Welcome to Design Technology!

We are a team of four teachers and two technicians who have a passion for all areas of Design and Technology with a passion to instil success. Our expectations are high and never wavering.

The Department is a welcoming and highly-functioning one; with four specialist teachers and two technicians who bring a wealth of experience as well as a passion for helping our students make progress.

Our aim and vision is to grow and evolve a curriculum over the next 5 years that will produce well rounded, responsible and informed entrepreneurial young adults and to equip these students with the employability skills needed for a changing Britain and the wider global community.

Higham Lane School offers 3 clear avenues of academic and vocational experience consisting of Design Engineering, Product Design and Food Preparation and Nutrition. We aim to provide a provision that will support student’s accessibility to design disciplines such as; architecture, interior, furniture, product. Engineering disciplines such as; automotive, industrial, aerospace and food and Nutrition such as; Hospitality and catering, nutrition, food sciences etc.

In year 9 students will opt into 2 key areas: Cambridge National Engineering, GCSE Food, Preparation and Nutrition.

Our Key Stage three curriculum comprises of three subject rotations each lasting 12 weeks: Product Design, Engineering and Food Preparation and Nutrition.

 

Start Points

Initial testing on entrance to Year 7 is used to benchmark prior knowledge and understanding of Design and Technology due to discrepancies in curriculum coverage at KS2. This informs future planning and development of SOL.

Student attributes: High quality work, commitment, resilience, independence, being knowledgeable, decision making, planning, curiosity, risk taking, equipped for a variety of careers, problem solving and adaptability.

Preparation for Life: The curriculum is designed to develop curious, confident and competent learners who apply valuable skills and knowledge in preparation for life.

 

Design Engineering

At KS3, all students will discover the impact of design on the world and how design is the core subject which underpins society and its needs.

Through a series of sequential lessons, students will know the categories of materials: woods, metals and plastics and discover the properties of hardwoods, softwoods and manufactured boards. Students will undertake practical skill projects in a variety of materials, applying a wide range of processes to create high quality, commercial outcomes.

Students will learn how to cut, file, shape and finish a jigsaw puzzle and apply these skills to the manufacture of the Bug Hook under examination conditions.

 

Year 7 Product Design

In product design students will learn about electronics drawing form prior experience at KS2. Students will know and understand energy, electronics, components and how a circuit works. Students will apply this knowledge to a circuit when creating an electronic textile torch using batch production templates and hand stitching skill.

Students will apply basic wood working skill to manufacture a mobile phone holder in the style of De Stijl. This will dovetail knowledge with the engineering curriculum understanding the categories of material. Students will use softwood material to create a Lap Joint. Students will learn to mark out, cut shape and file. Sand, drill, join and finish the mobile phone holder using wood working hand tools, equipment and finishing processes.

 

Year 7 Food Preparation and Nutrition

In Food Preparation and Nutrition (FPN) we introduce students to food safety and hygiene. Students’ practical lessons are sequenced to build on skills, at present we produce coleslaw, apple crumble, scones with homemade butter, crispy chicken wrap, Chow Mein and a roasted vegetable pasta bake. We have two practical assessment points: a baked outcome (scones) and a cooking outcome (vegetable pasta bake). These equip students with a skillset to take forward into year 8. Theory lessons support practical learning as well as embedding key learning such as food spoilage, correct food storage, key temperatures and enzymic browning.

 

Year 7 Homework

The Year 7 Homework Project will build upon prior graphic and analysis skills by the designing and evaluating of a functional mosaic. Parental engagement is encouraged for the manufacturing aspects from home.

 

Year 8 Engineering

Students will conduct a discovery lesson building upon prior knowledge and learning new knowledge through research.

They will apply prior knowledge of metal skills to mark out, cut, shape and form steel to accuracy in a new stock form. From initial skill building students apply skill to manufacture a solar light product. This is an independent project under examination conditions. Differentiated guides are available for support.

 

Year 8 Product Design

Students are to learn about technical aspects of design and the importance of engineering drawing. Students apply their understanding of how to draw to drawing with technical accuracy.

Students apply these skills to the design and development of a laminated desk tidy. Prior learned skills are applied to a range of quality developments and final design. Students apply lamination skills to a block of pine and mark out, cut, shape, drill and apply decorative finishes to a create an innovative marketable product.

 

Year 8 Food Preparation and Nutrition

As students enter year 8, we build on their year 7 learning as well as introducing new learning. We upskill our apple crumble practical from year 7 to produce a fruit pie: embedding the learning deeper and demonstrating more complex technical skills. The fruit pie is our baked assessment outcome. We produce Mac & Cheese, where we learn about gelatinisation and the effect on flour when heated. We also produce a sweet and sour, pizza (this is our cooked assessment outcome where we produce a sauce by reduction as well as forming and shaping a dough). We produce a “burger in a bun” – a popular outcome where we take our learning from the year 7 crispy chicken wrap and introduce another component (the bread roll). Students also produce a frosted carrot cake. Our theory lessons centre around food choice and factors affecting food choice. We learn about culture, British food culture, seasonality, allergens and how cost impacts the food we eat.

 

Year 8 Homework

The Year 8 Homework is a Craft Skills Project where students recognize and access skills beyond the classroom. The task is to make a new product by learning a new skill. Students will know and understand that Design and Technology skills are all around us and that discovering a new skill can be a great way to find out about the people around us as well as what inspires us. Learning a new hobby can have a great impact on positive mental health. Students are to learn a skill, document their progress and manufacture a new product. This is to be evaluated by students with client feedback.

 

Extra-curricular activities

Students have the opportunity to participate in house competitions and activities. Most recently, The Design Festival competition which this year is around the social issues of Homelessness in Nuneaton. Students are researching and designing food dishes, textile products and architectural shelters. This runs alongside the KS4 practical examinations. At KS4 students have the opportunity to gain additional support with their work as well as examination preparation and revision. We also run a KS3 Minecraft club which takes place on a Wednesday lunchtime at different times of the year.

Year 9 Food Preparation and Nutrition

Year 9 further builds on prior learning with an aim to equip our students with not only the life skills food and nutrition has to offer but should the students decide to continue with the food and nutrition education into GCSE. We follow the National Curriculum guidelines and teach a predominantly savoury curriculum. Practical outcomes include meatballs and pasta, sticky toffee pudding with a toffee sauce and a blind-baked shortcrust pastry quiche. This our cooked assessed outcome. We also produce a chocolate star wreath as our baked assessed outcome. This introduces enriched doughs to the students. We also produce a vegetarian curry and Caribbean inspired beef pasties. Our theory elements focus on the nutritional needs of teenagers – where we look at nutritionally, what is needed to support the body. We also delve into how mental health can impact the food we eat.

Year 9 Engineering

Students will apply prior knowledge and skill to manufacture an LED Lamp in the style of mid century iconic designers. Learning about Modern Materials and the Mid Century aesthetic students research into the works of Charles and Ray Eames in collaboration with Vitra. The iconic Eames Elephant stool designed in 1945 originally in Plywood, students manufacture an aluminium Eames Elephant using templates and formers. The two part product is powdercoated and joined using pre manufactured components. Students undertake a second part of the product manufacturing a wooden base with rebates and joints. An LED lighting kit is assembled using electronic tools and equipment. The end outcome is high skilled and manufactured to a quality finish.

Orthographic and Isometric design skills are developed from creative sketches to enable access to KS4 mark schemes.

Year 9 Product Design

In year 9 students will learn about 20th Century Design and understanding aesthetics around design styles. Students will learn how to use CAD programmes to create graphic branding. These skills are examined when drawing, modelling and making mini architectural models of modernist architecture.  

CAD skills are an essential key component of KS4 Engineering. These skills will enable students to flourish at KS4.

Students also undertake a Sweet Dispenser project; marking out, cutting, shaping, drilling and finishing softwood material. The product fully functions with a simple moving mechanism.

Year 9 Transition Homework

Students who opt for Engineering at KS4 are given a brief to disassemble, design and manufacture a lamp over the summer holiday. This is a challenging but exciting brief which encourages working with adults beyond the classroom. Historically we have had incredible results and students produce high quality commercial outcomes. During the first part of year 10 students share their work in an adult university style critique. Work is exhibited at the Open Evening each autumn term.

Year 10 Engineering

Year 10 students are introduced to the Cambridge National Specification, meeting the department’s vision: standards and expectations for high quality outcomes throughout the duration of the course.

During R039, engineers will analyse a range of products within the existing market.

Engineers will respond to briefs (Ro39) when designing and evaluating existing solutions before creating initial sketches. Engineers will develop a wide range of potential design ideas through 2d and 3d developments.  With enhanced knowledge of the Design Cycle, engineers will validate their design using primary research methods and optimize their products, modifying in light of client feedback. Prior knowledge is applied in modelling and development independently, optimizing product detail which will complete with isometric, orthographic and exploded views of the final proposal. Engineers will create assembly drawings knowing and understanding processes such as injection moulding.

Engineers will create 3d visual representations using CAD software and demonstrate a wide range of skill to communicate the final proposal in detail.

  

Extra-curricular activities

Students are offered 121, small group and whole class catch up sessions to ensure all students have the opportunity to thrive.

Targeted intervention is also utilized to support progress, apprenticeship applications and revision.

Targeted intervention is also utilized to support progress, apprenticeship applications and revision.

 

Year 11 Engineering

Year 11 Engineers will respond to the examiner brief in R040 and evaluate a range of existing products through primary and secondary analysis. Engineers will disassemble a product and analyse its shape, form, circuitry, components and production methods evaluating and drawing conclusion.

Engineers are to develop detailed and skilled CAD drawing of the product and plan its production in preparation for a 10 hour practical manufacturing examination.

Students will draw upon prior knowledge of skill and manufacturing methods throughout KS3 and KS4 to understand and know the complexities of assembly. Production plans will be produced and dovetailed to ensure good and outstanding progress within the 10 hour intense practical timeframe.

A 10 hour practical examination will take place under examination conditions to allow students to independently manufacture outcomes using a wide range of skill, material and process. Further sequences of lessons will ensure product completion, evaluation, testing and refinement. This is an opportunity for students to access understanding about manufacturing within a real world adult learning context.

Engineers will reflect upon a wide range of knowledge from theoretical and skill-based projects to access a broad range of examination content in preparation for the Design Engineering Examination.

 

 

Year 10 Food Preparation and Nutrition

Year 10 FPN builds on the GCSE specification content and the 6 content areas food commodities, principles of nutrition, diet and good health, the science of food, where food comes from and cooking and food preparation. Practical outcomes support the theory learning as well as continue to build on the technical skills. Our aim in year 10 is to build up the student’s repertoire which they can then use in year 11. Learning is assessed through a range of assessed practical outcomes, trial exams, mock NEA tasks and topic tests.

 

Year 11 Food Preparation and Nutrition

Year 11 FPN is focused on the completion of NEA (Non-Exam Assessment) and preparing for their summer written examination. NEA 1 is introduced in the autumn term. NEA 1 is the Food Investigation Assessment and is worth 15% of the overall GCSE qualification. This comprises of a written report following a practical investigation focused on how ingredients function within a food product. NEA 2 is worth 35% and is the Food Practical Assessment. NEA 2 requires students to respond to a set brief and produce 3 dishes, and accompaniments which they produce within a 3-hour period. This assessment takes place early in the spring term and has become a superb school showcase of the students work and skills! To complete the qualification students, sit a written examination in the summer term of year 11. This is worth 50% of their overall qualification.

 

Extra-curricular activities

Students are offered 121, small group and whole class catch up sessions to ensure all students have the opportunity to thrive.

Targeted intervention is also utilized to support progress, apprenticeship applications and revision.

A TEMPLE, Subject Leader for Design & Technology

For further details on this subject, please feel free to email us contactus@highamlaneschool.co.uk

Options 2025

 

Year 10 Design Idea Generation Playlist

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Year 11 R040 Playlist

 

Stitching videos 

 

Craft Skill Year 8