Design and Technology at Painsley is about encouraging, teaching and inspiring children and young people to:
- Develop and enjoy their creative abilities
- Develop high quality thinking and making skills
- Pay attention to detail
- Have confidence to experiment and make informed decisions
- Understand and use a wide range of materials
- Work independently
- Evaluate critically and suggest modifications to take ideas, products and systems forward
“Technology lessons are really fun! The projects we do are really interesting. They may be hard work, but it doesn’t feel like it because we all have so much fun doing them and using our creative minds to create something in real life! Best lesson ever!” (a year 9 student)
We have a team of committed specialist staff and suite of specialist rooms. The department is very integrated in its approach and staff work closely together to deliver a high quality curriculum including: Food, Graphics, Resistant Materials, Systems and Textiles. Each material area is equally valued and builds on the experiences and learning gained in other materials areas. We aim to allow our students the freedom to develop their skills within a safe and structured working environment. We use a range of short term focussed tasks as well as longer term projects where students respond to a given brief to design and then make their designed product. All projects are grounded in industrial practice and set in real life contexts. Key issues such as accuracy, safety and sustainability run through all projects and materials areas.
Our suite of rooms include:
- Food - with 6 cooking stations, 4 computer workstations, 2 industrial refrigerators and a blast chiller.
- Graphics - with 24 workstations and a CNC Vinyl cutter.
- Resistant Materials/ Systems and Control - 2 workshops with a wide range of machine and hand tools including 2 CNC routers and a laser cutter. There is also a wood cutting room where our technician can use more the dangerous machines to prepare resources safely.
- Textiles – a large purpose built room with a range of sewing machines, computer workstations and work surfaces.
Our teaching is ably supported by 2 talented technicians.
What is Design and Technology?What is Design and Technology?
“Technology is the application of scientific and other knowledge to practical tasks by organizations that involve people and machines”
“It is the study of how things in our lives have been made”
Design and Technology is essentially about providing opportunities for students to develop their capability through combining their designing and making skills with knowledge and understanding to create high quality products.
