Design & Technology

Intent 

At Good Shepherd Catholic Primary School our design and technology curriculum is designed to prepare children for the developing world.  The subject encourages children to become creative problem-solvers, both as individuals and as part of a team.  Through the study of design and technology children combine practical skills with an understanding of aesthetic, social and environmental issues, in order to design and make a product.  Evaluation is an integral part of the design process and allows children to adapt and improve their product, this is a key skill which they need throughout their life. Design and Technology helps all children to become discriminating and informed consumers and potential innovators. 

Implementation 

At Good Shepherd Catholic Primary School our design and technology curriculum is built around essential knowledge, understanding and key skills.  These are broken into year group expectations and show clear continuity and progress.  All teaching of design and technology follows the design, make and evaluate cycle.  The design process should be relevant in context, to give meaning to learning. While making, children should be given choice and a range of tools. When evaluating, children should be able to evaluate their own products against a design criteria.  Each of these steps should be rooted in technical knowledge and vocabulary. 

Key Stage 1 

Design inspiration 

Food 

Textiles 

Materials, construction and Mechanics 

Computing 

Communicating technologically 

Key Stage 2 

Design inspiration 

Food 

Textiles 

Electrical and electronics 

Materials, construction and Mechanics 

Computing 

Communicating technologically 

Educational visits are another opportunity for the teachers to plan for additional design and technology learning outside the classroom. 

Impact 

The impact of our design and technology curriculum can be seen not only in our children’s Topic books but also through classroom displays and the school environment. 

Everything we do is with the child in mind, and strong relationships are built between pupils and staff which create an atmosphere for learning which is conducive to success. 

We measure the impact of our curriculum through the following methods: 

  • Summative assessment of pupils’ attainment  
  • Images of the children’s practical learning. 
  • Interviewing the pupils about their learning (pupil voice). 
  • Pupil’s books are scrutinised and there is the opportunity for a dialogue between teachers to understand their class’s work. 
  • Annual reporting of standards across the curriculum. 
  • Marking of work in books. 

Children in Foundation Stage are assessed within Expressive Arts and Design and their progress is tracked termly using Arbor.