Gledhow Primary School Design and Technology Policy

Gledhow Primary School Design and Technology Policy

Section 1

Rationale

Design and Technology contributes to the school curriculum by preparing all young children to participate in a rapidly changing technological world. Pupils learn to become creative problem solvers, both as individuals and working collaboratively with others. Design Technology is about the practical application of knowledge and skills in order to understand how to make things work and how to manufacture them.

Section 2

Aims

·  To provide children with the opportunities to develop independence and co-operation

·  To help children develop critical awareness of products they choose, use, consume and wear.

·  To provide children with practical skills to work safely with a range of tools, techniques and equipment.

·  To provide children with knowledge and understanding to develop practical problem solving skills.

·  To celebrate cultural diversity through the evaluation of products from different cultures.

·  To develop children’s ability to communicate their ideas and opinions in a creative and constructive way.

Objectives

We intend to achieve these through providing opportunities for children to:

·  Know and understand how designers and technologists work and to relate their own work to the real world

·  Participate in designing and making products that have clear purpose and relevance

·  Evaluate and disassemble (where appropriate) products in order to inform their own designing and making

·  Practise skills using a range of tools, materials and equipment

·  Visualise what they might make before recording their ideas in some form

·  Plan their work, produce drawings and mock ups appropriate to age and ability

Progression

In Foundation Stage the children will have opportunities to learn simple cutting, joining techniques, explore movement through the use of construction kits and talk about how products are made. Designing and making are combined at this stage.

In Key Stage 1 and 2 each unit of work is designed to build upon another. Children will design and make products using a range of materials and skills. Continuous assessment and monitoring will ensure progression in the following areas:

Designing skills

Recording skills

Evaluation skills

Planning and making skills

Knowledge and use of appropriate language

Safe and appropriate use of tools and mechanisms

Knowledge of mechanisms and structures

Developing creativity, problem solving and imagination

Increasing responsibility for health and safety

Section 3

Planning

Foundation Stage

Early years children experiment in the workshop area and construction area. All areas are self-servicing and the children select their own tools and materials and experiment with them.

Food technology activities are carried out weekly to fit in with the topic or focus activity. Children experience baking, tasting and making fruit salad, soup and bread.

Autumn Term / Spring Term / Summer Term
Cutting and sticking
using different fixings and tools, model making using junk and children’s own designs, using a range of construction materials with large and small bricks / Cutting and sticking skills, introducing a range of different ways of fixing materials e.g. sellotape paper clips e.t.c.
experimenting joining different materials together, dressing doll shapes with different materials suitable for different seasons, box models, pizza designs, hand puppets, mask making / clay and dough modelling,
junk modelling for more specific tasks

Reception

Food technology activities are carried out weekly to develop skills that the children acquire in nursery. These are related to the weeks focus activity.

Autumn Term / Spring Term / Summer Term
Cutting Skills
Joining skills,3.D modelling with junk and construction kits, clay and dough work, sewing with punched card and fabric / Developing Autumn Term skills with more direct focus and emphasis on individual methods of recording / Developing previous skills, looking at mechanisms, joints and moving parts, more detailed recording encouraging labels and captions,

Year 1

Autumn Term / Spring Term 1 / Spring Term 2
Q.C.A. Unit 1D
Homes
(structures) / Q.C.A. Unit
Moving Pictures
(mechanisms) / Q.C.A. Unit 1C
Fruit an Vegetables
(food technology)

Year 2

Autumn Term 2 / Spring Term 2 / Summer Term 2
Q.C.A. Unit 3B
Sandwich Snacks
(food technology) / Q.C.A. Unit 2B
Puppets
(textiles) / Q.C.A. Unit 2A
Vehicles
(mechanisms)

Year 3

Autumn Term 2 / Spring Term 2 / Summer Term 1
Q.C.A Unit 4B
Storybooks
(mechanisms) / Q.C.A. Unit 4E
Lighting it Up
(electricity and structures) / Q.C.A. Unit 5D
Tea and Biscuits
(Food technology)

Year 4

Spring Term 1 / Summer Term 1 / Summer Term 2
Q.C.A. 3C
Moving Monsters
(mechanisms) / Bread
(food technology) / Q.C.A.
Money Containers/pencil cases ( textiles )

Year 5

Autumn Term 2 / Summer Term 1 / Summer Term 2
Vegetable Soup
( food technology ) / Soft Toys
( textiles ) / Q.C.A. Unit
Making Musical Instruments

Year 6

Spring Term 1 / Summer Term 1 / Summer Term 2
Greek Temples
( structures ) / Caribbean Cocktail
( food technology ) / Slippers
(textiles)

Cross curricular Links

The units have been chosen so techniques are developed throughout school. Most units are based on Q.C.A. units. However we have adapted some units and developed some units so they are more closely linked to topics being taught in other subjects.

e.g. Year 3 Tea and Biscuits links to the Chembokolli study in Geography

Other cross-curricular links include:-

Numeracy– 3.D. shapes and use of nets in Foundation Stage, Y2 Vehicles

Using measures and scales

Literacy- Reading and writing instructions e.g. Y2 puppets and Y5 soup, Y6 cocktails

Science- Characteristics and properties of materials, forces and energy, conducting a fair test when user testing a product

Art- shape, line, colour, texture, form and finishing techniques

I.C.T. –control, research presentation

History- Investigating how and why products have changed over time and how s

Changes have affected people’s lives

Geography- Origin of product

Section 4

Classroom Organisation and Teaching Approaches

The organisation of our classrooms provides opportunities for whole class teaching, group work and individual work. There are areas for children to work safely under supervision. Resources are kept in year groups with extra resources kept by the D.T. co-ordinator. Books to support teacher planning are either kept in the appropriate year groups or centrally with the D.T. co-ordinator.

Display

Children’s work should be displayed in a variety of ways which show the whole designing and making process rather than just the finished product. Displays should be interactive where pupils can observe and handle every day products including teacher made exemplars. e.g. pop-up mechanisms. Displays should sometimes provide stimuli to help children generate ideas. Displays should reinforce the emphasis on creating quality products.

Special Needs

To ensure that all children are given the same opportunities tasks will be differentiated to suit the individual needs. Differentiation may be by outcome, the level of support given or the resources provided e.g. templates. Success criteria for the finished product may be reduced or modified. There may be less time spent on planning and designing and more stimuli provided in terms of possible solutions.

Equal Opportunities

The teaching of design and technology should reflect the school’s aims of providing opportunities to all pupils regardless of gender, ethnicity, disability social status or level of attainment. All children will be given the opportunity to use the full range of resources available in the school. Children will be encouraged to discuss any stereo typing that becomes apparent through any aspect of designing and making.

Health and Safety

Teachers will always teach the safe use of tools and equipment and insist on good practice. Children will be taught to return tools to the correct place when not in use.

Food will be brought into school on the day when it is needed. Perishable items will be stored in a fridge. Food preparation will be encouraged to occur in designated places. E.g. The kitchen area in Nursery and Foundation or the annex kitchen. If food preparation occurs in a classroom all surfaces will be wiped down with Milton’s or Ditto

Plastic or paper covers will be used on surfaces. Children and staff will wear clean aprons. (Preferably wipe down plastic). Non-teaching staff will be made aware of health and safety procedures. There are various members of staff qualified in first aid. Health and safety will be reviewed in the light of any new national or local guidelines as they are issued.

Section 5

Assessment, Recording and record keeping

Success criteria for the finished products will be discussed with the children at the start of the units. Marking of the children’s work will be subject specific and related to the learning objectives and the discussed success criteria. Teachers will assess the children through their written work, plans, drawings and discussion of their finished products. Assessments will be used to inform future planning and will be the basis of reports to parents.

Staff will review units on their completion and will adapt units if any changes need to be made in consultation with the D.T. co-ordinator.

Children’s work will be assessed and their levels entered on the pupil tracking grids.

Review Date / Reviewer / Staff Meeting Review Date / Governors ratified Date / Uploaded to MySchools
Sept 2012 / S Hilton / Oct 2012 / Oct 2013