Design Technology

Intent

‘Design is about demonstrating how beautiful something can be. It has a very profound quality. Design is a way of changing life and influencing the future.’

Sir Ernest Hall Design and Technology at Bader Primary School aims to prepare children to deal with tomorrow’s rapidly changing world. We aspire to achieve this by encouraging children to become creative, determined problem solvers who are able to identify needs and opportunities and respond to them by developing a range of innovative ideas. Through the study of an inclusive, progressive and ambitious curriculum in Design and Technology, children will combine practical skills with an understanding of aesthetic, social and environmental issues and use these to respectfully reflect on and evaluate past and present ideas, their uses and impacts.

Implementation

Design and Technology is a progressive curriculum taught in half-termly blocks focusing on knowledge and skills stated in the National Curriculum.

Early Years Foundation Stage

Design and Technology in the Early Years is implemented in the continuous provision areas where pupils explore and use a variety of media and materials through a combination of child initiated and adult directed activities. They have the opportunity to learn to:

• Use different media and materials to express their own ideas
• Use what they have learnt about media and materials in original ways, thinking about form, function and purpose
• Make plans and construct with a purpose in mind using a variety of resources
• Develop skills to use simple tools and techniques appropriately, effectively and safely
• Select appropriate resources for a product and adapt their work where necessary
• Cook and prepare food adhering to good health and hygiene routines

Key Stage 1 & 2
In Key Stage 1 and 2, each Design and Technology topic will follow the same sequence with some processes repeating across the topic. The four elements are:

• Research
• Design
• Make
• Evaluate

Pupils will be given a project to complete with an intended user and purpose in mind. The children are taught the knowledge, understanding and skills needed to engage in an iterative process of designing and making. Wherever possible, DT work is topic based and linked to the History and Geography topics. The children will explore overarching themes including mechanical and electrical systems, textiles, structures, and food 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. 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 and is therefore covered once in every year group. Within Key Stage 2, key events and individuals that have influenced the world of Design Technology are teaching focuses that are to be covered. The use of computer programmes and applications are also a key focus to be utilised by children in their design of their products.

Impact

Design and Technology at Bader Primary prepares children to deal with tomorrow’s rapidly changing world. Design and Technology encourages children to become creative, determined problem solvers and enables them to identify needs and opportunities and respond to them by developing a range of innovative ideas. Through the study of Design and Technology, children will combine practical skills with an understanding of aesthetic, social and environmental issues, as well as functions and industry. This allows them to reflect on and evaluate past and present ideas, their uses and impacts.

We measure the impact of our curriculum through the following methods:

• Summative assessment of pupil’s final piece and their evaluations.
• Images and videos of the children’s practical learning.
• Discussions with pupils about their learning.