Design Technology - Temple Marble Run (Upper Key Stage 2)

This unit of work forms part of the PrimaryDT scheme of work that features over 60 units of work designed to deliver outstanding outcomes for primary school children in design technology.
This unit of work has been revised and updated for 2026 and is based on delivering six sessions of design technology that are guided by high quality presentation slides accompanied by all the resources that are needed to deliver the lessons, including a knowledge organiser.

Comprehensive medium-term planning that includes
• Unit overview and sequence of learning
• Prior learning needed and links to other curriculum areas
• Learning statements (from our curriculum pathway document)
• List of resources and background information to support teaching and learning
• Key vocabulary for the unit of work
• Teaching activities (investigative and focus tasks)
• Teaching activities (designing and making)
• Advice for challenge and support strategies
• Assessment indicators that children are keeping up with the curriculum

Accompanying this revised unit is further information about the scheme of work and the progression chart and vocabulary list used when creating the scheme of work.

Temple Marble Run is a Design Technology unit of work aimed primarily at children aged 9-11.

Design Brief: Design and make a prototype Marble Run toy based on a temple theme for the MAGIC toy company.

Overview:
In this project children design and make a prototype Marble Run game. This is an opportunity for children to consolidate and demonstrate their understanding of structures and in particular the different techniques used to make structures stronger, stiffer, and more stable. Children deepen their understanding of designing a product around a central theme and the use of a mood board to develop their ideas. When making the Marble Run toy they will need to try out and test out their ideas to ensure that the Marble Run functions as it should. This project introduces the idea that designers make models and prototypes as part of the design process and use these models to inform the final design.

Sessions:

1. Investigate 1 - What is a Marble Run? & Investigate 2 - Creating Tall Towers
2. Focus Task 1 – Columns and Sliders
3. Design and Make: Introducing the Marble Run Project
4. Design and Make: Making the Marble Run Toy
5. Design and Make: Theming and Decoration
6. Evaluation Session: Completing the Product Design

Some activities / sessions can be re-arranged or delivered in different ways in the learning sequence to allow for whole-class teaching and/or small adult-led sessions to take place at the same time.