SandownDesign Technology
Intent -
At Sandown Primary School our Design and Technology curriculum aims to inspire children through a broad range of practical experiences to create innovative designs which solve real and relevant problems within a variety of different contexts. The design process is fundamental and runs throughout our curriculum. This process encourages children to identify real and relevant problems, critically evaluate existing products and then take risks and innovate when designing and creating solutions to the problems. As part of the process, time is built in to reflect, evaluate and improve on prototypes using design criteria throughout to support this process.
Implementation –
To ensure high standards of teaching and learning in design and technology, we implement a curriculum that is progressive throughout the whole school. At Sandown Primary School we ensure that design and technology is taught with a clear structure, each year group will undertake construction topic, a textile topic and a food/drink topic. This is clearly set out in our progression document, which is based upon the National Curriculum.
Teachers use these documents to plan exciting and engaging lessons that link to their classes’ topics, giving our children the opportunity to experience being progressive and innovative designers, solving real world problems.
Impact –
By the time children leave Sandown Primary School they will:
- Know the different factors that contribute to complex design decisions.
- Have had the opportunity to work with a range of materials to create usable products.
- Be able to follow a design process including evaluating existing products, problem solving, using equipment, and tools and manufacturing methods and evaluating their own products.
- Achieve age related expectations in Design Technology.
- Have skills they can use beyond school and out in the real world.
What does D.T. look like in the Early Years?
In the EYFS curriculum, there are two Early Learning Goal statements that support the teaching and learning of design technology.
ELG 16 Exploring and Using media and materials: children sing songs, make music and dance, experiment with ways of changing them. They safely use and explore a variety of materials, tools and techniques, experimenting with colour, design, texture, form and function.
ELG 17 Being Imaginative: Children use what they have learnt about media and materials in original ways, thinking about uses and purposes. They represent their own ideas, thoughts and feelings through design and technology, art, music, dance, role play and stories.
Children use their child-initiated or ‘challenge time’ daily to explore a rich environment full of resources to fully engage in these Early Learning Goals. Teacher directed or teacher-initiated times can also provide children with the time to learn new skills in design technology with adult support. Topic work and child-centred interests can be explored termly, with the opportunity to enhance the environment to suit particular skills-based teaching.
Continuous provision for DT includes-
· Junk modelling
· Cutting and sticking
· Construction- large and small
· Paper crafts
· Problem solving
· Creating designs before model making
· De-constructed role-play (e.g. build your own environment using materials)
· Fine motor tools- tweezers, scissors, glue, tape, brushes
‘Tapestry’ is used to allow children time to reflect on their practice and make improvements, and to share design technology projects from home.
