Intent – what does the Design and Technology curriculum intend to do?
At Ewyas Harold we believe that design technology prepares children to take part in the development of tomorrow’s rapidly changing world. Creative thinking encourages children to make positive changes to their quality of life. The subject encourages children to become autonomous and creative problem-solvers, both as individuals and as part of a team. It enables them to identify needs and opportunities and to respond by developing ideas and making products and systems.
- To develop imaginative thinking in children and to enable them to talk about what they like and dislike when designing and making;
- To enable children to talk about how things work, and to draw and model their ideas;
- To encourage children to select appropriate tools and techniques for making a product, whilst following safe procedures;
- Our children will be taught Design and Technology in a way that ensures
- progression of skills, and follows a sequence to build on previous learning.
- To explore attitudes towards the made world and how we live and work within it;
- To develop an understanding of technological processes, products, and their manufacture, and their contribution to our society and the pupils’ daily lives.
- To foster enjoyment, satisfaction and purpose in designing and making;
- To enable pupils to use Design and Technology across a range of subjects to enhance creativity and problem solving.
Implementation of Design and Technology Policy
At Ewyas Harold through the study of design and technology children combine practical skills with an understanding of aesthetic, social and environmental issues. This allows them to reflect on and evaluate present and past design and technology, its uses and its impacts. Design and technology helps all children to become discriminating and informed consumers and potential innovators.
- We follow the Kapow scheme for D&T to create a well sequenced and progressive curriculum map, containing the key concepts and skills children need to be fluent in, in order to work and think like professional design technologists.
- Through our Design and Technology scheme, the progression of skills covers all aspects of the Design and Technology curriculum, and provides both support and challenge for learners.
- All classes will have a scheduled Design and Technology lesson fortnightly alongside other curriculum subjects.
- We follow a two yearly cycle to cater for mixed age classes – see below
Following the National curriculum, we plan a progression of the key concepts in D.T which follows four strands:
- Design
- Make
- Evaluate
- Technical knowledge
We have six key areas that pupils revisit throughout their time in primary school:
- Cooking and nutrition Mechanisms/ Mechanical systems
- Structures
- Textiles
- Electrical systems (KS2 only)
- Digital world (KS2 only)
Each of our key areas follows the design process (design, make and evaluate) and has a particular theme and focus from the technical knowledge or cooking and nutrition section of the curriculum. These key areas revisited with increasing complexity, allowing pupils to revisit and build on their previous learning.
Teachers encourage children to use their knowledge and understanding when developing ideas, planning and making products, and when evaluating them.
At Ewyas Harold we use a variety of teaching and learning styles in design technology lessons which incorporate a range of teaching strategies from independent tasks, paired and group work including practical hands-on, computer-based and inventive tasks. This variety means that lessons are engaging and appeal to those with a variety of learning styles, whilst giving children opportunity to both work on their own and to collaborate with others. Children are encouraged to listen to the ideas of others, and treat them with respect, to critically evaluate existing products, both their own work and those of others.
Knowledge organisers for each unit support pupils in building a foundation of factual knowledge by encouraging recall of key facts and vocabulary, which are revisited in each lesson and feature on displays.
Impact of D&T policy
We monitor the impact of our scheme through both formative and summative assessment opportunities. Within each lesson teachers assess pupils against the learning objectives, and record this in a feedback and assessment journal. Assessment is carried out by looking at pupils’ work, observing how children perform in lessons, and talking to them about what they know. This knowledge informs the longer term assessment of the pupils’ attainment and progress in D&T.
Our aim is that pupils should leave Ewyas Harold equipped with a range of skills to enable them to succeed in their secondary education and be innovative and resourceful members of society.
The impact of our Design and Technology scheme of work is that children will:
➔ Understand the functional and aesthetic properties of a range of materials and resources.
➔ Understand how to use and combine tools to carry out different processes for shaping, decorating, and manufacturing products.
➔ Build and apply a repertoire of skills, knowledge and understanding to produce high quality, innovative outcomes, including models, prototypes, CAD, and products to fulfil the needs of users, clients, and scenarios.
➔ Understand and apply the principles of healthy eating, diets, and recipes, including key processes, food groups and cooking equipment.
➔ Have an appreciation for key individuals, inventions, and events in history and of today that impact our world.
➔ Recognise where our decisions can impact the wider world in terms of community, social and environmental issues.
➔ Self-evaluate and reflect on learning at different stages and identify areas to improve.
➔ Meet the end of key stage expectations outlined in the National curriculum for Design and technology.
Knowledge and Understanding
At Ewyas Harold all children are encouraged to:
- Generate ideas through discussion and experimentation
- Extend knowledge and understanding of a wide range of materials, including construction kits, textiles, food, wood, plastic, metals and reclaimed/junk materials.
- Work within groups and as individuals.
- Make use of drawings and models to communicate their ideas.
- Evaluate their work and identify strengths and weaknesses in a positive way.
- Experiment with simple components, mechanisms and structures.
- Learn about health and safety aspects when working with a variety of materials and tools.
- Consider risk to themselves and to others and build up a knowledge and understanding of the dangers inherent in certain products and tools.
- Experience design technology through off-site visits, where practicable, in order to see technology used in a real environment
Planning
At Ewyas Harold planning is the responsibility of the class teacher. The curriculum map identifies the progression and sequence of key concepts in design technology. It is the class teachers responsibility to use the curriculum map to plan well sequenced lessons.In planning, the delivery of the curriculum will be differentiated to allow for children of all abilities. Within the Kapow scheme , each unit of lessons includes multiple teacher videos to develop subject knowledge and support ongoing CPD.
EYFS and Key Stage 1
At Ewyas Harold during key stage 1 the children learn how to think imaginatively and talk about what they like and dislike when designing and making. They build on their early childhood experiences of investigating objects around them. They explore how familiar things work and talk about, draw and model their ideas. They learn how to design and make safely and could start to use ICT as part of their designing and making.
Key Stage 2
At Ewyas Harold during key stage 2 children work on their own and as part of a team on a range of designing and making activities. They think about what products are used for and the needs of the people who use them. They plan what has to be done and identify what works well and what could be improved in their own and other people’s designs. They draw on knowledge and understanding from other areas of the curriculum and use computers in a range of ways.
In EYFS, Key Stage 1 and Key Stage 2 children will:
- Develop knowledge, skills and understanding
- Use developing, planning and communicating ideas
- Gain a knowledge and understanding of materials and components
- Carry out focused practical tasks that develop a range of techniques, skills, processes and knowledge
- Design and make assignments using a range of materials, including electrical and mechanical components, food, mouldable materials, stiff and flexible sheet materials, and textiles
- Investigate and evaluate a range of familiar products, thinking about how they work, how they are used and the views of the people who use them
- Allow constructive conversation and language interaction between
The Design and Technology Leader will:
- Monitor design and technology within the school e.g. through curriculum walks
- Keep up to date with new developments and inform staff
- Encourage other members of staff in their design and technology teaching and give support where appropriate
- Ensure that design and technology resources are available and appropriate to the needs of the staff
- Ensure that design and technology maintains a strong profile within the school, through displays etc
- Keep a portfolio for design and technology that will include photographs of children at work, curriculum walk reports, examples of planning and examples of children’ work
- Audit resources regularly and take overall responsibility for equipment and resources
Health and Safety
At Ewyas Harold children will be given suitable instruction on the operation of all equipment before being allowed to work with it.
Children should be strictly supervised in their use of equipment at all times.
Children should be taught to respect the equipment they are using and to keep it stored safely while not in use.
Children should be taught to recognise and consider hazards and risks and to take action to control these risks, having followed simple instructions.
Food Hygiene
Children and staff will take care to undertake appropriate hand washing and other hygiene related activities prior to preparing food.Children and staff working with food must wear aprons designated for cooking.All jewellery should be removed, and hair tied back.
Glue Guns
At Ewyas Harold low temperature glue guns should only be used by an adult in key stage one and EYFS, unless there is one-to-one supervision for a child. Key stage two children should use low temperature glue guns under supervision in a designated work area, wearing safety goggles.
Craft Knives
At Ewyas Harold craft knives, quick cutters and rotary cutters should only be used by an adult/teacher in key stage one and the EYFS. Key stage two children may use cutting equipment under supervision, using a cutting mat and wearing safety goggles.
Sawing
At Ewyas Harold bench hooks and clamps must be used when sawing any material. Safety goggles must be worn, and any loose items of clothing/hair must be tucked in.
Equal Opportunities
At Ewyas Harold all children, regardless of gender, race or learning needs will be given equal access to the design and technology curriculum.
The design and technology curriculum will be differentiated according to the needs of the children. If a child needs specialist equipment to access the curriculum, the school will source the appropriate equipment
If a child has an EHCP plan and is not able to access the curriculum at the same level as his/her peers, then provision will be made for the child to access the curriculum at their own level. If a child is identified as being more able , in this curriculum area, they will be challenged in their learning.
Monitoring and review:
At Ewyas Harold the monitoring of the standards of children’s work and of the quality of teaching in design and technology is the responsibility of the design and technology subject leader. The design and technology subject leader provides the SLT with information through reviewing planning and topic coverage termly and reviewing the progress towards the targets in the school improvement plan twice a year. Samples of work are photographed or collected to build a portfolio of work in design and technology. Disability Equality Impact Assessment
This policy has been written with reference to and in consideration of the school’s Disability Equality Scheme. Assessment will include consideration of issues identified by the involvement of disabled children, staff and parents and any information the school holds on disabled children, staff and parents.
Two year planning cycle for mixed age classes:
Overview of key areas:
