Please see the whole school curriculum map.

From September the school has changed over to using units from Plan bee Design & Technology scheme.  This will enhance current provision and ensure progressive skills and knowledge.

At St Nicholas, we aim for every child to: - 

• develop in imagination and with increasingly creative, technical and practical expertise
• perform everyday tasks confidently and to participate successfully in an increasingly technological world
• build and apply knowledge, understanding and skills in order to design and make high-quality products for a wide range of users
• critique, evaluate and test their ideas and products and the work of others
• enjoy cooking and to understand and apply the principles of nutrition

Teaching and Learning

Through a variety of fun, creative and practical activities, children at St Nicholas are taught the knowledge, understanding and skills needed to engage in designing and making.

When designing and making, children are taught to: -

At Key Stage 1

Design

• design purposeful, functional, appealing products for themselves and other users based on design criteria
• generate, develop, model and communicate their ideas through talking, drawing, templates, mock-ups and, where appropriate, information and communication technology

Make

• select from and use a range of tools and equipment to perform practical tasks [for example, cutting, shaping, joining and finishing]
• select from and use a wide range of materials and components, including construction materials, textiles and ingredients, according to their characteristics

Evaluate

• explore and evaluate a range of existing products
• evaluate their ideas and products against design criteria

Technical knowledge

• build structures, exploring how they can be made stronger, stiffer and more stable
• explore and use mechanisms [for example, levers, sliders, wheels and axles] in their products

At Key stage 2

Design

• use research and develop design criteria to inform the design of innovative, functional, appealing products that are fit for purpose, aimed at particular individuals or groups
• generate, develop, model and communicate their ideas through discussion, annotated sketches, cross-sectional and exploded diagrams, prototypes, pattern pieces and computer-aided design

Make

• select from and use a wider range of tools and equipment to perform practical tasks [for example, cutting, shaping, joining and finishing], accurately
• select from and use a wider range of materials and components, including construction materials, textiles and ingredients, according to their functional properties and aesthetic qualities

Evaluate

• investigate and analyse a range of existing products
• evaluate their ideas and products against their own design criteria and consider the views of others to improve their work
• understand how key events and individuals in design and technology have helped shape the world

Technical knowledge

• apply their understanding of how to strengthen, stiffen and reinforce more complex structures
• understand and use mechanical systems in their products [for example, gears, pulleys, cams, levers and linkages]
• understand and use electrical systems in their products [for example, series circuits incorporating switches, bulbs, buzzers and motors]
• apply their understanding of computing to program, monitor and control their products