Design & Technology
“Design and Technology should be the subject where mathematical brainboxes and science whizzkids turn their bright ideas into useful products”
-James Dyson-
Intent
Design and Technology is an inspiring, rigorous and practical subject that prepares children to deal with tomorrow’s rapidly changing world. Design and Technology encourages children to learn to think, communicate and intervene creatively to solve problems both as individuals and as members of a team. It requires children to be active learners with the confidence and the resilience to persist with a project when challenges occur.
At The Highway, the Design and Technology curriculum combines skills, knowledge, concepts and values to enable children to tackle real problems. It can improve critical analysis, problem solving, and practical capability and evaluation skills. We aim to, wherever possible, link work to other subject areas such as mathematics, science, computing and art thereby enabling children to notice connections and patterns in their learning.
Through Design Technology, children are encouraged to become innovators and risk-takers. High-quality Design and Technology education makes an essential contribution to the creativity, culture, wealth and well-being of our diverse nation.
Implementation
At the Highway, children begin their journey as designers in the Expressive Arts and Design area of learning linking with Physical Development in the EYFS framework. Our Design and Technology curriculum goes on through National Curriculum expectations to provide real-life design challenges, for which children will need to design and make functional products, using a range of tools, for specific users. Within each unit, children will engage in an iterative design process, linking thought and action. They will evaluate, modify and adapt their designs as they make, resolving design problems as they arise, in order to improve them.
The curriculum is split by key stage, with each key stage being further divided into four sections: Design, Make, Evaluate and Technical knowledge. In addition, the Cooking and nutrition strand outlines knowledge, skills and understanding that children will need to develop when designing and making with food.
Impact
Design processes and outcomes are documented in a range of ways. Progress in Design and Technology is demonstrated through regularly reviewing and analysing children’s work, to ensure that progression of knowledge and skills is taking place.
Children will:
- build personal development in creativity, independence, judgement and self-reflection.
- talk confidently about their work;
- collaborate effectively with others;
- take pride in sharing their ideas and work with others;
- take risks in a safe environment and show resilience in problem-solving.
This will be evident through pupil voice, evidence of knowledge and skills and the monitoring of the ambition behind the curriculum.
Design and Technology is a highly practical and creative subject, which equips children with a range of crucial life skills that they need for the future.