Intent
At Fellside Community Primary School, our Design and Technology curriculum inspires children to become curious, creative and confident designers and problem solvers. Through designing, making, evaluating and developing technical knowledge, pupils learn how Design and Technology shapes the world around them and how they can contribute positively to it.
Our curriculum is ambitious, inclusive and carefully sequenced to ensure all children develop the knowledge, skills and understanding needed to design purposeful and functional products. Through a broad range of experiences across structures, mechanisms, textiles, cooking and nutrition, electrical systems and innovative technologies, including robotics. Pupils build on prior learning and revisit key concepts with increasing depth throughout their primary education.
Design and Technology at Fellside promotes our Seven Cs: Curiosity to explore ideas and ask questions; Creativity to generate innovative solutions; Challenge to persevere when designs do not go to plan; Collaboration to work effectively with others; Confidence to share and justify ideas; Commitment to refine and improve outcomes; and Change as pupils recognise how thoughtful design can improve lives and communities.
By the time our children leave Fellside, they will have developed the practical skills, technical knowledge and resilience needed to think like designers and engineers. They will understand the importance of evaluating and improving their work and be equipped to become resourceful, responsible citizens in an ever-changing world.
Implementation
At Fellside Community Primary School, Design and Technology is taught through the Kapow Primary scheme, which has been carefully selected and adapted to meet the needs of our pupils. The curriculum is taught through blocked units across the year and is fully aligned with the National Curriculum (2014).
Teaching is underpinned by the design process of designing, making and evaluating, enabling pupils to think and work like designers and engineers. Learning is sequenced progressively, with children revisiting and building upon prior knowledge and skills through a spiral curriculum model. This ensures increasing depth, complexity and confidence as pupils move through the school.
Each lesson begins with opportunities to recall prior learning and introduce new concepts through engaging, practical activities. Teachers use a combination of modelling, discussion, collaborative learning and independent application to develop pupils' substantive, disciplinary and procedural knowledge.
Staff are supported through high-quality planning, progression documents, knowledge organisers and CPD materials, ensuring consistency in the delivery of Design and Technology across the school. Adaptive teaching strategies, including scaffolding, multi-sensory approaches and structured tasks, ensure all pupils can access and succeed in lessons.
Assessment is ongoing and informs future teaching. Teachers use questioning, observation, pupil discussion, success criteria and reflection activities to identify misconceptions and celebrate achievement.
Through practical, purposeful learning experiences, pupils develop the Curiosity, Creativity, Challenge, Collaboration, Confidence, Commitment and capacity for Change that are central to life at Fellside.
Impact
At Fellside Community Primary School, the impact of our Design and Technology curriculum is seen in the confidence, creativity and independence of our pupils. Children leave each year group with a secure understanding of the knowledge and skills identified within the National Curriculum and are able to apply these successfully through designing, making and evaluating purposeful products.
Pupils demonstrate progression over time through their practical outcomes, written work, annotated designs and their ability to discuss and evaluate their learning using appropriate technical vocabulary. They increasingly think critically, solve problems and justify their decisions as they move through the school.
Teachers assess learning continuously through questioning, observation, retrieval activities, pupil discussions and the use of success criteria. Knowledge organisers, assessment materials and pupil voice provide further evidence of what children know, remember and can do.
The impact of Design and Technology is also evident in the development of our Seven Cs. Pupils show Curiosity when exploring new ideas, Creativity in their designs, Challenge through perseverance, Collaboration when working alongside others, Confidence in sharing and evaluating their work, Commitment to producing high-quality outcomes and an understanding of how design can bring about positive Change.
By the time pupils leave Fellside, they are equipped with the practical skills, technical knowledge and resilience needed for the next stage of their education. They understand the role Design and Technology plays in everyday life and are prepared to contribute positively to an ever-changing world.