Subject Lead: Mrs Gulston
Design Technology (DT) at Denbigh is taught through designated DT weeks, which are undertaken termly. Staff teach children a range of skills that are progressive across the age range of the children.
In EYFS children are encouraged to explore a range of construction equipment, junk modelling, both indoors and outdoors, designing and building for a purpose, while also learning the vocabulary that is associated with this. In conjunction with our STEM learning, children are encourage to use scissors, tape and glue with increasing independence to think creatively, solving problems and evaluating their success, through first hand experiences.
In KS1 and KS2, staff allocate objectives across the year, using appropriate curriculum coverage based on need and key skills. The tasks are made to support the topic area e.g. a Tudor house, Egyptian headdress or Victorian bridges. This helps the children to develop a deeper understanding of their topic knowledge via the practical aspect of Design Technology.
At Denbigh we use a variety of teaching and learning styles in order to develop children’s knowledge, skills and understanding. We provide children with opportunities to experiment and explore a range of media and tools, in order to make discoveries for themselves. We provide guidance through specific teaching of a range of techniques and use tools, as is appropriate, to the age and stage of development of the children.
Say where some food comes from and give examples of food that is grown
Select from and use a range of tools and equipment to perform practical tasks e.g. cutting, shaping, joining and finishing
Cut food safely
Use a range of simple tools to cut, join and combine materials and components safely
Make a model stronger by altering shape and structure
Ask simple questions about existing products and those that he/she has made
Describe how something works
Talk with others about how he/she wants to construct a product
Make a product which moves using wheels and axles
Understand the need for a variety of food in a diet
Prepare a healthy food product
Design purposeful, functional, appealing products for himself/herself and other users based on design criteria
Evaluate a product against design criteria
Generate, develop, model and communicate his/her ideas through talking, drawing, templates, mock-ups and, where appropriate, information and communication technology
Choose appropriate tools, equipment, techniques and materials from a wide range
Safely measure, mark out, cut and shape materials and components using a range of tools
Think of ideas and plan what to do next
Measure materials to use in a model or structure
Evaluate and assess existing products and those that he/she has made using a design criteria
Write a set of simple design criteria
Explain what went well with own work
Evaluate an existing product suggesting improvements
Investigate different techniques for stiffening a variety of materials and explore different methods of enabling structures to remain stable
Join things (materials/ components) together in different ways
Explore and use mechanisms e.g. levers, sliders, wheels and axles, in his/her products
Use a variety of ingredients and techniques to prepare and combine ingredients safely
Evaluate a diet and say whether it is healthy and varied and suggest improvements
Create designs using annotated sketches, cross sectional diagrams and simple computer programmes
Show that own designs meet a range of requirements
Make a product which uses both electrical and mechanical components
Safely measure, mark out, cut, assemble and join with some accuracy
Work accurately to make cuts and holes
Choose suitable techniques to strengthen a product
Make suitable choices from a wider range of tools and unfamiliar materials and plan out the main stages of using them
Put together step-by-step plan which shows the order and also what equipment and tools he/she needs
Investigate and analyse existing products and those he/she has made, considering a wide range of factors
Make sure that a product looks attractive
Understand what makes a healthy balanced diet, and that different foods and drinks provide different substances the body needs to be healthy and active
Know what to do to be hygienic and safe, when preparing food
Understand seasonality and the advantages of eating seasonal and locally produced food
Explain the origin of a variety of ingredients
Read and follow recipes which involve several processes, skills and techniques
Evaluate own product, thinking of both appearance and the way it works
Use knowledge of existing products to design a functional and appealing product for a particular purpose and audience
Know how key events/ individuals’ designs have shaped the world
Create designs using exploded diagrams
Take account of the ideas of others when designing
Produce a plan and explain it to others
Continue to work on own product even though the original idea might not have worked
Consider how existing products and his/her own finished products might be improved and how well they meet the needs of the intended user
Produce sample parts of a design to evaluate and improve
Apply techniques he/she has learnt to strengthen structures and explore his/her own ideas
Use knowledge of transference of forces to choose appropriate mechanisms for a product (e.g. levers, winding mechanisms, pulleys and gears)
Think about what to do to present a product in an interesting way
Understand and use electrical systems in products
Understand how a variety of ingredients are grown, reared, caught and processed to make them safe and palatable/tasty to eat
Produce a food product with seasonal vegetables
Come up with a range of ideas after he/she has collected information
Create prototypes to show design ideas evaluating their strengths and weaknesses
Suggest some alternative plans and say what the good points and drawbacks are about each
Produce a detailed step-by-step plan
Make careful and precise measurements so that joins, holes and openings are in exactly the right place
Use a range of practical skills to create a product including cutting, drilling, screwing, filing and sanding
Make detailed evaluations about existing products and his/her own considering the views of others to improve his/her work
Explain how the final product will appeal to the audience
Evaluate appearance and function against original criteria
Refine and improve products
Build more complex 3D structures and apply his/her knowledge of strengthening techniques to make them stronger or more stable
Use a range of tools and equipment expertly
Understand how to use more complex mechanical and electrical systems
Generate, develop, model and communicate his/her ideas through discussion, annotated sketches, cross-sectional and exploded diagrams, prototypes, pattern pieces and computer-aided design
Use market research to inform plans
Follow and refine own plan if necessary
Justify why he/she selected specific materials
Work within a budget
Ensure own product meet all design criteria
Use his/her knowledge of famous designs to further explain the effectiveness of existing products and products he/she have made
Convincingly justify own plan to someone else
Consider culture and society in own designs
Test and evaluate a final product in detail
Think about how the final product could be sold
Apply his/her own understanding of computing to program, monitor and control his/her product
Use innovative combinations of electronics (or computing) and mechanisms in a design