Engineers – DT
Our Intent:
At Sea Mills Primary school, every child experiences being an engineer. In Design and Technology (D.T), we encourage children to explore the world around them and observe ways in which they can design, make and evaluate their own unique creations. We support children in this process by helping them to reflect and discuss ways in which they can improve these. As a healthy school, children will also be taught the principles of a healthy, balanced diet. They will use cooking utensils to safely prepare a variety of food dishes in every year group and understand where a range of ingredients are grown across the world.
Our Approach:
At Sea Mills Primary School we actively encourage children ‘to have a go’ and practise their skills as engineers. This aims to provide our children with the foundations to design make and create. The two keep steps to our approach are:
- Enquiry Based Learning:Design and technology is taught as part of our enquiry learning. Each year group will have a set amount of enquiry questions, some of which will be focussed on the children becoming engineers. D.T is also taught indiscreetly. For example; when creating a piece such as a ‘shoe box classroom’ in Year 2, children will have the opportunity to incorporate measurement and create a design profile before they create their project.
- Multi-disciplinary: As part of the enquiry questions, we encourage all children to engage in dialogic opportunities and use their critical thinking skills by asking and answering questions; use a range of tools to create structures or food and evaluate their creations using their year group technical vocabulary. We ensure these opportunities happen by making connections within other subjects such as; Mathematics and Science.
DT Year Overview
How to help your child at home to become Engineers
As Engineers, we encourage all of the children at Sea Mills Primary School to explore their creativity and imagination so they can design and make their own products. Have a look at the following websites to encourage your child to do this:
https://www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize/subjects
Gallery
Year 5 have been busy this term making masks inspired by the Maya people who used them as celebration masks (made from cedar wood) and death masks (made of jade). Year 5 designed and planned their masks before then creating a 3D template out of recycled materials. They then used paper mache to give their masks structure before painting them. We love how creative and unique they all are!
Year 5’s completed Maya masks!
Clay Pots
As engineers Year 5 have been making clay pots inspired by the Ancient Greeks linking to their enquiry learning. They learnt how to make either a coil or pinch pot and used tools to score and secure handles as well as carve Greek inspired patterns.
