Design and Technology (DT)

Intent

At Dilton Marsh C of E Primary School we value D&T as an important part of the children’s entitlement to a broad and balanced curriculum that is relevant to our rapidly changing world. We encourage children to use their creativity and imagination, to design and make products that solve relevant problems within a variety of contexts.  

Through our school vision, we strive to have children who ‘have a passion for life-long learning’ and ‘curiosity’ to explore different designers and develop a more rigorous understanding of D&T. We want our children to learn to think and intervene creatively to solve problems both as individuals and as members of a team considering their own and others’ needs, wants and values. Our D&T curriculum provides children with opportunities to research, represent their ideas, explore and investigate,  develop their ideas, make a product and evaluate their work. Children will be exposed to a wide range of media including textiles, food and woodwork; through this, children will develop their skills, vocabulary and resilience.

D&T in our school is about inspiring the children in a rigorous and practical subject exposing them to high quality designers, engineers and inventors. The staff at Dilton Marsh C of E Primary School ensure that all children are exposed to high quality teaching and learning experiences, which allow children to explore and tackle real problems. We believe that high-quality D&T lessons will inspire children to think independently, innovatively and develop creative, procedural and technical understanding.

We aim to immerse our children in different cultures through D&T to aid their knowledge and understanding. Understanding what it is to be British and the values of our nation are central to our work and through D&T, we intend to play a role in this by developing a knowledge and appreciation of the traditions of British inventors, designers and sculptors and the ways in which D&T has been central to our culture throughout history.

Implementation

In ensuring high standards of teaching and learning in D&T, we implement a curriculum that is progressive throughout the whole school. We develop our learners’ confidence in their work by providing continual support and encouragement.

D&T is taught as part of a half-termly topic focusing on knowledge and skills stated in 2014 Primary National Curriculum in England and, ‘Expressive Arts and Design’ in the Early Years Foundation Stage.

At Dilton Marsh C of E Primary School we ensure that Design Technology is given the same importance as the core subjects, as we feel this is important in enabling all children to gain ‘real-life’ experiences. Teachers plan lessons for their class using PlanBee and our progression of knowledge and skills documents. We ensure that the planned activities for our children are challenging, relevant and enjoyable.

Impact

As designers children will develop skills and attributes they can use beyond school and into adulthood. Our D&T Curriculum is high quality, well thought out and is planned to demonstrate progression.

Our children enjoy the self-expression that they experience in D&T. They are always very keen to learn new skills and perfect those shown to them through hard work and determination. 

We measure the impact of our curriculum through moderation in staff meetings where pupil’s books are scrutinised and there is the opportunity for dialogue between teachers to understand their class’s work. Learning walks will also be completed where pupils will be interviewed about their learning (pupil voice).

Children in Early Years Foundation Stage are assessed within Expressive Arts and Design. Age related expectation levels are reported at the end of the year.