DT - Key Stage 3

Our Year 7 Projects are used as introductions to key areas of design and technology and basic workshop skills providing a foundation from which to build in future years. These provide a taster into all the areas of technology so students have a more informed decision on the subject when it comes to choosing their GCSE options.  

Projects are designed to give students knowledge of some of the most important aspects of the subject. Skills are, arguably, transferable to real life and help develop the student irrespective of whether to study the subject at KS4 or not. 

These units also introduce students to the essential design and communication skills required to think about producing simple products that solve a need and developing such projects to meet the wants of a particular user group.

Projects are designed to reinforce the basic tenets of designing for the wants and needs of the user and using language to describe the physical properties of materials and attempt to relate material properties to the desired function of a product. Such concepts are the foundation of good design - without a knowledge of how to design to a user's wants and needs and an understanding of the properties of materials, it is difficult for students to design meaningfully. 

 Half Term 1 - Induction Graphics Project

Students learn some of the basics of good design communication and start to develop 3-dimensional drawing skills. The pop-up card project introduces the Papers & Boards (Graphics) area of Design & Technology and allows the students to meet the needs of their chosen user to produce a working pop-up card for a celebration event of their choice. This unit covers the design process so students know the main stages in design strategy which is essential to being able to design and make successful future projects.

Half term 2 and 3 - Pewter Keyfob Project

Pewter introduces materials properties and key language around alloys and metal. It also introduces students to batch and mass production. This project also provides basic hand-working skills, some simple design theory, and an introduction to the most commonly used workshop tools without the need to work with too much precision. The students then are introduced to Computer Aided Design and Computer Aided Manufacture (CAD and CAM). They use a  software package to draw their high-quality mould which is laser cut before the pewter is then poured in lesson time for students to experience the process.

This unit delivers some key aspects of the subject: the ability to describe material properties and an understanding of how common materials work with the ability to relate physical properties to intended purpose. 

This unit revisits the design process, reinforcing the students' knowledge of the main stages in design strategy and reinforces the skills of identifying user wants and needs. As well as writing strong specifications to clarify design thinking (and also a bedrock of designing), students will also have the opportunity to develop designs (another critical strand that runs through the subject) to produce high-quality outcomes that should meet the needs of the user.

Students move on to designing packaging for their keyfob using a graphical design software that continues the concept of CAD and CAM with graphical CAD skills to produce the promotional material for their keyfob and manufacture it The students also start to understand polymers and their use in packaging. The unit looks at the importance of understanding the environmental impact of this material and its sustainable credentials.

Half term 4 and 5 - Recycled Polymers Zoetrope Project

Recycling existing materials and using them in products is one strategy being widely used across the world today to help secure finite resources for future generations. This project introduces this concept through the use of recycled milk bottles and tops to produce a Zoetrope. 

The Zoetrope was originally invented by Eadweard Muybridge a local resident of Kingston upon Thames to showcase the motion of animals including horses at the Epsom Derby. This insight both into the rich culture of the area and the culture around the reuse of materials deepens concepts relating to sustainability and the value of recycling as one of the responses to the environmental impact of everyday plastics. 

Through this project, students will experience the reprocessing of these materials which will enable the manufacture of sheet material through heat processes. This leads to practical methods where students will become proficient in the use of hand tools to create a meaningful object out of seemingly regular materials and standard components. The processes covered through this project will allow students to master key tools in the workshop whilst channeling extensive knowledge gained around polymers and their characteristics which make them a valuable resource for understanding our throwaway culture.

Half Term 6 - Textiles

This topic introduces students to Textiles working processes and the physical properties of these materials. This project covers the requirements of the knowledge required for KS3 and provides sufficient practical knowledge to allow students to develop this at KS4 through the required theory.

This project also reinforces or introduces the main design concepts of specification and designing for users' wants and needs (a vital aspect of the subject) - without an understanding of this process, it is difficult for students to access the subject at KS4. Student’s identity and representations are explored and expressed. Global companies are included in the project as a client to identify possible real-life scenarios.

This project also reinforces the language of describing correctly the physical properties of materials relating to textiles and gives students an understanding of the materials that comprise the clothing they wear. The origins and sustainability issues around textiles are covered. 

By offering our students experience in Graphics and Resistant Materials areas of Design and Technology, as well as Food Preparation and Nutrition in Year 8, it means that we have to carousel the students through these on a termly basis. In Design and Technology, projects are used as introductions to key areas of the subject and include basic workshop skills providing a foundation from which to build in future years and providing a taster into all the areas of technology so students have a more informed decision on the subject when it comes to their options choices in Year 9.  

The projects in Year 8 develop some of the skills learned in year 7 (communication skills, materials properties and where they come from) but also has more of a focus on making skills, precision and working from working drawings.

This year is about developing student’s ability to build and understand the workshop tools and associated health and safety so they are more able to build the products they design. Projects this year teach students to be able to read working drawings so they are able to interpret these correctly. This skill is then developed at KS4 when students have to produce their own working drawings for the projects that they develop. This is a cornerstone of most manufacturing industries as drawings convey all important information in these sectors.

Students will experience:

Resistant Materials - Rattle and Electronics Project

The Rattle project really challenges practical skills, covering marking out, hand tools and the wood lathe. It also provides an opportunity to look at drawing skills and how to read technical drawings which is a requirement for KS4.

This area looks at timber, how it is produced, sustainability and working properties. This topic looks in more detail at one of the most common workshop materials and which students will almost certainly use if they study the subject at KS4, but also an increasingly common material in everyday life due the “green” credentials this material tends to have over all others. Timber will become increasingly important as a designer’s material.

Graphics - The Natural Energy Drink and Passive Speaker Projects

These projects enable students to design and make a graphical focussed label following the established and important design process. Target market, primary and secondary research, analysis and specifications are covered. Social and moral issues are also explored. Nutrition, consumers’ relationships with marketing and the cost of products are investigated.  Skills such as drawing by hand and using CAD to produce high-quality mock-ups are further extended in this project. Relevant theory areas including paper and board properties, environmental issues such as the impact of materials on the environment and laser printing processes are covered. The students are introduced to A3 pages which replicate the GCSE coursework but in a more simple format. They will practise presenting coursework style pages and a mock-up.  Hand skills such as cutting accurately, and selecting and applying adhesives correctly.

Students combine both graphical skills and workshop practical skills in this project to create a passive speaker that is designed for a chosen end user. The project fully introduces ‘REUSE’ as a sustainable strategy and helps students understand its advantages over the well understood ‘RECYCLE’ that society is well versed in. By reusing a card tube to produce the passive speaker effect, the students use their practical skills to make the stand to hold the speaker and then design a unique theme to personalise it using CAD CAM techniques. CAD skills are developed by experiencing different programmes starting with a basic label on Canva then progressing to Photopea which includes dimensions and a wider range of software tools etc.

By offering our students experience in a wide range of Design and Technology areas as well as Food Preparation and Nutrition, before the option choices later in Year 9, means that we have to carousel the students through the areas on a half termly basis. In Design and Technology, projects are used to reinforce the previous learning in key areas of the subject and include providing a greater understanding of all the areas of technology so students can make a more informed decision on the subject when it comes to their  options choices.  

The projects in Year 9 develop the knowledge and skills learned in Years 7 and 8 including designing, communication skills, materials properties, CAD/CAM and hand skills.

This year is about developing and deepening student’s understanding of the hard and soft skills that are required to be successful at GCSE in our subject. Students will further develop current contextual CAD skills whilst experiencing industry recognised 3D Design Software and additive manufacturing for the first time in the use of 3D Printers.

Students will experience:

Rotation 1 - up to Spring Half Term

Graphics - Mechanism Photopea Project

This project is used to reinforce previous learning, through the use of 2D CAD, as well as providing an introduction to a CAD based mechanism project which will involve correctly reading technical drawings to construct a mechanism. The design process is followed as a basic version in preparation for GCSE NEA. The associated theory requires students to learn technical drawing and mechanical principles.  This project builds on the CAD skills from Year 7 (by developing far more advanced 2D drawing to enable the use of the laser cutter) while introducing students to reading and redrawing technical drawings to ensure a comprehensive understanding of the subject.  These skills will also be required for the NEA and it provides a practical solution to teaching the mechanism unit required for the examination. 

Resistant Materials - Book Ends

The book end project revisits the skills and knowledge of working with, and joining, timber materials. The students are challenged with identifying a real world user and designing their book end to meet the user's needs and wants, a primary aspect of ‘User Centred Design’ used at Key Stage 4 and 5 and in the design world. The students will need to find strong inspiration from their user and design their bookends to be striking and high quality using the skills and techniques that they have developed throughout their journey in Key Stage 3.

Rotation 2 - Spring half term 2 and Summer term

Resistant Materials - 3D CAD/CAM Rocket Project

The rocket project gives the students an opportunity to learn the basics of an industry recognised 3D Design Software package to help design and manufacture a part for their water-powered space rocket. The students will make a rocket that will be launched into the air to see whose rocket flies the best. The project will incorporate recycled elements as well as 3D printed parts with a real focus on competitive designing!

Graphics - Sports Flyer CAD project

Students move on to designing Sports branded promotional goods. Using a graphical design software that continues the concept of CAD and CAM with graphical CAD skills to produce the promotional material for their sports brands and manufacture it. Onshape and 3D printing tasks enable students to widen their selection and use of materials and tools. The students also understand polymers and their use and impact on the globe. The introduction of biodegradable polymers and the development of new materials. The unit looks at the importance of understanding the environmental impact of this material and its sustainable credentials. Moral and social issues are explored, such as ‘green washing’, peer pressure to buy brands etc. as well as the impact on the environment with so much advertising and promotional goods being produced.