Design Technology at Hartford 2026

OUR INTENT - What We Teach In Design Technology

Design & Technology at Hartford helps children become creative, confident problem‑solvers who understand how products are designed to improve everyday life. Pupils learn key technical knowledge, designing skills, making skills and evaluative skills through meaningful, real‑world projects.

By Year 6, pupils can design for a purpose, use tools accurately, apply mechanical and electrical systems, and evaluate their work thoughtfully. Our golden threads—creativity, problem‑solving, evaluation, and real‑world relevance—run through every unit. Children learn that they can shape the world around them through thoughtful design.

OUR IMPLEMENTATION - How We Teach Design Technology

Our curriculum is carefully sequenced from EYFS to Year 6, building from early exploration of materials to increasingly sophisticated projects.

Teaching follows a consistent structure:

• Investigative and Evaluative Activities

• Focused Tasks

• Design, Make and Evaluate assignments

Each lesson begins with a clear explanation of what D&T is and includes vocabulary teaching, modelling, retrieval of prior learning and opportunities to learn from mistakes. All pupils are supported through scaffolding, demonstrations and structured language, while challenge is provided through open‑ended design briefs.

Enrichment includes visitors, workshops, STEM events and links to real designers, engineers and makers.

OUR IMPACT - What Our Children Learn in Design Technology

Pupils leave Hartford with strong practical skills, the ability to think creatively and critically, and the confidence to take risks and persevere. They can discuss, design, make and evaluate products with increasing independence and accuracy.

D&T nurtures curiosity, resilience and pride in craftsmanship, preparing pupils for the next stage of their education and helping them understand how design shapes the wider world.

The Curriculum Lead for DT is: Lizzie Williams