Intent

At Ovingham Middle School, Technology has been designed to allow the key elements of designing, analysing, making, testing and evaluating to be taught across all years, disciplines and projects. Designing and making products should be exciting, inventive and fun. Pupils at Ovingham Middle will develop lifelong practical skills with an understanding of aesthetics, social and environmental issues and industrial practices, as they are encouraged to become the innovators of tomorrow!  They will become proficient at critiquing their own ideas and products as well as those created by others.  We want our pupils to develop resilience when faced with a problem, be honest when things go wrong and demonstrate excellence when challenged.  

We believe that Technology is about making things that people want and that work well. It is about understanding the user and the importance of producing high quality products to satisfy the consumers’ demands and expectations.  Pupils will experience a range of processes to make products where individual outcomes are encouraged  and design development is ongoing. They carousel through different topics and spend 10 weeks at each.  At KS2, pupils are introduced to the specialist classrooms and learn about basic foundation skills that they will build upon in KS3. Pupils’ focus is on the iterative design process. This will include materials and properties as well as designing and making for a purpose.  At Key Stage 3, pupils are encouraged to be creative, explore materials and technologies and take risks through a variety of practical tasks. Students combine these practical skills with an understanding of wider world issues.

Our curriculum is designed to prepare students for the necessary skills needed for Design and Technology at high school.  The complexity of learning increases as students progress throughout our school, allowing them to build on prior knowledge and skills, ensuring they are ready for the next stage of their education.