Aims

Our Design and Technology Curriculum aims to enable our pupils to design and make products that solve real and relevant problems within a variety of contexts, using creativity and imagination. They will acquire a broad range of subject knowledge and draw on disciplines such as mathematics, science, engineering, computing and art. Pupils will learn how to take risks, becoming resourceful, innovative, enterprising and capable citizens. Through the evaluation of past and present design and technology, they will develop a critical understanding of its impact on daily life and the wider world.

We aspire to develop the creative, technical and practical expertise that our pupils will need to perform everyday tasks confidently and to participate successfully in an increasingly technological world. Pupils will build and apply a repertoire of knowledge, understanding and skills in order to design and make high-quality prototypes and products for a wide range of users. They will be able to critique, evaluate and test their ideas and products and the work of others. They will be taught to understand and apply the principles of nutrition and learn how to cook

Skills will continue to be taught creatively through links to other curriculum areas and dedicated design technology subject weeks.

Subject Content

During Key Stage One pupils will be taught:

• to design purposeful, functional, appealing products for themselves and other users based on design criteria

• to generate, develop, model and communicate their ideas through talking, drawing, templates, mock-ups and, where appropriate, information and communication technology.

• to select from and use a range of tools and equipment to perform practical tasks.

• to select from and use a wide range of materials and components, including construction materials, textiles and ingredients, according to their characteristics.

• to explore and evaluate a range of existing products.

• to evaluate their ideas and products against design criteria.

• to build structures, exploring how they can be made stronger, stiffer and more stable.

• to explore and use mechanisms in their products.

During Key Stage Two pupils will be taught:

• to use research and develop design criteria to inform the design of innovative, functional, appealing products that are fit for purpose, aimed at particular individuals or groups.

• to generate, develop, model and communicate their ideas through discussion, annotated sketches, cross-sectional and exploded diagrams, prototypes, pattern pieces and computer-aided design.

• to select from and use a wider range of tools and equipment to perform practical tasks accurately.

• to select from and use a wider range of materials and components, including construction materials, textiles and ingredients, according to their functional properties and aesthetic qualities.

• to investigate and analyse a range of existing products.

• evaluate their ideas and products against their own design criteria and consider the views of others to improve their work.

• to understand how key events and individuals in design and technology have helped shape the world.

• to apply their understanding of how to strengthen, stiffen and reinforce more complex structures.

• to understand and use mechanical systems in their products .

• to understand and use electrical systems in their products.

• to apply their understanding of computing to program, monitor and control their products.

Cooking and nutrition

As part of their work with food, pupils should be taught how to cook and apply the principles of nutrition and healthy eating. Instilling a love of cooking in pupils will also open a door to one of the great expressions of human creativity. Learning how to cook is a crucial life skill that enables pupils to feed themselves and others affordably and well, now and in later life.

During Key Stage One pupils will be taught:

• to use the basic principles of a healthy and varied diet to prepare dishes.

• to understand where food comes from.

During Key Stage two pupils be taught:

• to understand and apply the principles of a healthy and varied diet.

• to prepare and cook a variety of predominantly savoury dishes using a range of cooking techniques.

• to understand seasonality, and know where and how a variety of ingredients are grown, reared, caught and processed.