D&T at St. Joseph's

Intent

At St Joseph’s, our Design and Technology curriculum enables children to become imaginative, confident and resilient designers who use their God‑given gifts to solve real problems. Through practical, meaningful contexts, pupils develop the technical knowledge and creative skills needed to design, make and evaluate purposeful products. By exploring designers and innovations from the past and present, including those from our local heritage, children gain a deeper understanding of how design shapes the world and their own capacity to contribute positively to it.

Implementation

Our Design and Technology curriculum aims to excite and ignite pupils’ interest in design and prepare them to participate confidently in a rapidly changing world. From Years 1 to 6, learning is structured around six key areas:

Threshold concepts are taught sequentially over time, enabling children to develop secure technical knowledge, skills and understanding from EYFS to Year 6. To ensure depth and breadth, these concepts and areas are embedded through three design projects per year group.

 Design

 Make

 Evaluate

 Technical Knowledge

Each project is supported by a planning resource document that helps teachers deliver the curriculum consistently and effectively. These resources are grounded in universal principles of high‑quality D&T teaching. Every project includes opportunities for pupils to undertake Investigative and Evaluative Activities, Focused Tasks, and Design, Make and Evaluate Assignments so they experience the full design process.

Impact

As a result of our Design & Technology curriculum, children:

  • Become confident, creative and resilient designers, able to solve real problems with imagination, purpose and technical accuracy.
  • Apply a secure body of knowledge about materials, structures, mechanisms, electrical systems and food, enabling them to design and make high‑quality products.
  • Evaluate and refine their ideas thoughtfully, using design criteria, testing and user feedback to improve their work.
  • Develop strong practical skills, using tools, equipment and digital technologies safely and effectively to bring their ideas to life.
  • Understand the impact of design and technology on society, the environment and everyday life, preparing them for future learning, STEM opportunities and responsible citizenship.

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DT Careers at St. Joseph's

Studying Design and Technology at St Joseph’s opens doors to a wide range of innovative, technical and creative careers. Pupils explore opportunities to become engineers, product designers, architects, food technologists, programmers, technicians, carpenters, fashion and textile designers, or work in robotics, manufacturing, construction, digital design and beyond. By developing their problem‑solving skills, technical knowledge and creativity through our curriculum and enrichment experiences, children are encouraged to dream big, persevere and recognise how their God‑given talents can shape the technologies and solutions of the future and across the world. 

We use a combination of BBC Bitesize Careers videos and My Path ‘Job of the Week’, ‘Why Bother?’ and 'Job Summary' videos, alongside learning about significant people and welcoming visits from experts and local professionals.