Design and Technology
Our Vision for Design and Technology (DT)
If you want to build a ship, don't drum up people to collect wood and don't assign them tasks and work, but rather teach them to long for the endless immensity of the sea.
At St. Peter’s Church of England Junior School, we strive to equip our children with a breadth of skills, knowledge and values that will enable them to ‘learn for life’. We believe in providing a design and technology curriculum that offers an inspiring, stimulating and challenging experience, supporting all children to thrive and adapt in an ever changing world.
As a school in the heart of Farnborough, the hub of aviation, we pride ourselves in the STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths) activities readily available to our children. We aim to foster opportunities for our children to meet and engage with designers and technology from the real world, supported by STEM activities led throughout the school year.
Life in all Fullness through Design and Technology
As we strive to enable ‘life in all its fullness’ for all members of our local and global community, we value design and technology as an ‘inspiring, rigorous and practical subject’ (national curriculum) that supports and enhances lifelong learning.
As they design, make and evaluate prototypes and products for a wide range of users, we believe that design and technology equips our children to ‘learn for life’ by:
- Sparking creativity, innovation and imagination
- Developing consideration of needs, wants and values
- Promoting skills of collaboration, problem-solving and decision making
- Encouraging resourcefulness, risk taking, reflection and resilience
- Responding to real life contexts and relevant issues, both locally and globally
- Instilling a love of cooking and an understanding of healthy eating
"High-quality design and technology education makes an essential contribution to the
creativity, culture, wealth and well-being of the nation"
(National Curriculum)
Our aims in design and technology
As stated in the National Curriculum for design and technology, we aim for all of our pupils to be able to
- develop the creative, technical and practical expertise needed to perform everyday tasks confidently and to participate successfully in an increasingly technological world
- build and apply a repertoire of knowledge, understanding and skills in order to design and make high-quality prototypes and products for a wide range of users
- critique, evaluate and test their ideas and products and the work of others
- understand and apply the principles of nutrition and learn how to cook.
Skills and Values
We strive to embed our values in all areas of school life, promoting them as a guide for flourishing in life and learning.
As engineers, chefs and designers we:
|
Celebration |
CELEBRATE the work of great designers, engineers and chefs, taking inspiration from their work. |
|
Perseverance |
Understand how PERSEVERANCE is the foundation for all new ideas, and when set-backs happen to know that new ideas will be formed from these and to continue to keep designing. |
|
Curiosity |
When understanding and evaluating a product to have a CURIOSITY and to find out about local and global needs, including sustainability and good health and how these relate to designers, chefs and engineers. |
|
Honesty |
Evaluate work and others’ ideas with HONESTY, being respectful when considering existing products and listening to other viewpoints to improve our work. |
|
Kindness |
Show KINDNESS when working together, care to share the range of tools, equipment and materials available and supporting others when making/cooking/constructing.
|
Design & Technology Learning Journey
There are three core activities children engage with in design and technology:
- Activities which involve investigating and evaluating existing products
- Focused tasks in which children develop particular aspects of knowledge and skills
- Designing and making activities in which children design and make 'something' for 'somebody' for 'some purpose'
|
|
Autumn |
Spring |
Summer |
|
3 |
Cooking and Nutrition: Healthy and varied diet
Bread: Research, make and evaluate two recipes for bread (product) for school children (user) to enjoy for a lunchtime picnic/school trip. Following the journey from field to fork of wheat.
|
Mechanical Systems: Levers and Linkages
Design, make and evaluate a moving picture story book (product) for a museum (user) to tell the story of key events in Roman history (purpose). |
Textiles: 2-D shape to 3-D product
Design, make and evaluate a money/seed container (product) for a traveller (user) to take on holiday to France (purpose).
|
|
4 |
Cooking and Nutrition: Healthy and varied diet
Pasty : Research, make and evaluate (product) for an explorer (user) to use on their exploration of Antarctica. (purpose). Following the journey from field to fork of potatoes.
|
New structures: 101 ways to use Plastic bottles
Design, make and evaluate the repurposing of plastic bottles (product) to be used to make a new product(user) that can be used around the home/office/garden. (purpose).
|
Electrical Systems: Simple Circuits and switches
Design, make and evaluate a torch (product) for an a WW2 family (user) to use as a hidden item in their homes in the blackout. (purpose).
|
|
5 |
Electrical Systems: Complex switches and circuits
Mars Rover: Design, make and evaluate a motorised framework for a Mars rover (product) that a scientist (user) can use to explore (purpose). the surface of mars.
|
Mechanical Systems: Flight-forces
Design, make and evaluate upcycled parachutes (product) for children in WW2 (user) to understand flight and methods of escape.(purpose).
|
Cooking and Nutrition: Culture and seasonality
Houmous & Flatbread: Research, make and evaluate houmous (product) authentic to a family in the Middle East (user) to be eaten at a shared lunch with the community of meet and eat. (purpose). Following foods from around the world
|
|
6 |
Structures: Frames
Cam Toy: Design, make and evaluate a Maya cam toy (product) for Year 3 (user) to produce use and be displayed in the parent museum (purpose).
|
Textiles: Combining different fabric shapes
Hybrid Puppets: Design, make and evaluate an animal puppet with a moving mouth (product) for a pupil (user) to perform a puppet show (purpose).
|
Cooking and Nutrition: Culture and seasonality
Pizza/Moussaka: Research, make and evaluate (product) adapt the recipe for because of research done by parents (user) for a meal (purpose). Following the journey of milk from field to fork
|
Subject Leader: Mrs Wrighton