Design and Technology
Through our Design and Technology curriculum at Castle Hill, we inspire pupils to be creative thinkers who have an appreciation for the product design cycle through designing, making, evaluating and applying. We provide a balanced and broadly-based curriculum which focuses on building knowledge over time. The process of design can involve several steps that may also involve mathematics, science, engineering, computing and art. Our aim is for the children to acquire a repertoire of skills throughout each key stage that are developed and applied through meaningful projects.
Aims of the Design and Technology Curriculum
The National Curriculum for Design and 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 in order 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 and Technology at Home
There are a number of ways to support your child developing skills in design and technology at home. For example, having a range of construction materials to build with such as Lego. You can also collect your own junk modelling supplies by saving and reusing packaging from food such as cereal boxes and bottles.
When you're building or creating something, encourage your child to explore different ways of approaching the task to see which one was most successful. Ask them to plan or think through an idea before they start to build to help further develop the design process. There are some excellent ideas for home craft projects on websites such as Pinterest and programs such as ‘Mister Maker’. There are also fantastic programs explaining how things work such as ‘Do you know?’
Maddie's Do You Know?
Please contact Nicki Wilkinson and Megan Ball to find out more about our Design and Technology curriculum.
