DT
Intent:
An engaging Design and Technology (DT) provision will provide all our children with purposeful opportunities to design and make successful products which solve contextual problems whilst considering their own and other’s ideas. When designing products, our children will become confident in exploring 3 critical areas; design, purpose and evaluation. Here at Cupernham Infant School, we aim to inspire a future generation of young entrepreneur’s by providing all children with an exciting, inspiring and creative curriculum which promotes an infectious love for Design and Technology! We value and ensure that all children are provided with time to learn key progressive skills which will allow them to ‘take risks, become resourceful, innovative, enterprising and capable citizens.’
At Cupernham Infant School DT is taught directly through structured topic based lessons and through opportunities within daily school life. We believe that the heart of DT lies with the children’s interests and we ensure that our curriculum reflects time for exploration; allowing all children to understand and explore the processes of how things work. In KS1 our curriculum follows these units; Food Technology, materials, textiles, construction and mechanics. Within the Early Years curriculum, our children are taught to safely use and explore a variety of materials, tools and techniques. They think about the uses and purposes, and explore their own feelings when designing and making.
Our DT learning enables children to be confident collaborators like ‘Bertie the Bee’ and think critically like ‘Coby the Caterpillar- the curious thinker’. We remind our children that everything around us has been made by someone, it has been carefully planned, adapted and evaluated. We inspire our children to use their imagination and problem solving skills to work both collaboratively and independently on a range of practical activities to design and make creative products.
By the time our children leave us, we want them to feel equipped with the skills and confidence to make and design a range of purposeful and functional products for an audience, considering their own and other’s needs.
Aims:
The National Curriculum for Design and Technology aims 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.”
At Cupernham Infant School our aims for every child are:
- To develop an enthusiasm and love for Design and Technology (DT).
- To ensure learning is purposeful, relatable and engaging to each child.
- Provide opportunities to generate, develop and communicate their ideas through talking, drawing and making.
- To enable opportunities to explore a range of different tools and equipment to perform practical tasks i.e., cutting, shaping, joining and finishing.
- To gain an understanding of health and safety issues related to the task at hand.
Implementation:
Our Design and Technology curriculum is carefully planned to ensure progression and skills across the year group. Our lessons allow our children to explore the natural world around them and question how things work. Across the whole school, we encourage all children to be ‘independent researchers- like Lola the Ladybird’ and to take risks when designing and evaluating a product.
Foundation Stage – our children are introduced to Design and Technology through the Natural World and continuous/enhanced provision. Throughout the year, we develop children’s skills, knowledge and understanding of the world around them by providing them with opportunities to make and design products.
Whole school – we develop children’s understanding of the importance of a nutritious and healthy lifestyle. Each year we build on skills learnt to show all the children how cooking is a crucial life skill. The children will learn about where food comes from, and how to prepare and combine ingredients, and opportunities to taste and evaluate the food they make. For example, in EYFS we provide play opportunities to learn basic health and safety skills like handwashing and knife safety (using playdough cutters). These key skills are built upon further in Key Stage One when they make and design sandwiches and soup.
Key Stage One – all children continue their Design and Technology journeys through our creative curriculum which follows specific topics, as well as allowing children to follow their independent learning journeys when opportunities arise.
- Year One – the children design and create structures through exploring different materials and questioning how they can be made stronger, stiffer and more stable.
- Year Two, the children explore Axels and wheels to make a moving vehicle for their fairy-tale topic. They explore and discuss real life products, which helps our children to make connections within their learning like ‘Sidney the Spider- The Link Maker’.
We also run a weekly Gardening club and Lego club where children are provided with meaningful opportunities to make, design and evaluate products.
Impact:
At Cupernham Infant School, we care about the whole child. Through our creative curriculum we encourage all children to become independent and resilient learners, who appreciate Design and Technology. Throughout our children’s time with us, we want them to ask questions around how things work and take risks when designing and creating functional everyday objects. Our progressive curriculum allows our children to be taught key skills throughout EYFS/KS1 with plenty of time provided for refining and practising before moving on to the next.
We assess our children’s skills and progression in a variety of ways:
- Sketchbook looks in KS1
- Exploring the continuous and enhanced provision within Early Years
- Pupil conferencing which allows us to tailor our curriculum to our children’s current interests and allow for meaningful learning opportunities.
- Photographing during monitoring lessons
- Moderation within staff meetings where we consider children’s sketchbooks and professional talk discussions to understand their children’s work and identify next steps/key skills.
By the end of their time with us, we want our children to have learned, improved and embedded a whole range of Design and Technology skills which they will hopefully keep with them throughout life!
DT Subject Overview:
DT Subject Progression: