Design Technology.
Subject Leader: Mr P Salamon
Vision / Intent:
To provide a fun, stimulating, inspiring and enthusiastic environment for students to thrive in.
To ensure students reach their full Technology potential: to stimulate originality and enterprise, develop practical capability in designing and making and encourage the adaptability needed to cope with a rapidly changing society.
We aim to equip students with the creativity, practical skills, enthusiasm and determination to realise their ideas. We want to prepare them to be the designers of our future.
Approach / Philosophy / Implementation:
The students undertake 'real' design problems and skill projects using a range of materials including card, electronics, fabric, food, metal, plastic and wood. The individual problems set are generally relevant to the students' experience, e.g. items for the home.
Students are taught to develop their design and technological capability through combining their 'designing' and 'making skills' with 'knowledge and understanding' in order to complete a product.
Through engaging, stimulating lessons students will:
- Develop their creativity
- Develop their practical skills and application of them
- Develop greater problem solving skills
- Develop resilience and a positive mindset to enable them to overcome obstacles to ensure they complete all work
- Take a real pride in their work and produce work to the best of their ability
Department Members
| Mr P Salamon | DT Subject Leader |
| Miss A Selby | DT Teacher |
| Ms E Lau | DT Teacher (and Art/DT Display Technician |
Topic Overviews 2023-2024:
Year 5
Acrylic Key Fobs
Main Focus: To introduce the workshop, health and safety and how to use hand tools and simple machines. To develop cutting drilling and finishing skills in wood and acrylic.
Assessment Focus: Accurate cutting of their product, finish of their product.
Fabric Book Marks
Main Focus: To explore design and patterns. To design, cut out and hand sew materials.
Assessment Focus: Design ideas, accurate cutting and hand sewing.
Laser Cut Jigsaws and Packaging
Main Focus: To learn the basic skill on 2D tools and how to cut using the laser cutter. Develop an understanding of packaging and design their own for their product.
Assessment Focus: Able to programme the laser cutter and design effective packaging.
Food Preparation and Skills
Main Focus: To introduce the food room. To learn the basic hygiene, basic knife skills, be able to weigh and measure out ingredients. Design and make bread and smoothies.
Assessment Focus: Safe and accurate cutting skills. Design and quality of their end products.
Year 6
Personalised Notebook
Main Focus: To develop their understanding of the CAD/CAM process and develop their understanding of a 2D design programme. Design and create a personalised notebook with laser etched design.
Assessment Focus: Design of product and the ability to effective programme the laser cutter.
Tie Dye Small Cushion
Main Focus: To learn and explore tie dye techniques. Develop hand and machine sewing skills. Develop design ideas to an end product.
Assessment Focus: Design of a product, tie dye skills, effective hand and machine sewing.
Key / Jewellery Holder
Main Focus: To develop their use of hand tools and machines. Design and make a key / jewellery holder that will hang on the wall. Cut with accuracy, sand and paint their work. Use a pillar drill and use a jig to drill at an angle.
Assessment Focus: Design of a product, accuracy of their cutting / drilling, creativity of their work, quality of the finish of their work.
Food Preparation and Skills
Main Focus: To continue to develop hygiene and knife skills. To learn the rubbing in method and to weigh and measure out ingredients. Design and make Fruit crumbles, scones and coleslaw.
Assessment Focus: Safe and accurate cutting skills. Design and quality of their end products.
Year 7
Wooden Trinket Box with Designed Lid
Main Focus: To explore different types of wood and joints used to join them. To mark and cut wood accurately, nail and glue work together accurately. Develop greater complex design on 2D tools and use the laser cutter to create them. Finish of the end product.
Assessment Focus: Accuracy of marking out and cutting. Design of their product and the finish of the end product.
Acrylic Mobile Phone Holder
Main Focus: To explore different solutions to a set problem. Draw design solution in 3D. Develop greater complex design on 2D tools and use the laser cutter to create them. Shape acrylic. Finish off the end product to a high quality finish.
Assessment Focus: Development of different design solutions to a problem. Design of their product and the finish of the end product.
Draw String Bag with Designed Logo
Main Focus: To explore different types of logo, then design their own. To create their logo onto fabric. To develop their accurate marking out cutting and machine sewing of fabric.
Assessment Focus: Accurate machine sewing skills, design of their product and the end product.
Food Preparation and Skills
Main Focus: To explore the making of and different uses of pastry. Learn food hygiene, including the use of raw meats. Design and make sausage rolls, granola bars, flatbreads and a seasonal food.
Assessment Focus: Safe and hygienic working. Effective pastry production. Design and quality of the end products.
Year 8
Cushion or Tablet Cover
Main Focus: To explore design ideas. Effectively design, cut and applique designs onto other fabric. Develop greater accuracy of machine sewing.
Assessment Focus: Design ideas and how they are developed, quality of the end product (design, applique and sewing skills).
Pewter Pendant
Main Focus: To understand the properties of metals and how to cast metal.
Assessment Focus: Design and cast a successful and effective pendant.
Super Hero Inspired Mono Speaker
Main Focus: To understand more complex electrical components and PCB design. Design a product with a key target audience.
Assessment Focus: Ability to fully develop a design. End product works well and looks great.
Food Preparation and Skills
Main Focus: To learn hygiene safety including the use of raw and cooked meats. Develop the use of a bechamel sauce. Learn how to sensory analyse foods. Design and make, gourmet burgers, pizza, mac and cheese, plus a seasonal food.
Assessment Focus: Safe cooking of foods, effective production of a sauce. Design and quality of the end products.