Design Technology

Purpose of study

Design and Technology (DT) is about providing children with the opportunity to use creativity and imagination to design and make products that solve real and relevant problems, considering their own and others’ needs.
High quality D&T helps children to become creative problem solvers, both as individuals and as part of a team
DT should assist children in developing a greater awareness and understanding of how everyday products are designed and made

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Aims

When children leave Norton St Nicholas they will have:

developed the creative, technical and practical expertise needed to perform everyday tasks confidently and be able to participate successfully in an increasingly technological world
built and applied a repertoire of knowledge, understanding and skills in order to design and make high-quality prototypes and products for a wide range of users
critiqued, evaluated and tested their ideas and products and the work of others
understood and applied the principles of nutrition, learnt how to use a range of kitchen tools safely and used ingredients to make dishes fulfilling a design criteria

All DT work should follow the same processes of designing and making.

In Key Stage 1 this looks like this:

Design

design purposeful, functional, appealing products for themselves and other users based on design criteria
generate, develop, model and communicate their ideas through talking, drawing, templates, mock-ups and, where appropriate, information and communication technology

Make

select from and use a range of tools and equipment to perform practical tasks [for example, cutting, shaping, joining and finishing]
select from and use a wide range of materials and components, including construction materials, textiles and ingredients, according to their characteristics

Evaluate

In Key Stage 2 this looks like:

Design

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

Make

select from and use a wider range of tools and equipment to perform practical tasks [for example, cutting, shaping, joining and finishing], accurately
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

Evaluate

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

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The curriculum

Across all year groups children will desin and make ‘Something for Somebody for Some Purpose’. At Norton St Nicholas School we follow the ‘Design, Make, Evaluate’ approach to the teaching of DT, as outlined in the National Curriculum Programmes of Study document.
The technical skills that we teach encompass the following areas: Construction, Mechanisms, Textiles and Food and Nutrition.
We feel that the teaching of Food and Nutrition is a great importance and holds great relevance in current times. For this reason, children will study a Food and Nutrition unit every year.
Additionally, either a Construction unit, Mechanisms or Textiles unit be taught. This ensures that the technical skills are covered with greater depth, and that – by the end of each key stage – children will have reached the expectations of the National Curriculum. If teachers wish to complete extra units to develop skills in an area that has not been assigned to their year group, they are encouraged to do so following discussions with the subject leader.

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