Design and Technology

Year 3, Spring Term

The children have been busy, designing their own Three Age dwelling – based on their History topic of Stone Age to Iron Age.  They chose their own materials and constructed their dwelling.  They evaluated their designs and the materials that they chose.

Year 3 have created their own bookmark.  They have explored three different types of stitching (running, overcast and backstitch, creating samples of these to help decide which stitch they prefer for their design.  They have drawn and labelled a diagram of their design, and have, in many cases, adapted these as they have progressed from drawing to stitching!  The children evaluated their product, spending much time deciding whether they would like to change anything if they had the opportunity to do it again.

Year 4 Spring Term

This term in year 4, we have combined our Science topic of electricity and our Geography topic of mountains to create a working electrical board game. The children have loved using their scientific skills in a practical way and have created some fantastic board games, fit with light bulbs and buzzers. The children used their problem solving skills to ensure that their wires connected to the correct conductors in order for their games to work.

Year 4 has also completed their Food Technology project for this term: Fish cakes!

Through the process of producing fish cakes, they have learnt the D&T cooking skills of peeling and coating. We started by peeling and cutting potatoes into chunks, before boiling them and mashing them. We added this to tuna and grated lemon peel, finally flavouring it with parsley. We then scooped a handful of this mixture to press into a fish cake. We then practiced the skill of coating these fish cakes in breadcrumbs to learn to how to create a coating. The fish cakes went in to the oven for 20 minutes and we were able to take them home to taste them. They were delicious!

Year 5 Spring Term

During the spring term, Year 5 made a vegetarian curry. The children had a sequence of lessons whereby they carefully considered how to stay safe in the kitchen, discovered the different food groups, planned and researched a curry, made a vegetarian curry and then evaluated it. The skills that the children mastered were: chopping, measuring, peeling and squeezing. The children surprised themselves and enjoyed the curry despite it having lots of vegetables in!

Year 3 Autumn 2023

As part of our Ancient Egyptian unit, the children translated their first names into hieroglyphs, made a cartouche design and then moulded their own cartouche from clay. They researched the colours that the Ancient Egyptians used and tried to replicate these when painting and glazing their own cartouches.

In their food technology unit and using some of their food technology skills of chopping, weighing and mixing, the children made Egyptian bread ‘Kaak’ to taste test at home.

The recipe was adapted from one found on the tomb of Ramses III and involved creating a snail shape, boiling the dough – under adult supervision and then baking the bread.

Year 3 also created a cross curricular piece of work – combining art with D.T. be designing and creating a tile plate for the Gaudi inspired artwork of repeating patterns.

Year 4 Autumn, 2023

This term in DT, we made Roman cake stands to place our apple crumbles on. We used our mosaic knowledge to design the top of our cake stands. Once completed, we began assembling our cake stands. This involved lots of trial and error.

We enjoyed using a wide range of materials to see what would work best for our cake stands. Then we made our apple crumble. We used many of our Food Technology skills such as peeling, chopping and mixing. Once completed, we were able to test the strength of our cake stands and taste test our apple crumbles.

Year 5 – Autumn 2, 2022

In DT this half term, we have been focusing on designing and creating a Viking Longboat with a pneumatic system. This has been linked to our History topic of the Vikings, where the children have learnt lots about the designs of Longboats and why they were designed that way.

First, the children completed a design brief, where they carefully considered what materials and tools they were going to use. The children used many skills such as: sawing, measuring, drilling and cutting using a wide range of equipment. After the structure of the Longboat was built, the children were able to decorate their boats. The children were so proud of their final products!

As part of the food technology unit, Year 5 chose to make stained glass window shortbread biscuits. They continued to develop their food technology skills through chopping, weighing and cutting when following the recipe.

Year 6 Autumn 2, 2022

As part of our topic on World War 2, the children designed and made Anderson Shelters. They used their measuring, cutting and design skills to create their shelters and then evaluated them based upon their strength and appearance. The children worked very hard to make them look authentic; some even had little vegetables growing on the roof just as they did during the war. 

D.T. Spring Term Year 3

This term, Year 3 have designed, created and evaluated their own seed bags. They have created their own template and have used this to cut the fabric for their seed bags. They have chosen which stitch they would like to use in the creation of their seed bag – choosing either overcast or back stitch.

The seed bag was then completed with a Velcro fastener to ensure the seeds did not fall out. The children worked hard to produce a workable seed bag. They have evaluated their seed bag, commenting on the areas they felt could be improved and those they were pleased with.

Food Technology

We have also completed a Food Technology project, working in small groups to create healthy flapjacks.

The children focussed on the following skills:

To read and follow a simple recipe.

To follow basic food hygiene and safety rules.

To know how to get ready for cooking (wash and dry hands, tied long hair back, clean surfaces).

To know how to clean after cooking.

Using weighing scales and with supervision using a knife for cutting

To mix, stir and combine liquid and dry ingredients.

To evaluate finished product and identify how to improve it.

The children made healthy flapjacks, using dairy free spread, dates, pumpkin seeds, grated apple as well as lemon and maple syrup. They very carefully weighed the ingredients using the scales and spoons. Each child took their healthy snack home at the end of the day, to show their grown-ups and wrote their evaluation the following day. All the children enjoyed working on their Food Technology project and displayed fantastic team-work as they followed the recipe cards on their tables.

DT Spring Term Year 4

Year 4 have had a fabulous time cooking fish cakes; learning the D&T cooking skills of peeling and coating.

We started by peeling and cutting potatoes into chunks, before boiling them and mashing them.

We added this to tuna and grated lemon peel, finally flavouring it with parsley. We then scooped a handful of this mixture to press into a fish cake. We then practiced the skill of coating these fish cakes in to Rice Krispies to learn to how to create a coating.

The fish cakes went in to the oven for 20 minutes and we were able to take them home to taste them. They were delicious!

D.T. Spring Term Year 5

Food Technology

Year 5 have been cooking as part of their DT studies, learning to use a range of cooking tools safely and confidently. The children were regularly washing their hands as they shared utensils. The children discussed preparation techniques for different vegetables and learnt how to peel, chop, sieve and grate them, safely. They liked the colourful mixture of healthy ingredients.

First they made a vegetarian Mayan style broth; they carefully selected the ingredients they would need-especially the sweetcorn. They enjoyed tasting this with a tortilla. They then evaluated them, thinking how they could amend them for another time.

Next we made a vegetarian burger, carefully measuring out the ingredients and working with a different consistency. Once these were baked in the oven, the children enjoyed eating them in a bread roll, outside in the sunshine.

Year 3 Design and Technology Autumn 2021

In the Autumn term, Year 3 have used the following Design and Technology skills to cook Egyptian bread. They have demonstrated they are able to follow instructions in order, join and combine a range of ingredients whilst working safely and hygienically. During the Cooking session, the children worked in groups to measure and weigh food items.

We have baked Egyptian-style flat bread to enable the children to understand one of the cultural differences using an everyday food. The children were very surprised at its size and taste compared to traditional British bread!

After learning about the key processes of Ancient Egyptian life in History lessons, Year 3 learnt about key artefacts, including the cartouche that recorded a person’s name. As a class, we watched a tutorial on how to shape and mould separate pieces to layer the structure to ensure it looked authentic and how to join the pieces of clay effectively to ensure that, once dry, they would stay stuck together. We discussed and planned, as a class, the tools that may be most effective and useful for each stage of the product and how to be safe whilst using them in the classroom. We trialled and tested the proportions of clay that were needed for the base, the outer edge and the bar to ensure accurate assembling and the children assessed this as they went, remodelling where necessary. Once it was dry, we finished off the product by glazing it using paints to make it look more decorative to suit its purpose and seal the clay. The children chose colours that they thought the Egyptians would have had access to and used to show wealth.

Year 4 Design and Technology Autumn 2021

This term, Year 4 have been learning about the design and technology skill of lamination. We designed and made a cake stand in the Roman style, with a roman mosaic on the top. Children learned that if we layer materials (laminate), such as bendy cardboard or paper, it makes it sturdy and strong. They were able to discuss what was good about their products and what they could do to make them better.

Year 5 Design and Technology Autumn 2021

This term, year 5 have been busy making Viking longboats which include a pneumatic system.

First we looked at the design, materials and build of the real longboats and concluded that the Vikings had incredible DT skills of their own.

We carefully traced around a template of the hull, onto a cereal box, and cut it carefully using a craft knife and craft mat. We made accurate measurements of square doweling to find midway points to drill a hole, using a hand drill. We measured the round doweling to find 1/3 of the length to make the mast, which we then cut with a hacksaw. There was a lot of problem solving involved, where we had to sharpen the round doweling to fit snugly into the hole, before securing with a glue gun. As we used cereal boxes, we sometimes found the folds were weak spots in the hull, so we reinforced these areas with patches of card.

We had to talk a lot about using the tools safely and so we used blu-tac to poke holes in the card safely for the shields to be attached with split pins.

The boats also have to look good as a finished product, so we used a technique called decoupage, to strengthen and join the structure, and to make the boats look wooden.

Sails were attached with glue guns and a pneumatic system attached to make the sail “blow“ in the wind.

Time was also given to evaluate our finished products and think of alternate ways to make use of the pneumatic system i.e blowing a shield off the boat!

Year 6 Design and Technology Autumn 2021

This term Year 6 have enjoyed designing and creating their own Greek labyrinths to link to our history topic. Before we started thinking about our own designs, we enjoyed finding out about the history of mazes and labyrinths and exploring images of famous mazes around the world. We spent some time thinking about our designs to ensure that they were fit for purpose. We had to be very careful when measuring to ensure that our dimensions were accurate and precise – this involved some maths skills too. When marking out our mazes, different sketching techniques were used to show lighter and darker areas. We had to make sure that we had one entrance and one exit. The children enjoyed adding in extra paths that lead to nowhere!

To create our labyrinth we used cardboard for the base and art straws to represent the walls of the maze. We had to cut the straws to size, measuring each wall accurately from our plans. The children used glue to secure their walls. Over time, we found that we needed to refine some of our designs and make improvements so that the product was fit for purpose. After the labyrinths were complete, the children evaluated their product to identify what went well and what could have been made even better. Creating the labyrinths definitely reinforced the importance of measuring carefully and precisely.

Year 6 DT write up Autumn 2020

This half term Year 6 have enjoyed designing and creating their own Greek labyrinths.

The children studied the Ancient Greeks as part of their history learning. Before we started thinking about our own designs, we enjoyed finding out about the history of mazes and labyrinths and exploring images of famous mazes around the world. We spent some time thinking about our designs to ensure that they were fit for purpose. We had to be very careful when measuring to ensure that our dimensions were accurate and precise – this involved some maths skills too. When marking out our mazes, different sketching techniques were used to show lighter and darker areas. We had to make sure that we had one entrance and one exit. The children enjoyed adding in extra paths that led to nowhere!

To create our labyrinth we used cardboard for the base and art straws to represent the walls of the maze. We had to cut the straws to size, measuring each wall accurately from our plans. The children used glue to secure their walls. Over time, we found that we needed to refine some of our designs and make improvements so that the product was fit for purpose. After the labyrinths were complete, the children evaluated their product to identify what went well and what could have been made even better. Creating the labyrinths definitely reinforced the importance of measuring carefully and precisely.

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Year 5 DT write up Autumn 2020

This term, year 5 have been busy making Viking longboats which include a pneumatic system.

First we looked at the design, materials and build of the real longboats and concluded that the Vikings had incredible DT skills of their own.

We carefully traced around a template of the hull, onto a cereal box, and cut it carefully using a craft knife and craft mat. We made accurate measurements of square doweling to find midway points to drill a hole, using a hand drill. We measured the round doweling to find 1/3 of the length to make the mast, which we then cut with a hacksaw. There was a lot of problem solving involved, where we had to sharpen the round doweling to fit snugly into the hole, before securing with a glue gun. As we used cereal boxes, we sometimes found the folds were weak spots in the hull, so we reinforced these areas with patches of card.

We had to talk a lot about using the tools safely and so we used blu-tac to poke holes in the card safely for the shields to be attached with split pins.

The boats also have to look good as a finished product, so we used a technique called decoupage, to strengthen and join the structure, and to make the boats look wooden.

Sails were attached with glue guns and a pneumatic system attached to make the sail “blow“ in the wind.

Time was also given to evaluate our finished products and think of alternate ways to make use of the pneumatic system i.e blowing a shield off the boat!

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Year 4 DT Autumn 2020

In the Autumn term, the children in Year 4 worked on a combined Art and D.T project. The task combined making a cake stand and decorating the top with a Roman mosaic. The children learned how to make the card stronger by folding and gluing together layers; a process called laminating. The more tricky part was constructing the legs and ensuring the cake stand was stable and level. At the end of the project, the children evaluated their cake stands by identifying what had worked well and the skills they could try to improve next time. The children really enjoyed the project and produced some amazing cake stands; it was fantastic to see some children had even baked some cakes and made use of their cake stand at home!

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Year 3 DT Autumn 2020

This half term, the year 3 children learned about the fascinating Egyptian civilisation and some of the famous artefacts uncovered.

During their Egyptian themed day, the children had the opportunity to investigate some of the artefacts and how they might have been made in ancient times. The children chose their own tools to carve varying lines and create different effects on scarab beetle amulets made out of soap. They also did this to engrave their names in hieroglyphs onto their own cartouche made from clay, after moulding, joining and smoothing their product. The children finished by glazing their dried cartouches with colours chosen to match their symbolic meaning.

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Throughout the Autumn term, Year 3 have had several opportunities to cook things in order to practise the skills of following instructions, joining and combining a range of ingredients and working safely and hygienically. During each cooking opportunity, the children worked in groups to measure and weigh food items. Their first opportunity to combine ingredients required no baking – the children make a bruschetta snack as part of their cultural understanding day. They chopped and sliced basil leaves, tomatoes, onion, crushed garlic and poured balsamic vinegar and olive oil before spooning it onto slices of baguette. We discussed different components of a balanced diet and then revisited this as part of a STEM Day challenge; the children had to design, make and evaluate a street food based around a British-grown pepper. We stuffed the peppers with healthy options that would make us feel full. There were lots of fabulous alternative designs and we discussed how well they each contributed to a healthy and varied diet.

Their latest cooking challenge was to bake Egyptian-style flat bread to understand a cultural difference in an everyday food and to see how it was cooked differently using oil. The children were very surprised at its size and taste compared to traditional British bread!

After learning about the key processes of Ancient Egyptian life in History lessons, Year 3 learnt about key artefacts, including the cartouche that recorded a person’s name. As a class, we watched a tutorial on how to shape and mould separate pieces to layer the structure to ensure it looked authentic and how to join the pieces of clay effectively to ensure that, once dry, they would stay stuck together. We discussed and planned, as a class, the tools that may be most effective and useful for each stage of the product and how to be safe whilst using them in the classroom. We trialled and tested the proportions of clay that were needed for the base, the outer edge and the bar to ensure accurate assembling and the children assessed this as they went, remodelling where necessary. Once it was dry, we finished off the product by glazing it using paints to make it look more decorative to suit it’s purpose and seal the clay. The children chose colours that they thought the Egyptians would have had access to and use to show wealth.

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Year 4 D and T Autumn

Year 4 have been learning about the design and technology skill of lamination. We designed and made a cake stand in the Roman style, with a roman mosaic on the top.

Children learned that if we layer materials, it makes it sturdy and strong. They were able to discuss what was good about their products and what they could do to make them better.

To finish off, we made some authentic honey cakes to adorn our cake stands. Well done to year four for putting in lots of effort for whisking their eggs in the Roman way!

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Year 5 D&T – Autumn 2019

Moving Monsters and pneumatics has been our autumn term topic for D&T. We have looked at different objects that use pneumatics, how they work and how compressed air can be used to move things. We connected tubes to different kinds of pumps to see which were more effective and then began to think about how we could make a pneumatic ‘Moving Monster.’ We are now designing our monsters and will soon be connecting them to a pneumatic system to make them move.

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Year 6 D and T Autumn

This term in Year 6 we have been learning about the Ancient Greeks. As part of this topic we have looked at Greek gods and architecture and then used this to plan and make our own version of the Parthenon. The audience for our models was to be another child to help them to understand more about Greek architecture.

First, the children used their computing research skills to find out as much as they could about the architecture, structure and use of temples in order to use a range of information to inform their design. They then did some investigative work to find out: the strongest type of columns; how to create a net for a triangular pyramid (which would be used to make the roof) and making a base with steps which would support our temple.

After discussing the children’s findings, it was then time to plan their temples using their DT skills; considering the culture and society of ancient Greece in their designs. We discussed the need for accurate measuring in order to ensure precision for their final model and the importance of making sure that their product was strong and “fit for purpose”.

Once the model temples were completed, the children used their evaluative skills to:

• Refine and further improve their product.
• Identify how it could be improved it,
• Asked if different resources would have improved their product.
• Finally, they posed the question “does our product meet all the design criteria?”

The children worked very hard and thoroughly enjoyed the activity, demonstrating great team work and communication too.

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