Design & Technology

Intent - Why do we teach what we teach?

At Widewell, we aim to foster a love of design and technology, ensuring that all children see themselves as Designers who understand the role design technology plays in the wider world. Design and technology is about designing something for somebody and for some purpose. We seek to embed core values such as persistence, resilience, teamwork, and problem-solving in all Design and Technology (DT) lessons, as children learn new skills and continuously modify their designs and ideas.

Implementation - What do we teach and when?

The implementation of the National Curriculum for Design and Technology reflects our broader teaching and learning principles. For Design and Technology in particular:

Content is always carefully situated within existing schemas. Every unit considers the prior knowledge that is prerequisite for that unit and builds on that knowledge to develop a deeper understanding of the concept.
Vertical concepts are incorporated within lessons to connect various aspects of learning.
Disciplinary knowledge is explicitly taught to pupils and carefully sequenced to ensure they are provided with opportunities to practice these skills throughout the curriculum.
Opportunities for extended scholarly writing appear throughout the curriculum. These have a clear purpose and audience, allowing pupils to write as technologists.

Early Years

In the Early Years, Design and Technology is taught through the area of Expressive Arts and Design (EAD). This area is split into two aspects:

Creating with materials
Being imaginative and expressive

These two areas of learning overlap and complement each other. EAD serves as an important outlet for imagination, thoughts, and ideas, while also linking beneficially with many other areas of the curriculum.

During the early stages of their learning journeys, children have daily opportunities to explore and experiment with a wide range of media and materials. We support and encourage them to be creative, experimenting with different resources to produce outcomes of their own choice. We directly teach children the skills and techniques they need, enabling them to utilize these independently in their own creations. We foster a love for the creative arts and value our children’s work.

Impact

The careful sequencing of the curriculum, with concepts gradually built over time, serves as the progression model. If pupils are keeping up with the curriculum, they are making progress. Formative assessment is prioritised and focuses on whether pupils are maintaining pace with the curriculum.