Design and technology
Design specification: a desk tidy
Write a design brief and measurable ACCESS FM specification that respond to a user’s stated needs and can be tested.
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Design and Technology teacher
Nathan Boateng
When something does not stand up or function as intended, we can ask why, identify a constraint and try another solution.
Explore the collectionA little about me
I teach Design and Technology from Year 7 to IGCSE. A design that looks convincing on a screen still has to work when it is made. Pupils need to handle materials, notice where a structure fails and decide what to change. That practical feedback is an important part of the subject.
I want them to see testing as a source of information rather than a verdict on their ability. When something does not stand up or function as intended, we can ask why, identify a constraint and try another solution. The result gives us evidence to take back into the design process.
I look for resources that connect planning with making and give pupils a reason to evaluate their choices. Design and Technology is more than drawing an idea neatly; it involves materials, construction and iteration. I value tasks where pupils can explain what they built, what happened and what their next version might improve.
How I approach a lesson
Move between design planning and physical testing.
Treat failure as information about the design.
Ask pupils to connect a revision with the evidence they observed.
Templates I'd use with my class
Explore these templates and decide what fits your own setting.
Design and technology
Compare materials: test, rank and choose
Compare material properties using consistent tests and justify a product choice with recorded evidence.
Design and technology
Product testing and evaluation
Test a prototype against specified criteria, record results and use evidence from tests and user feedback to justify an evaluation.
Design and technology
Technical drawing practice grid
Use vertical and 30-degree isometric directions to draw solid forms, organise orthographic views in third-angle layout and explain what the views show.