The lessons feature elements on design, pattern and symmetry. This project has been really successful in providing for a range of skills and students have produced results that they are very proud of!

A really useful introductory lesson to Art (for year 7s or other KS3 classes). With key information about equipment, expectations and then a simple drawing task to assess skills and set a tone for focus in Art lessons. During the 45 minute drawing task you are able to move around the classroom as students are working in silence (more or less!) and get to know the strengths and weaknesses of students. Although it creates a bit of work, I always like to write a comment for each student after this lesson, so they see that you take their efforts seriously. There is a little plenary where students annotate their own work. A simple, but very useful and enjoyable lesson!

This mind-map on the theme of LOCK provides links to over 40 artists from varied times and places. Organised with sub-themes, this resource is a great way of supporting student’s individual investigations and introducing them to diverse approaches to the theme. You can print as an A3 poster or an A4 handout, or use the pdf document on screen so that the artists names hyperlink to relevant websites to develop research further. You may also be interested in this ‘week by week’ art exam handout. And this Art GCSE Project Checklist for student self-assessment.

All of the woks in this self-portrait introduction lesson come from an exhibition held at Kettles Yard in Cambridge called Face Off - and none of the artworks feature the artists faces. This makes for really interesting class discussions about the nature of portraiture and also what can be used to make an artwork. The lesson has been used successfully with KS3 and KS4 students and always generated interesting ideas from the the students. To get the class thinking about their own identity, I print off the slide handout sheet from powerpoint and photocopy this for the students, then I give them 2 or 3 minutes on each slide to complete their own mini-self-portrait in response to each image (e.g. draw your own favourite shoes or sign your name...). An enjoyable lesson which sets a class up well for a self-portraiture project. There is a homework task at the end if you choose to use it.

This fun Christmas themed activity lesson covers repeat printing (cross-curricular link to Maths) and gives step by step instructions on how to create a sheet of wrapping paper by potato printing. The lesson is designed to keep things as simple as possible - mess is kept to a minimum by using one printing colour only. You can use newsprint or brown craft paper as a cheap wrapping paper base, or even tissue paper if you want but this can tear more easily. You could simplify things further for younger students by preparing the potato stamps in advance (if students work in pairs, you could cut 15 potato stamps before the lesson). Tip: a pack of cheap wet-wipes is always handy in these lessons to clear away quickly.

Ten A4 artist quotes for display. An unusual range of artists and quotes: Mondrian and Renoir to Ai Weiwei and Sonya Boyce. These are aimed and getting students motivated to work hard and understand the artistic process a bit better...

An A3 pdf poster for artroom display to support students' understanding of the Assessment Objectives. This version uses the 'old specification' wording for this years' GCSE (year 11) students - a 'new spec' version is also available for year 10s. The poster aims to keep it simple and provides short 'student speak' explanations of what each assessment objective is looking for. The idea of the poster is to present the process of the project from the perspective of an explorer: developing ideas (using a compass to set a course for the investigation), refining skills with appropriate tools (penknife illustration), recording ideas by observing carefully (binoculars) and documenting, and finally shining a light on the culmination of the adventure! A timely piece of classroom display to remind students what they need for both coursework and exam projects. The pdf can be printed at A3 size or reduced down to A4.

Christmas season one-off lesson where students create their own repeat pattern wallpaper using potato printing. This version has instructions using water-based paints (acrylic gives a good opaque colour, but you can use poster paint too) and paint brushes, rather than printing ink and rollers (there is another version of this resource in my shop with instructions for this kind of printing). A fun lesson with good cross-curricular links to design and technology and maths (repeat patterns, rotation). The lesson requires some largish paper to print the wrapping paper - you can use what you have for this... brown craft paper works well; newsprint is cheap and good; sugar paper tends to be a bit thick but has the added benefit of colour and can look good in a display; tissue paper also works but can tear more easily. Although this is a practical lesson, mess is kept to a minimum by using paper plates as palettes which can be thrown away after use. A good tip is to have some cheap wet wipes to help speed up the clean up at the end. If you want to simplify things (perhaps for younger students) you can prepare potato stamps in advance to avoid having students cutting them in the lesson.

A four page printable worksheet resource on Paul Klee. Can be used as a cover lesson during a relevant project (Abstraction, Expressionism, colour, landscape…), an extension activity, or as a whole class task. Students are asked to read the information about the artist then answer questions then create their own abstracted landscape from the source images. Also included are source images of Klee’s work, black and white landscape photographs to work from and a Paul Klee word search. Designed to be easy to deploy and requires no specialist materials or knowledge. A fantastic resource to have on hand and relevant to many projects!

This mind-map on the theme of EVENT provides links to over 40 artists from varied times and places. Organised with sub-themes, this resource is a great was of supporting students individual investigations and introducing them to diverse approaches to the theme. You can print as an A3 poster or an A4 handout, or use the pdf document on screen so that the artists names hyperlink to relevant websites to develop research further. You may also be interested in this ‘week by week’ art exam handout.

A two page PDF resource (can be photocopied back to back and laminated for repeated use) on the artist Gustav Klimt. Can be used as a sub lesson during a relevant project (colour, pattern, abstraction, portraiture, Modern Art …), an extension activity, independent study, or as a whole class task. Students are asked to read the information about the artist then answer questions, then show their visual understanding through the identification of motifs in the work. They then create their own practical response to Klimt’s art. The lesson requires minimal materials and can be carried out in a non-specialist classroom. A great introduction to an important 20th century artist whose work is inspiring and engaging for young people.

A great resource to support student in becoming more independent and taking responsibility for their projects. 23 pages which can be photocopied into a booklet, giving students all they need to understand the structure of the course, assessment and asking questions to help improve their independence. The booklet is created in Powerpoint so can be easily adapted to suit your own course structure and marking. And slide can be projected onto a white board as part of class teaching. Students record feedback into the booklet so they have their own record of what they need to do to develop. I have found that having students write this in themselves (copying from notes stapled into their sketchbooks) has really helped them to take ownership of the guidance - not just read and forget. Teachers can use the booklet to complete interim assessment of coursework units and ask students to do their own self assessments on the sheets included. The booklet provides a comprehensive approach to assessment of the GCSE course and students tend to treat this more seriously as they can see from the outset of the course how and when they will be assessed and the impact this will have on their eventual grade.

A fun art ‘formal elements’ word search PDF file with 17 key terms to find including colour line shape tone form texture space design balance contrast harmony pattern size repetition These print well at A5 (two to an A4 sheet) so are an economical, fun way to embed student learning on literacy, extending vocabulary on any scheme of work. Also a quote from Charles Eames on design. Great for a lesson starter, plenary, cover, literacy, homework, extension or use a word search to maintain focus during tidy up time!

A three page printable worksheet resource on Wassily Kandinsky. Can be used as a cover lesson during a relevant project (Abstraction, Expressionism, colour, landscape…), an extension activity, or as a whole class task. Students are asked to read the information about the artist then answer questions then create their own abstracted landscape from the source images. Also included are 4 landscape images printed very lightly that students can work on top of, if a differentiated activity is required. Designed to be easy to deploy and requires no specialist materials or knowledge. A fantastic resource to have on hand and relevant to many projects!

A fun art ‘colour theory’ word search PDF file with 13 key terms to find including complimentary harmonious pigment secondary primary tertiary These print well at A5 (two to an A4 sheet) so are an economical, fun way to embed student learning on literacy, extending vocabulary on any scheme of work. Also a quote from John Ruskin on colour. Great for a lesson starter, plenary, cover, literacy, homework, extension or use a word search to maintain focus during tidy up time!

A fun Impressionism word search PDF file with 12 key terms to find including Landscape Colour Light France En plein air Paint Nature Everyday Sketchy Atmosphere Vibrant These print well at A5 (two to an A4 sheet) so are an economical, fun way to embed student learning on literacy, extending vocabulary on any scheme of work. Also a quote from Impressionist Berthe Morisot. Great for a lesson starter, plenary, cover, literacy, homework, extension or use a word search to maintain focus during tidy up time!

A fun art ‘colour’ word search PDF with more unusual names of colours to find - azure, chartreuse, coral, crimson etc.). These print well at A5 (two to an A4 sheet) so are an economical, fun way to embed student learning on literacy, extending vocabulary on any colour-related scheme of work. Quotes from Joseph Albers, Sonia Delaunay and Georges Braque also encourage critical thinking on colour.

Designed as an A3 printable, this literacy mat has all the vocabulary and tips to get students’ writing about art confidently. Aimed at KS3 and KS4, there is guidance about producing high quality writing as well as art-specific vocabulary. Also works at A4 size, and can be laminated back-to-back. Visually engaging and highly effective for supporting students!

A fun clay vocabulary word search PDF with 12 vocabulary terms to find relating to ceramics. These print well at A5 (two to an A4 sheet) so are an economical, fun way to embed student learning, building on literacy, extending vocabulary with any clay scheme of work.

A useful poster to point students in the right direction with web research. The PDF file is interactive - you click on the text to link to websites. Or you can print and display next to departmental computers.