Digital Design

Learners will further develop their understanding and skills of spreadsheet software by designing a range of spreadsheets, one of which will focus on managing money. In addition, learners will consolidate their understanding of the dangers linked to the internet by creating a website aimed at teenagers to outline important topics, such as cyberbullying, grooming and sexting.

STEM

Learners will be looking at different forms of energy. As the year goes on they will concentrate on electrical energy and its methods of production both by fossil fuels as well as green energy sources. Through a range of experiments using various models of different energy production methods. Learners will be able to test both the effectiveness of these forms of energy production as well as be able to make comparisons between them. Later in the year learners will then look at insulation and the importance of insulation to architecture in order to save wasting the energy that has been produced in order to heat buildings. Again learners will be conducting experiments to compare various forms of insulation used in construction.

Design technology

Pupils are currently assembling their solar powered light cubes having completed a range of practical tasks using both hand tools and power tools as well as a digital work booklet in Google classroom. This project will be taken home in the coming lessons. In the next unit of work which will be started after the Christmas holidays learners will be working in Google classroom researching and specifying requirements for a design project that develops both sketching skills as well as introducing 2D Computer Aided Design to create drawings which can then be cut out using a laser cutter allowing them to create their final product to take home. Later this term learners will be designing a computer game character based on retro 8 and 16 bit style graphics. This character will then be laser cut out and made into a promotional keyring. Later in the year the same character will be used in a computer game that the learners will be programming using Scratch computer programming language in Digital Design and Technology lessons. Pupils will also use giant bamboo to create a passive speaker for use with their phones, the project will cover many sustainability issues including carbon footprint and eco design. Finally pupils will design and make a solar powered light cube which makes use of both hand tools used last year, machine tools and CAM CAM technology.

Textiles

Learners will be looking into the textile industry and understanding of the environmental impact it is having on the planet.  Learners will understand the different types of fibres, they will explore natural, synthetic and microfibres and make their own opinions on which fibres are best to use for the planet. Learners will look into a few case studies to gain an insight into some of the impact the textiles industry has had on the environment as well as lives. Pupils will make sustainable decisions when planning and making their project based on their research.

Science

Learners begin the year with ‘Enquiry Processes 2’ in order to further their understanding of the way scientists collect and analyze evidence. Included in the second topic, ‘Waves 1’, are opportunities to find out how sound and light travel and how ears and eyes work. This topic combines physics with an element of biology. Towards the end of this term, learners will begin the chemistry topic,  ‘Matter 2’. Here they will learn the differences between elements, compounds and mixtures and will move on to begin studying groups of elements in the periodic table.

 

Digital Design

During the spring term students will use a range of programming applications to help them understand and identify the code that is needed to perform particular actions.  They will learn about loops/repetitions and how these can be used to make the code more efficient. They will then see how a condition can be used with a loop to make a set of instructions only happen if a certain criteria is met. Furthemore, students will start to understand how databases are created and used in businesses.

STEM/Digital Technology/Textiles

Students will be completing a blended learning activity looking at ergonomic design of seating.  The project will bring together a range of skills and activities connected with DT, Textiles and STEM lessons and be delivered via Loom pre-recorded sessions that students can view /review.  Lessons will bring together investigating, designing, problem solving, design skills, practical skills and extended project based blended learning.  Students will begin by learning some basic principles of good and bad ergonomic design of seating as well as the impact that ergonomics has on design and engineering.  They will then look at a series of design eras, before designing and writing a specification that can be applied to a range of seating in the style of that era.   Students will then make use of their new found knowledge of ergonomic design and make an ‘ergonome’ to aid them in developing their seating proposal.  After that we will look at and practice modeling a scale version of a seat again making use of the ergonome that students have made in previous activities.

As students develop their seating concept they will problem solve their way through card prototypes and then make use of these new card modeling skills to create a scale card prototype of their final idea.

Once they have a final model they will need to consider a range of finishing applications including upholstery choice, sort furnishing design and materials selection based on knowledge gained from a range of research activities.  Finally, students will need to explain a number of planning considerations that they took account of while making their prototype and evaluate the models final outcome both as a designer as well as seeking ‘client feedback’ on their work considering what they will ask the potential client and then interviewing them. 

Science

Learners begin the spring term with Matter 2. Included in this topic are opportunities to investigate the elements that make up the world around us and how they are arranged in the periodic table. Towards the end of this term, learners will begin the  topic Genes where pupils will learn to explain how reproduction, mutations and the environment can lead to variation and adaptations within organisms which can affect their chances of survival. Continuing with the iDiscover theme ‘Protecting planet Earth’ we will then move on to the topic Earth 2 where pupils discover how our actions have altered the carbon cycle and led to climate change along with the effects we have on Earth whilst collecting resources and what we can do to protect the Earth for future generations.

STEM

Learners will be looking at different forms of energy. As the year goes on they will concentrate on electrical energy and its methods of production both by fossil fuels as well as green energy sources. Through a range of experiments using various models of different energy production methods. Learners will be able to test both the effectiveness of these forms of energy production as well as be able to make comparisons between them. Later in the year learners will then look at insulation and the importance of insulation to architecture in order to save wasting the energy that has been produced in order to heat buildings. Again learners will be conducting experiments to compare various forms of insulation used in construction.

TEXTILES

Learners will continue to look at the textile industry and understand the environmental impact it is having on the planet.  Learners will understand the different types of fibres, they will explore natural, synthetic and microfibres and make their own opinions on which fibres are best to use for the planet. Learners will look into a few case studies to gain an insight into some of the impact the textiles industry has had on the environment as well as lives. Learners will make sustainable decisions when planning and making their project based on their research.

DT

Learners will be working on building a passive speaker for their phones from Giant Bamboo using  a range of practical tasks using both hand tools and power tools as well as a digital work booklet in Google classroom. This project will be taken home in the coming lessons. Learners will be working in Google classroom researching and specifying requirements for a design project that develops both sketching skills as well as introducing 2D Computer Aided Design to create drawings which can then be cut out using a laser cutter allowing them to create their final product to take home. The project will cover many sustainability issues including carbon footprint and eco design.

SCIENCE

Learners begin the summer term with the topic Genes where pupils will learn to explain how reproduction, mutations and the environment can lead to variation and adaptations within organisms which can affect their chances of survival. Continuing with the iDiscover theme ‘Protecting planet Earth’ we will then move on to the topic Earth 2 where pupils discover how our actions have altered the carbon cycle and led to climate change along with the effects we have on Earth whilst collecting resources and what we can do to protect the Earth for future generations.

DIGITAL DESIGN

During the summer term students will understand how basic games are designed using drag and drop code. They will start to understand how to use code to perform simple instructions, such as moving the character up, down, left and right. Students will then progress into deeper understanding of more advanced code, such as getting their characters to switch costumes, adding scoring systems, etc. They will learn how code can be simplified by using loops/repetition. Students will use this knowledge and understanding to design their own game from beginning to end.