DT

At Ripon Rural Partnership, our DT curriculum equips children with the creative thinking, imagination, and practical hands-on experiences they need to succeed in later life. We aim to nurture not just makers, but thoughtful designers who can solve real-world problems.  

From EYFS through to Year 6, children develop both practical skills and technical vocabulary across four key pillars:

• Design: Developing innovative, purposeful products for specific users.

• Make: Using a wide range of practical tools, components, textiles, and fresh ingredients safely.

• Evaluate: Critically analysing existing products and reflecting on their own creations.

• Technical Knowledge: Understanding how to build strong structures and use mechanical systems like gears and pulleys.

Delivery of DT

• Blocked Weeks: We teach DT in intensive, week-long blocks three times a year, letting children fully immerse themselves in the creative process.

• Two-Year Cycle: To support our mixed-age classes, we run a rolling curriculum to ensure all National Curriculum expectations are met without repetition.

• Annual Cooking: While other topics rotate, Cooking and Nutrition is taught every year to build essential, healthy life skills.

  
  

A Map of Learning

Our DT Long Term Plan outlines how projects build in complexity over time:

• Textiles: Children progress from large-scale mesh weaving in Early Years to mastering running stitches, cultural embroidery, and collaborative quilt building.

• Mechanisms & Structures: Pupils construct floating boats, historical water-lifting mechanisms, and dynamic stage models using split pins, levers, linkages, and cams.

• Cooking & Nutrition: Children learn vital food safety alongside techniques like the "bridge" and "claw" cutting grips while preparing local harvest salads, warm puddings, and festive shortbread.

Inclusion, Safety, and Sharing

We ensure DT is accessible to all learners through visual vocabulary support, adaptive recording methods, and supportive small-group work. Pupil safety is always paramount, with teachers strictly modeling tool safety and adhering to rigorous allergy and food hygiene rules.