Little Sutton’s high-quality design and technology curriculum engages, inspires and challenges pupils, equipping them with the knowledge and skills to design, make and evaluate a range of products, for a range of purposes. Design and technology is an inspiring, rigorous and practical subject. Using creativity and imagination, pupils design and make products that solve real and relevant problems within a variety of contexts, considering their own and others’ needs, wants and values. They acquire a broad range of subject knowledge and draw on disciplines such as mathematics, science, engineering, computing and art. Pupils learn how to take risks, becoming resourceful, innovative, enterprising and capable citizens. Through the evaluation of past and present design and technology, they develop a critical understanding of its impact on daily life and the wider world. High-quality design and technology education makes an essential contribution to the creativity, culture, wealth and well-being of the nation.

At Little Sutton Design Technology is a subject that gives our children the freedom to express themselves in a way that gives them enjoyment and personal fulfilment. Children acquire the skills and knowledge of design technology in a systematic way so that each child is able to produce results that demonstrate the knowledge and skills they have developed. The practical experiences excite children and give them confidence in their own designs and creations.

The aims of our curriculum are taken from the National Curriculum to ensure that all pupils develop the creative, technical and practical expertise needed to perform everyday tasks confidently and to participate successfully in an increasingly technological world. They are able to 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. They are also able to critique, evaluate and test their ideas and products and the work of others. They understand and apply the principles of nutrition and learn how to cook.

A long term plan has been developed for each year group where activities, and clear learning outcomes have been identified. This provides a sound basis from which to develop our scheme of work through individual unit plans. These plans provide content ideas and a specific learning focus for each activity and Year Group. Our design technology curriculum is sequenced so that there is progression and continuity throughout the years. Curriculum plans have been carefully developed to build on prior learning. Staff teach sequenced design technology skills, knowledge and vocabulary, with the aim of embedding these into the pupils’ long term memory so Design and Technology that they can be built upon in subsequent years. Design technology is taught as a discrete subject, but some activities are linked to other subjects, to enable children to understand the links with other topics.

Our children experience educational visits in design technology to enhance the curriculum. Examples of educational visits include Art Galleries, Sutton Park and the Jewellery Quarter. Design technology professionals are invited into school to work with the pupils. Having specialists into school to work with pupils greatly enhances the curriculum. Opportunities are provided for our gifted and talented pupils to enhance their skills. Links with a range of providers, including universities, are utilised to provide additional opportunities for our pupils.

Staff continually monitor pupils’ progress throughout design technology lessons and units, building on and extending prior learning. In Reception, staff undertake observations throughout the year and these are used to record attainment towards the EYFS goals. In KS1 and KS2, a tracking system is used by staff to assess each child’s progress with the design technology programme of learning, identifying whether they are working towards expected, at expected or working at greater depth within that year group. At the end of each school year, a design technology report is given as part of the school’s policy on reporting to parents, which describes their child’s progress in meeting the design technology objectives for that year group.

By the end of Year 2, we aim for the pupils:

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

• select from and use a wide range of materials and components, including construction materials, textiles and ingredients, according to their characteristics

Evaluate

• explore and evaluate a range of existing products

• evaluate their ideas and products against design criteria

Technical knowledge

• build structures, exploring how they can be made stronger, stiffer and more stable

• explore and use mechanisms in their products.

Cooking and Nutrition

• use the basic principles of a healthy and varied diet to prepare dishes

• understand where food comes from.

By the end of Year 6, we aim for the pupils to:

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 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

Technical knowledge

• apply their understanding of how to strengthen, stiffen and reinforce more complex structures

• understand and use mechanical systems in their products

• understand and use electrical systems in their products

• apply their understanding of computing to program, monitor and control their products.

Cooking and Nutrition

• understand and apply the principles of a healthy and varied diet

• prepare and cook a variety of predominantly savoury dishes using a range of cooking techniques

• understand seasonality and know where and how a variety of ingredients are grown, reared, caught and processed.