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18/07/25

Ms. Pinney has been busy sharing some well-deserved treats today. pic.twitter.com/3tp0e8UUXA

17/07/25

Group B update: ETA back to the academy is 50 minutes.

17/07/25

Group B update: thankfully both buses have left camp! ETA back to the academy is 3:30pm.

17/07/25

Group B update: bushcraft time! 🌴 pic.twitter.com/UH0pTshXN8

17/07/25

Group B update: 5am get up for some students this morning.. safe to say staff were extremely pleased to hear their voice as an alarm! Good morning from camp pic.twitter.com/jCPxekmzsZ

16/07/25

Group B update: good night from Mr Yerou, Ms Richardson and camp! 🔥 pic.twitter.com/WmZWPpfb8y

16/07/25

Group B update: Rootd’s got talent! As you can see the bar is extremely high… pic.twitter.com/9bq9aE92kj

16/07/25

Group B update: staff have 0 voice… but students have plenty of energy this evening! pic.twitter.com/hZPyJZGymJ

16/07/25

Group B update: dinner ✅ talent show time! pic.twitter.com/GDbgEDiZTm

16/07/25

Group B update: dinner time 🥘

16/07/25

Group B update: the teachers staff room… pic.twitter.com/nZXdoVVeR6

16/07/25

Group B update: action shots from this afternoon! pic.twitter.com/LfdWUCSHKP

16/07/25

Group B update: shout out to Hannah T who made it to the top of the rock! pic.twitter.com/3yKdX6l6BC

16/07/25

Group A update: coach 1 ETA 10 mins. Coach 2 ETA is 4:45pm. Parents should have received a text if their child is on coach 2.

16/07/25

Group B update: Harry J in action! 🧗 pic.twitter.com/8SSClzgZct

16/07/25

Group A update: one coach will be arriving back to school at approximately 3:30pm. The other coach is still on its way to the site and we will not be leaving until 3pm approx. This means half the group will be back an hour later than planned. Please look out for a text

16/07/25

Group A update: one of the coaches is on its way back to the academy. The other is still arriving to camp so half of the group will be delayed.

16/07/25

Group B update: Ms Carvall’s group about to take part in archery 🎯 pic.twitter.com/LwsmxVMg1u

16/07/25

Group B and A update: lovely to have both groups together for lunch.. group A will be leaving shortly after (approximately 2pm).. group B will be setting off to start their activities! pic.twitter.com/OLMNlzohjN

16/07/25

Group B update: the sun is shining ☀️ pic.twitter.com/5osYaiFnRO

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Harris Academies
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Design Technology

Curriculum intent

At Harris Academy Beckenham we want to create a diverse curriculum which is intrinsically linked to and fully embodies our learning ethos: Resilience, Resourcefulness, Reflectiveness and Resilience.

Our intention is to inspire our students with a love for all things D&T to allow them to become confident individuals with inquisitive minds who will have the courage, skills and knowledge to thrive in the 21st century. 

From a very young age children teach themselves how to draw, paint, build or fix things when they are broken without being shown or taught these skills. Through the delivery of our Design Technology curriculum students are better prepared to deal with tomorrow’s ever changing world.

D&T encourages children to become independent, creative problem-solvers and thinkers as individuals and as part of a team - making positive changes to their quality of life. It enables them to identify needs and opportunities and to respond to them by developing a range of ideas and by making products and systems.

We wish to instil a curiosity within our students which means they will ask questions and seek answers when creating new ideas, acquiring new skills and draw on disciplines such as mathematics, science, engineering, computing and art. We challenge students with engaging design briefs and instil a sense of curiosity within the students by enabling them to create work of their own inspired by well know designers, architects or engineers such as Philippe Starck, Charlotte Perriand, Zaha Hadid to name a few.

Finally, developing our students’ sense of appreciation for the design/creative industry supports them in finding their own identity as young designers, enabling them to develop a greater sense of self- awareness and affirming their own ideologies or perception of what design really is. Design and technology offer children a chance to use creative thinking and activity within a defined purpose and tangible outcome. It can be found in many of the object’s children use each day and is a part of children’s immediate experiences.

For further details of the Design & Technology curriculum please see the documents at the bottom of the page or contact Ms. N. Ruddock.


Implementation

Key Stage 3

During Year 7 students are taught as part of a ‘carousel’ system, where classes of students rotate around the D&T staff and classrooms every ten weeks.  In Design and Technology students are given the opportunity experiment, gain confidence and new skills through project based learning.

Each project allows access to a range of different practical learning opportunities with a focus on Health and Safety, outcomes and processes. All units aim to raise the students’ sense of achievement by creating finished products of high quality. Students gain understanding on the importance of accuracy and practice to create outcomes values by them. Working in a confined space together, sharing tools and equipment means that students need to be considerate and aware of health and safety implementations. D&T creates a big sense of team work allowing students to create together, help each other and take inspiration from each other.

Food Preparation and Nutrition is an exciting and creative course which focuses on practical cooking skills to ensure students develop a thorough understanding of nutrition, food provenance and the working characteristics of food materials.

Key Stage 4

At Key Stage 4 we also have a varied offer for our examined options ensuring that we are inclusive for all students who wish to follow a design technology or hospitality-based route. Extending the project based approach from KS3, students:

  • Design and make products for key events and individuals that have influenced the world of Design Technology are teaching focuses that are to be covered.
  • The use of computer programmes and applications are also a key focus to be utilised by children in their design of their products.

The GCSE course in year 10 and year 11 is taught by subject specialists to enable students to look at the design problems we can solve. And in doing this we will look at learning outcomes not projects. We want students to be able to define design problems for themselves and address the solutions to them. The designing activities undertaken will enable our students to consider the needs of individuals and society within both our own community and the wider world.

We give our students opportunities to use a wide range of materials and processes and to work both independently and as part of a team.


Impact

We will know the impact of the curriculum we have planned through the delivery of a high-quality education, quality assured through qualitative and quantitative measures such as:

  • Attainment and Achievement outcomes. The final measurable outcomes achieved by the students that we teach will be a clear indication of the quality of our Design and Technology curriculum.  This can also be used as a measure of the standard of teaching and learning within the subject.
  • Assessments. Assessment of children's learning in Design Technology is an ongoing monitoring of children's understanding, knowledge and skills by the class teacher, throughout lessons. This assessment is then used to inform differentiation, support and challenge required by the children. Summative assessment is conducted termly to inform the teacher of progress or skills and knowledge still to be embedded.
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