Design and Technology Curriculum

Intent

Our design and technology curriculum is designed to help children “believe and achieve.” We want to give children the skills and abilities to engage positively with the design and make world. We want pupils to learn how new technologies and innovations are developed and how technology has advanced and progressed the product markets. Through the linking of sustainable development goals to design technology we enable pupils to be aware of new technologies that in the future will make the world a more equitable place.  Through design and technology we will encourage children to be innovative and to make creative use of a variety of resources to design, plan and make authentic products.  Throughout the design technology curriculum pupils will be exposed to a number of different design briefs with the challenge of making design decisions based on set users, purposes and functionalities. We want children to learn to work independently as well as part of a team to come up with a solution and to identify needs and opportunities.  Our design and technology curriculum will also enable children to learn to evaluate and think critically whilst at the same time developing a sense of aesthetics.

Our connected curriculum will help children to see connections between design and technology and other subjects so that they can use their knowledge to solve problems and seek solutions in the world.

Implementation

Design technology will be taught in a two week block each term to enable children to have the time and the space to develop, recall and retain their skills. Each unit will follow the design cycle of plan, do, review and skills will be explicitly taught giving children a real life problem or context. Pupils will study a range of designers to reflect local, national and international communities as well as from a range of design based vocations to support them in developing high aspirations and developing their.  cultural capital.  

Within each unit pupils will develop the skill of market research, investigating and evaluating existing products whilst progressing their ability to evaluate, critique and comment on product design.  Each unit of work will focus on the process of design, defining a strategy for why and how before executing a solution. 

Pupils will complete focused tasks to acquire, improve and deepen their knowledge and understanding of materials and components, structures, mechanisms and control systems, food and textiles. 

Each unit will have “sticky knowledge “ which will be shared with pupils in their books so that they can use them as a point of reference.  Books will be subject specific and will continue with children each year.

Impact

Within design technology, Crook Primary aims to stimulate the imagination and creativity of pupils as well as to encourage them to reflect on the advancements in product design and technologies around the world. Our design technology curriculum is of high quality, encouraging pupil problem solving and critical thinking. Progression of skills and understanding is clearly planned for. Discrete teaching of specific design technology terminology is planned using the progression of skills map and incorporated into units of work to ensure that all pupils are able to articulate well-developed responses to design briefs.

Children will gain knowledge and understanding of design technology in the real world as well as develop transferable practical skills which they will be able to use in their own lives. Through the study of design technology, children will develop learning behaviours such as creative problem solving, critical thought, teamwork and independence. Children will be able to think logically and in sequence to follow a design process and make justified, reasoned decisions based on research and data.

The impact of our design technology curriculum is measured through the following methods:

• Ongoing formative assessment in which pupils are guided to meaningfully reflect about their own and others’ development of ideas, their skills and deepen their understanding.
• Summative assessment of pupil knowledge, understanding and evaluations of skills, focusing on identifying how pupils can further develop their ideas, refine their skills and deepen their understanding. Specifically:
• Their awareness of contexts, users and purposes 
• The ability to carry out market research and evaluate existing products 
• Their ability to generate, develop, model and communicate ideas 
• How pupils apply their skills and techniques to planning & making 
• Their evaluation of their own ideas and products 
• Discussions with pupils about their learning and enjoyment of their lessons (pupil voice).
• Moderation staff meetings where pupil’s books are scrutinised in order to encourage meaningful and reflective dialogue between teaching staff, ensuring progression of skills, themes and knowledge.
• Assessment of pupils’ progression of skills throughout a unit of work which teaching staff use to inform further planning and delivery of art and design

At the end of each year, children will be assessed against age related expectations associated with the learner behaviours of an expected pupil within design technology.

Additional Information