Material literacy is a vital subject area within art, craft and design, and yet it is not often talked about. Over the last years, when education has focussed upon a knowledge-rich education, the number of opportunities for pupils to engage with physical materials in school, to build empathy and respect for those materials, and to practice making skills, has declined. This has been compounded by the rise of the use of digital media outside school, so that today, fewer pupils spend time interacting with the physical and material world.
We see the result of this in schools, when many pupils become de-skilled as they move further up the educational ladder, as fewer opportunities present themselves for practice. This results in frustration on the part of pupils when they do try to interact with physical materials and tools, which in turn discourages pupils from further attempts.
On this page, we aim to both highlight the importance of physical literacy skills, and also provide links to short films which give pupils and teachers practical tips when working with a variety of materials. The collection will grow over time.
