This resource is designed to teach a range of traditional and modern manufacturing skills which combine to make a desktop ‘gadget’. You may be limited by time or resources and it would be difficult to cover all of these skills in depth during KS3 or even KS4. There are 12 different skills or processes here, but there is the potential for many more to be introduced, incorporated or addressed. They cover: Pewter casting Vacuum forming Marking out wood Shaping and drilling wood Cutting a knuckle joint Forming metal rod Vinyl cutting 3D CAD and 3D printing Cutting a housing joint Threading rod Thermoforming (line bending) Laser cutting Assembling the Skills Bot The resource contains instructions for the whole project as well as individual PDF presentations that can be projected in class or printed as handouts. Also included are individual technical drawings for each components to make class hand outs easier to produce. There is limited design work with this resource, although there are opportunities to customise or personalise some elements. It is intended to cover a range of skills that are commonly used in Design and Technology.

These resources are additional ‘breakout’ style lessons to support the various aspects of the course. This resource consists of: EX1: Introduction to lateral thinking EX2: Products and prototypes EX3: An ugly prototype EX4: Development methodology EX5: Ergonomics EX6: Communication methods These will be included in the full bundle. Additional lessons will be added in due course and there may be a price increase but anyone buying the resource will get these free of charge.

UPDATE August 2023 Model updated with minor improvements. UPDATE April 2021: The Braille BoX is now completely 3D printed with a new snap together glueless construction. This is the Braille Box project which was created to support the GCSE exemplar folder available to purchase separately or as part of a bundle. In this ZIP file are all the parts and assembly for you to demonstrate the model in Solidworks. Also included are working drawings and renders of the project to demonstrate what can be achieved with your CAD software. Finally, all parts have already been converted to .stl format so you can 3D print your own working model to support your teaching. Combined with the other supporting GCSE materials, and the exemplar folder, you have a high quality resource to inspire pupils and to help them aspire to achieving the highest level at GCSE.

These ‘blank’ workbook templates allow students to take notes as they wish when studying the theory based on the Cornell note taking approach. They include past paper questions from the A Level presentations so students can keep notes and complete prep/homework assignments in the same booklet. Workbooks are provided in both editable PowerPoint and printable PDF formats. Also included are two revision books that summarise or illustrate certain concepts from the theory materials.

This is the first set of supporting resources for the Modular Desk Organiser project. Its is in itself a modular approach to teaching a wide range of skills for Design and Technology ay KS3 including aspects of 2D and 3D drawing, CAD modelling, CAM manufacture and rapid protoyping, orthographic projections, materials (Wood, Polymers, Paper and Card), processes, packaging, scales of production and much more. It could provide a whole year’s worth of work or aspects that you want to cover can be taken from it and added to the design booklet template which is available separately. This set also contains maths and science worksheets which can be used for class work or to set as prep/homework. Several approaches can be taken to using this scheme of work and a range of outcomes is possible. Images of real outcomes are provided for reference and a step by step guide to CAD modelling using SketchUp is also available.

A set of additional lessons to support the Cambridge Theory Units.

A companion resource to the examplar folder and student guide, this is a collection of slides from the theory presentation resources that can be used in support of the teaching of Component 1. If you have that resource you already have all these slides but for those who just want to address the coursework, this is a selection of relevant presentations to help. At 105 slides long, it can be used throughout Component 1 to illustrate the various stages and help students to understand the design process.

UPDATE: April 2021 additional pages added to support the use of the Braille Box to teach about branding, IP, patents, crowdfunding, ecological footprint and more. Specification updated to match the new theory presentations that will soon be available. This is my own take on what I believe a level 9 folder could look like for the new AQA GCSE in Design and Technology and was produced when no examplar material was avalable from examination boards. It is appropriate for the ‘children’s learning and play’ sample context and covers exploring a context, iterative design, prototyping and client led brief along with investigations, analysis and evaluations. Supplied as both self-running Powerpoint Show and printable PDF file, there are 40 slides in the folder as per the AQA suggested limit, each with a commentary and a summary at the end of each A0 as well as extra slides at the end to support the process. In total there are now 68 slides here but the extra slides are for the benefit of the teacher, or to explain and justify the marks awarded.** There is evidence in the folder of SketchUp, Solidworks, Photoshop and the use of CNC equipment and 3D printing. It is not endorsed by any examination board but can inspire you in your approach to teaching the new NEA in your school to a very high standard. I worked as an examiner and moderator for the AQA for 20 years with 27 years D&T teaching and leadership experience where many students achieved 100% for their coursework. This is based on that experience and a culmination of assessing thousands of folders coupled with industry design experience. Additionally, I have consulted for DATA, TES, V&A, Routledge, PGOnline, Doddle and the BBC. Recent additions (July 2018) include 16 extra slides to show a summary of modelling, drawing, CAD etc. and further development of the product beyond the GCSE prototype into AS/A Level territory with the outcome being a completely 3D printed prototype. August 2018 update simply adds some extra info.

BLOK is a new type of STEM ‘building block’ intended for educational use and also developed for commercial production and sale. **UPDATE **(June 2023). The 3D files for the basic BLOK/BLOX are now included in the resource. PLEASE NOTE: The BLOK product is not yet available to buy in retail stores, but the 3D files will be shared in a forthcoming resource, and the resource has instructions on how to make your own components. This resource uses the BLOK as a case study to cover many aspects of the design and manufacturing processes used in Design and Technology and 3D Art. It is not a linear resource and you can refer to any of the units at any time for reference or as tutorials. Using the BLOK product as a reference, the resource contains 20 separate units covering the following topics: BLOK1: Introduction to the BLOK resource BLOK2: The story of BLOK BLOK3: Investigation and research BLOK4: The iterative design process BLOK5: Modular approaches to design BLOK6: Sketching with BLOX BLOK7: CAD modelling BLOK BLOK8: Materials for manufacturing BLOK BLOK9: Prototyping BLOK BLOK10: Manufacturing BLOK BLOK11: Branding, packaging, and promotion BLOK12: Enterprise and Intellectual Property BLOK13: Testing and evaluation BLOK14: Functions of BLOK BLOK15: Developing for BLOK BLOK16: Advanced sketching with BLOX BLOK17: Advanced CAD modelling BLOK BLOK18: Sustainability in design BLOK19: Modelling BLOK with SketchUp BLOK20: Digital sketching and composition It also includes one extra unit*: BLOKEX1: Joe Blox Solidworks tutorial The units are provided in print and presentation friendly PDF format along with supporting high quality JPEG illustrations and posters. *Additional units may be added to the resource in the future.

This is my own take on what I believe an A* folder could look like for the new Cambridge IGCSE in Design and Technology. Supplied as both self-running Powerpoint Show and printable PDF file, there are around 40 slides in the folder each with a commentary, summary and checklist at the end of each component as well as extra slides at the end to support the process. In total there are now over 70 slides here but the extra slides are for the benefit of the teacher, or to explain and justify the marks awarded. There is evidence in the folder of SketchUp, Solidworks, Photoshop and the use of CNC equipment and 3D printing. It is not endorsed by any examination board but can inspire you in your approach to teaching the IGCSE in your school to a very high standard. I worked as an examiner and moderator for the AQA for 20 years with 27 years D&T teaching and leadership experience where many students achieved 100% for their coursework. This is based on that experience and a culmination of assessing thousands of folders coupled with industry design experience. Additionally, I have consulted for DATA, TES, V&A, Routledge, PGOnline, Doddle and the BBC.

This is a new resource designed to encourage students of design and business to undertake an enterprise initiative to better understand the links between the two subjects. It takes the form of a board game so it will appeal to students, but it is simply a graphical illustration of the process with a range of supporting documents; some of which are optional for the teachers to introduce additional challenges. All files are supplied ready to print at school with instructions on how to make the physical resources. An editable Excel spreadsheet and Photoshop document are included so you can make your own challenges, suggestions, setbacks and opportunities. A range of ready made cards are also provided should you wish to get started right away. This is supported by a Powerpoint presentation for the teacher/instructor and a printable workbook/logbook for the students or teams to record their progress. Also included are the files required to print and make the DICE cardholder and gamepieces.

A collection of the workbooks to support the theory presentations for 3.1, 3.2 and 3.3. The resource consists of workbooks for the compulsory elements 3.1: Core technical principles and 3.3 Designing and making principles. All five 3.2 workbooks are also supplied covering timber and wood, metals and alloys, paper and board, textiles and polymers. This full resource is also included in the Ultimate D&T GCSE Teacher Toolkit.

This is a growing collection of additional ‘breakout’ style lessons in support of the AQA GCSE D&T theory resource. It allows teachers to take a particular topic and spend more time exploring it with their class. Currently the resource comprises: EX1: Ergonomics EX2: :Lateral thinking EX3: Prototyping EX4: Development methodology EX5: Mechanical devices EX6: Design history EX7: Design communication EX8: Form, function and aesthetics EX9: The environment As new lessons are created they will be added to this resource at no additional cost.

An exemplar folder produced to accompany the new AQA GCSE to illustrate how students can approach the NEA. This is NOT endorsed by the AQA but is produced by an experienced designer, teacher, moderator and consultant to reflect expectations for a Level 9 NEA project. It is supported by a new GCSE student guide, a checklist (which should not be used as a writing frame) and a tracker and grade prediction spreadsheet which uses grade boundaries derived from the boundaries on the old spec. There will be no official boundaries for some time so this will help you to give some prediction in the meantime. This now includes a comprehensive assessment spreadsheet that generates comment banks to minimise requests for remarks. Updated August 2018 with a new exemplar folder, student guide and a tracker with 26 name slots.

Update: Mark scheme added for the past paper and other questions in the lessons. A set of 15 lessons in editable Powerpoint Show format which cover the teaching of Wood and Timber. Each lesson includes a lesson outcome, introduction, summary of the unit and revision tips as well as links to maths and science and a suggested practical activity. Questions and past paper questions are matched to those in the AQA DT tracker (recently updated) so you can deliver theory as well as assessing knowledge and tracking progress. You only need to cover ONE material group in depth so use this resource with the GCSE theory bundle available separately which covers all of the compulsory learning units.