Design and technology should be the subject where mathematical brainboxes and science whizzkids turn their bright ideas into useful products. (James Dyson)
At Atlas Academy we expect the highest aspirations for our pupils. We want all children to learn and make academic progress no matter their starting points. We have a clear vision for what we want pupils to achieve during their time at Atlas and have designed our curriculum to give all pupils the knowledge, skills and understanding they will need in their future years.
Purpose of Education for Design and Technology
At Atlas Academy, we want our pupils to be inspired and engaged within a wide range of design technology media and experiences throughout their time at our school. We want to build confidence in children’s ability to be creative and to express themselves as well as have knowledge about design and designers.
Specific units and designers have been added to the curriculum to reflect the cultural diversity and local community of our school. Year 3 study European dishes as part of food technology; Year 5 construct models of the local, Victorian sand houses that were built close to the school.
Implementation of the Curriculum
At Atlas Academy we use materials from the Primary Knowledge Curriculum for design & technology. It is adapted it to suit the needs and interests of our learning community. The key threshold concepts that shape what pupils will explore are:
- Master practical skills
- Design, make, evaluate and improve
- Take inspiration from design throughout history
Each unit of work covers each of the aims of the National Curriculum. The Curriculum Overview explains how this is achieved, summarising for each year group what skills and processes are covered. The curriculum has been designed to enable children to learn by making connections between the work of designers and architects (which they study critically) and their own work, which they evaluate and relate back to the works studied. Where a unit looks at a scientific concept which is also addressed in the science curriculum, the DT unit is taught after the science unit. This allows pupils to approach their study of design technology with a degree of confidence and ‘expertise’ and to consolidate their knowledge by creating connections between the different disciplines.
Content is determined by subject leaders to enable our progression of knowledge and skills model however it is individual teacher’s responsibility to plan continuous opportunities for retrieval practice for previously learned content and developing the following:
- Taking inspiration from design throughout history Mastery and depth of learning is defined as:
- Mastery (end of milestone): pupils meeting or mastering the end of key stage expectations and progress over time.
- Depth (day to day/across a year): pupils understanding lesson content well enough and being able to use and/or apply knowledge/skills
- Proof of progress (POP) tasks are set by teachers to prove that pupils are gaining a deeper understanding of the same content/skills.
Meaningful opportunities for aspirational self-expression within design are woven through the curriculum which give pupils the opportunity to learn who they are as designers. Units of work in the curriculum focus on the different concepts and types of design technology.
The overall scheme of the curriculum provides for gradual progression in terms of skills (split into Food, Materials, Textiles, Electricals and electronics, Construction, Mechanics, Computing), introducing the children to as diverse a range of design as possible. It also provides for progression in terms of knowledge of different concepts and types of design. The structure of the planning also provides for progression in terms of process in design, both in terms of critical analysis of others’ design and the necessary observation, exploration and evaluation needed for the children to create their own designs.
Measuring the impact of the Curriculum
In design technology, is expected that evidence of the children’s study will be in the products they produce and recorded in sketchbooks which can include the work, or photographs of the work they produce each lesson. Sketchbooks may include written reflections on the work of other artists/designers/architects, as well as the children’s written reflections on their own work. These activities are all provided for in lesson to lesson planning. In design technology, we assess pupils’ understanding in a range of ways. Teachers use ongoing assessments to adapt lessons and address misconceptions or skills development to practise. They listen to pupils responses in lessons and observe their progress to ensure they are learning and remembering more.
In addition, Leaders measure impact of design technology through:
- lesson observations – how well children are contributing to discussions and how they articulate ideas about relevant themes and reflect on their design and make decisions;
- learning walks – how well the curriculum intent is embedded in practical lessons and the environment and that it is providing progressively more complex challenge;
- book looks and product evaluations – as part of triangulation with learning walks and assessments – the development of authentic ideas and designs grounded in the knowledge they have learned;
- pupil voice – we listen to pupils’ views about their learning and how well curriculum content is taught and understood to be remembered and applied in practical contexts;
Design Technology Curriculum Overview
Click here to view our rationale for design & technology.
Click here to view our curriculum overview (long term plan).