Bronze Arts Award is a Level 1 qualification. Many schools use this as part of their KS3 curriculum or as an extra-curricular offer, and we have been heartened to learn of the many schools and arts organisations who very rapidly adapted their delivery to enable young people to continue to work towards their Bronze award during lockdown and beyond. Teachers and parents have told us that they have appreciated having the structure of Arts Award to work through, and the lure of being able to achieve something tangible (a nationally recognised qualification) despite school and bubble closures, has been a big bonus for many.
Young people can participate in all four parts of the Bronze award remotely. This might include sharing their reflection and arts skills with those at home, or using a remote platform like Teams or Zoom to share with their adviser and peers.
Our Digital Portfolio Resource provides ideas on how to gather and review evidence digitally, and our free portfolio building templates give a good starting point for what young people need to be capturing. The Bronze Hub on Arts Award Voice is also an excellent resource for young people aged 14+, as is their Bronze introduction and checklist.
If young people are communicating with you, or others, via video or video call ensure that you have considered the safeguarding implications and are following your organisations’ own safeguarding policy.
Take a look at our Bronze remote delivery blog for full details and ideas for delivering Parts A, B, C and D remotely.
Perhaps you started Bronze Arts Award as a lockdown project with students at home and you want to complete the award now that students have returned to school. It is possible to deliver activities in non-specialist classrooms with bubbles and with limited resources (see below for more information).
Join our webinar exploring a remote or blended approach with Bronze, on Tuesday 9th March. Register here.
You can read how Oasis Academy on the Isle of Sheppey started their Bronze journey by delivering to a smaller group of students who were still attending school during the lockdown period, then went on to extend the offer to students who were at home, planning that all students would complete the award once back in school in the autumn taking part in Part D within their class bubbles.
Due to Arts Award being an inclusive and accessible offer, it is an ideal project to set for students who are ahead of their peers as a result of learning during lockdown, as well as for those students who are working to catch up. Arts Award can help bridge the learning gap by providing an independent learning journey in the arts whilst also supporting the development of wider transferrable skills such as communication, confidence, planning and reflection.
Find out more about mapping Bronze Arts Award directly to the Key Stage 3 curriculum with Art and Design, Music, English and Drama.
Join our webinar exploring a remote or blended approach with Bronze, on Tuesday 9th March. Register here.
Mental health is increasingly recognised as a key factor in children and young people’s overall wellbeing that has suffered due to lockdown and the ongoing stresses of the national pandemic. At Arts Award, we are strong advocates for the impact arts and creativity have on wellbeing.
We know that schools have rated their top three urgent needs in the wake of Covid19 as mental health and wellbeing of students, socialization after lockdown and stronger engagement with learning (National arts, creative and cultural education survey – July 2020, Arts Council England Bridge organisations).
Recognising that participation in Arts Award can boost essential character traits such as self confidence and resilience, your setting can ensure that art is does not become a temporary palliative measure during these challenging times, but instead a core part of the co-curriculum embedded into many subject areas. Our off-the-shelf KS3 resources for Music, Art and Design and English and Drama will provide ideas and inspiration to help boost arts curriculum delivery, and provide an accreditation before GCSE study whilst supporting the wellbeing of students.
Both Arts Award and PSHE support the development of skills such as self-esteem, teamwork, and critical thinking, and there are many ways in which you could link what you are already doing in class at Key Stage 1, 2 and 3 to your Arts Award delivery. This will not only enrich your students learning experience, but reduce some of your workload and make the most of your planning time. Find out more here.
As well as supporting a rich independent learning journey and being ideally designed for delivery at a distance, Bronze Arts Award can be as a whole class or year group activity – perfect for Years 7, 8 and 9. The flexibility of the criteria and the range of choices that participants have to present their evidence means that it can be achieved in non-specialist classrooms, supported by non-specialist staff and without the sharing of resources
Running Arts Award in a bubble is an ideal way to build a whole-class culture of engagement in the arts. It can help to raise the profile of arts subjects, engage other subject leaders and can offer some cost-benefits. Schools with large group deliveries have seen a higher proportion of young people choosing to take arts subjects at GCSE and post-16, and bubbles offer peer support and encouragement for young people completing their award. You can find out more and see our sample planning timeline here.
Finally, this recent blog from Newent Community School and Sixth Form Centre looks at how they have changed their approach to delivery this year.
Join our webinar exploring a remote or blended approach with Bronze, on Tuesday 9th March. Register here.
