At Rishton Methodist, we want our children to think like designers and use their creativity and imagination to design and make products solving problems in a range of contexts and using a range of equipment. Children will draw on the disciplines of other subjects including mathematics, science, computing, and art and learn how to evaluate popular designers and existing products and use them as inspirations for their own designs. As a school we strive to create a space and climate within which spirituality can be nurtured and explored through our DT curriculum – creating a sense of contractedness, awe, and a deep sense of the world around them and their ability to positively impact it.  

Through Design and Technology, we encourage the children to design, make and evaluate products for a purpose, using creativity and imagination. Children will have the opportunity to revisit their previous learning experiences supporting a greater retention of knowledge and skills. Our Design and Technology curriculum provides children with opportunities to develop their skills using a range of media and materials and gives them the opportunity to explore and evaluate different creative ideas. Children develop their knowledge of the styles and techniques used by a variety of designers, chefs, architects, engineers and craftspeople. We will our children to always look at other professionals to ‘achieve more’ (Jeremiah 17:7-8) 

The teaching of design and technology at Rishton Methodist Primary School begins with and builds on the Early Learning Goals for Technology and Exploring and using Media within the EYFS. We provide a range of experiences that encourage exploration, observation, problem-solving, critical thinking and discussion. These activities, indoors and outdoors, attract pupils’ interest and curiosity. Activities are linked to children’s interests and experiences, giving them experiences working with different materials, using simple tools such as scissors and joining materials when making models.

The Design and Technology curriculum for years one to six is based around 5 areas which are revisited across school. These areas are:

• Textiles
• Structures 
• Mechanisms 
• Food 
• Electrical systems 

The children apply the skills of design, make, evaluate, and improve creating prototypes and exploring a range of materials and joining techniques across the units. The knowledge and skills of each unit builds on the children’s previous learning, as they hone their skills and develop their understanding of more complex and intricate techniques.

Our children organise their knowledge, skills and understanding around the following learning hooks:

• Master practical skills
• Design, make, evaluate and improve 
• Take inspiration from design throughout history

These key concepts underpin learning in each year group This enables children to reinforce and build upon prior learning, making connections and develop subject specific language.

Through the explicit teaching of the design skills, both the teachers and the children assess their learning continuously throughout the lesson. At the end of the unit, children will have completed a piece of work based on their learning.

Though a high-quality education and a strong Methodist grounding our children will exemplify our vision of ‘rise up… take courage and do it’ (Ezra 10:4). Together learning and loving with both God and our global community. 

Evidence

At Rishton Primary, children have the opportunity to record their learning in a variety of ways, which is recorded within topical books. Evidence of the learning is dependent on the lesson outcome, year group and the knowledge and skills being developed. This can be in the form of extended writing, photographs and other design technology activities and speech bubble comments relating to the learning.

Assessment

Teachers assess children’s learning throughout each lesson to ensure understanding of skills and knowledge before building onto future learning. Teachers use a range of questioning and retrieval practice to assess children against the aims of the lesson. In addition, children will also complete end point assessments at the end of each unit to assess their substantive and disciplinary knowledge.

Subject Leaders

Subject leaders will conduct deep dives, which include lesson drop ins, pupil interviews and book looks to measure the impact of our teaching, based on how much children can remember. Subject leaders will meet with SLT and will moderate the work and monitoring outcomes to ensure that standards are exceeding the expectations.

Updated September 2023