Intent 

The National Curriculum for Design 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 

• build and apply a repertoire of knowledge, understanding and skills to design and make high-quality prototypes and products for a wide range of users 

• critique, evaluate and test their ideas and products and the work of others 

• understand and apply the principles of nutrition and learn how to cook. 

Design Technology at St Dunstan’s  develops children's skills and knowledge in  design, structures, mechanisms, electrical control and a range of materials, including food. It encourages children's creativity. It develops their analysis of the strengths and weaknesses of a product to create a quality product for an end user. It also helps them to think about  important  issues and how Design and Technology impacts on them in their own lives. 

At St Dunstan’s we want to inspire creativity and develop analytical minds. 

Implementation 

 The Design Technology curriculum ensures students follow the design, make and evaluate the process alongside technical aspects. The classroom activities dedicated to Design Technology ensure links with termly topics and cross-curricular concepts where possible, so that children can see how Design Technology impacts on their daily lives. They reflect on key events and individuals in D.T in KS1 and KS2. Skills are taught in KS1 and KS2 (cut, shape, join, finish) in the classroom through a focus on food; including hygiene and health; textiles, mechanisms (KS1 for e.g. levers, sliders, wheels, axles) and (KS2 for e.g. gears, pulleys, cams, levers, linkages) and construction of structures (KS1/KS2 strengthen).

Children develop confidence and apply explicit skills to make a final product. The complexity of skills increases as the children move through school from Foundation to KS 1 and 2. Electrical skills are taught in KS2. 

Impact 

Children will demonstrate their understanding of DT through explaining the designing and making process and by explaining the explicit skills they have used to create their final product and through their evaluation.  

Children will have opportunities to share their learning with their peers, other classes in school and parents and thus see how DT impacts on their own and others' lives.