Year 1 Art, music & design

Chapters to explore

Lines can be straight, curved, thick or thin. Artists choose marks to show an idea or feeling. Look closely before drawing, and try more than one kind of mark. There is no single correct drawing style.

Try it: Draw the same garden object with three kinds of line.

Paint colours can be mixed to create other colours. Begin with small amounts and observe what happens. In a traditional paint palette, red, yellow and blue are often used as starting colours. Paint mixing is different from mixing coloured light.

Try it: Make a paint-mixing chart with an adult using safe washable paint.

A collage joins pieces onto a surface. Shapes can overlap or leave spaces. Texture is how a surface feels or looks as though it feels. Choose materials for the effect you want, and use suitable child-safe tools.

Try it: Make a small nature collage from safe paper and fabric scraps.

A beat is a regular pulse in music. Rhythm is the pattern of sounds and silences over it. You can tap a comfortable steady beat while someone speaks a short rhyme. Listening matters more than tapping loudly.

Try it: Tap a steady beat with an adult and try a short rhyme over it.

Pitch describes how high or low a sound is. Loudness describes how strong or quiet it is. These are different qualities. Use a comfortable voice, never strain, and listen to how a melody moves.

Try it: Use a comfortable hum to copy a short high-low pattern.

Sounds have different qualities. A drum, a shaker and a voice can make different timbres, or sound colours. Choose a sound to help tell a story. Quiet moments can be part of the music too.

Try it: Create three safe sounds for a short story and explain the choices.

A model represents an idea. Before making, decide what it is for and sketch a plan. Join materials securely using age-appropriate tools. Test whether the model does its intended job, then improve one part.

Try it: Make a small paper model with an adult and test its purpose.

Drama uses actions, words and imagined situations to tell stories. A character is someone in the story. You can show an action through movement or voice, and everyone should be able to choose a comfortable way to join.

Try it: Act a one-minute helping scene with a partner, using no recording.

When looking at art, describe what you can see before deciding what it means. Notice colour, shape, line and texture. Different people may respond differently. Useful feedback names a choice and its effect rather than calling a person good or bad.

Try it: Discuss two pictures and describe one feature of each.

Learning together

Each chapter brings together teaching, an example, practice and a practical discovery. Use the material with discussion and suitable offline activities. Choose a comfortable starting point and revisit explanations as needed.