Our Design & Technology subject lead is Miss Brown
At Manor Court Community Primary School, we understand that the knowledge and skills of design and technology are, and will continue to be, an essential part of our children’s lives. A high-quality DT education should be inspiring, rigorous and practical and promote creativity and imagination. It should equip pupils with the knowledge and skills needed to design and make products that solve real and relevant problems within a variety of contexts, considers their own and others’ needs, wants and values and draws on a range of disciplines such as mathematics, science, engineering, computing and art. Through the study and evaluation of past and present design and technology, pupils will develop a critical understanding of its impact on daily life and the wider world. High-quality DT education makes an essential contribution to the creativity, culture, wealth and well-being of the nation.
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.
Design and technology learning begins in the Early Years through the following areas: personal, social and emotional development, physical development, understanding the world and expressive art and design. The children begin by selecting and using activities and resources to achieve a goal and exploring different tools, equipment and materials to express their ideas.
As the children progress into the Foundation Stage their DT learning continues through their personal development and expressive arts and design. They develop fluency and control in their movements including their fine motor skills which enables them to use a range of tools such as scissors, paintbrushes and cutlery more competently, safely and confidently. They explore, create and express their ideas using a variety of materials, tools and techniques whilst experimenting with colour, design, texture, form and functions. The children begin to embark on the process of DT by revisiting and refining their work, sharing their creations and explaining the processes they have used
By the end of each key stage, pupils are expected to know, apply and understand the matters, skills and processes specified in the relevant programme of study. Through a variety of creative and practical activities, pupils are taught the knowledge, understanding and skills needed to engage in an iterative process of designing and making. They work in a range of relevant contexts such as the home, school, industry and the wider environment.
Each year group completes one DT project a term, totalling three each year. Each project covers one of the three strands of DT: textiles, structures, mechanisms and electrical systems or cooking and nutrition. DT projects are planned according to the six principles of DT: user, purpose, innovation, authenticity, functionality, and design decisions, to ensure quality, meaning and purpose. Teaching and learning sequences for DT follow similar sequences of design research, understanding and developing criteria, planning products, developing skills and creating prototypes, making products and a final evaluation. This ensures consistency within our DT provision and enables pupils to progressively develop competency and confidence in the expected knowledge and skills.
DT at Manor Court Community Primary is monitored and evidenced through sequential planning, learning recorded in DT workbooks such as planning documents and written evaluations and photographs of skill application and final products. The statements from the National Curriculum and Early Learning Goals form the success criteria for which the children can be assessed against at the end of the relevant stages. The school’s knowledge and skills progression for DT provides a further breakdown of what the children are expected to achieve at the end of each year group. The children’s progress in DT is reported to parents and carers in their annual school reports.
Through careful monitoring of progress made throughout lessons and the outcomes of work produced, additional support is offered to those who are finding a particular DT concept or skill challenging. This can take place when appropriate, whether that is within the lesson or separately.
Our aim is for all children at Manor Court Community Primary to become creative and competent problem solvers that can understand, use and respond to the wealth of design and technology that constitutes and changes their lives and the wider world. Providing our children with purposeful learning experiences that encourage independence and collaboration alongside the practical nature of DT, encourages them to take responsibility for their own learning and enables them to experience their own progress and achievements. As in all subjects, teachers differentiate lessons as necessary to meet the needs and skill level of all children in their class. The progression of knowledge and skills taught at each year group also ensures that this is developed over time and moves the children’s learning with the pace and level of challenge that is appropriate for them.