This is a resource designed specifically to support the teaching of Design and Technology at KS3 via remote learning. Rather than adapting an old classroom resource to try and teach remotely, this resource takes advantage of the situation to provide a unique learning experience. Students can learn many of the skills an industrial designer needs to work in industry often in a different location to manufacturing facilities. A wide range of skills and techniques can be incorporated into this project making it adaptable for a range of ages, abilities and environments. Several of these are suggested in the supporting documents. The resource currently consists of a 52 page Powerpoint Show (Office not required to view), a 34 page PDF SketchUp tutorial document and three files for cutting the components. A printable packaging net is also included as well as a template for a paper diffuser should students wish to take that option. We have also included a shortened version of the 40 page workbook that is designed to be used in Powerpoint so no need to print off paper copies. Hopefully this will inspire you to develop your own format and aid the move to a digital format in the future. The laser cutting files are in Adobe Illustrator format but the program is currently free to use for a few months so you can use it as it is or just to export to DXF or other format you may need during the trial period if you don’t already own and use this software.

Updated August 2023 with the official summer 2023 grade boundaries. The 2023 paper is now transferred to the summary sheet as the mock examination results. The 2022 paper is now used for the end of theory assessments. Slight changes to the colour schemes to match the theory pre Updated August 2022 with the official summer 2022 grade boundaries. The 2021 paper is now transferred to the summary sheet as the mock examination results. Update December 2021 with the 2020 and 2021 exam papers. The 2020 paper is now used as the mock and the 2019 is used to test the end of all the 50 individual theory lessons. Updated January 2021 with all the AQA theory mapped over 50 lessons with ongoing assessments. Supporting presentations that match the lessons which are now available!** This enhanced version of the AQA GCSE tracker has been updated to generate comments from the marks awarded. It has the two AQA specimen papers for reference and the 2019 GCSE paper to use as a final test after the theory lessons. The 2020 examination paper is used as a mock exam which will be added to the NEA assessment to give an accurate prediction based on the previous years’s grade boundaries. A PDF guide to using the tracker has now been added to the resource. Please note the Grade Boundary sheet is up to date with the 2019 grade boundaries for both the paper and NEA as of 2021. To use: Simply use the Context sheet to enter all student details including candidate number and attainment target. Use the Comment sheet to award marks for each Assessment Objective and comments will be provided in the boxes for use in CRF’s or reports. Use the Mock sheet to add the marks from the 2020 paper used as a mock exam. Use the Theory sheet to help plan out your weekly lessons to ensure all the theory is covered. You can also use this to keep a track of ongoing assessments and it will show an average. It will also allow you to compare a test paper to the final mock to see if the students have improved. Everything will then be transferred to the front Summary sheet, totals will be generated and levels awarded derived from the existing GCSE boundaries. Old type grades are also provided for reference. All the cells that do not need editing are locked to avoid making mistakes but the sheet can be unlocked with the password ‘gcse’. Updated May 2016 with room for 26 student names and added a pie chart to show percentage of students who were above/below target. More can be added if you are comfortable with editing Excel spreadsheets or simply make additional copies of the spreadsheet for the additional students. If you have less than 26, ensure that there is nothing entered into the A8 column on the context sheet and the pie chart will ignore these when calculating the percentage of students above/below target. Extra sheets for homework and assessments can be tailored to suit your needs and will not affect the Summary sheet or the predicted levels.

UPDATE (August 2023): Updated with the summer 2023 grade boundaries from AQA. All previous past papers are now added with the 2023 paper used for final/mock exams and 2022 paper for end of theory tests. Added a guide to using the tracker with the theory presentation units. !!Please use the 2022 spreadsheet. The previous tracker (2021 ) is just to be used for reference!! UPDATE (August 2022): Updated with the summer 2022 grade boundaries from AQA. UPDATE (September 2021): A new and updated spreadsheet has been added to the resource. This has comment banks from the syllabus which are generated from the marks awarded. UPDATE February 2021): Suitable past paper questions are now added to each section which match the presentation slides that are now available. See product details for how to use these for ongoing assessment in the theoretical aspects of the A Level course. Titles now match those in the AQA Theory presentations. November 2020 grade boundaries have been used in the tracker. This is a comprehensive tracker for AQA A Level Product Design although it could be adapted for other courses/exam boards. If you complete the Student information sheet, all the relevant data will be copied to the corresponding sheets. The same with the Grade boundary sheet which sets last year’s grade boundaries for every aspect of the course. There is an outline for delivering the course theory content spread over 60 lessons which will have supporting presentations at a later date. Teachers can choose the past papers to use for reinforcing learning and these are all mapped to the new content on the Content sheet. For ongoing assessments, put the total score for the question in the top of the column for each lesson or unit and as you complete the score for the student, it will give an average of their results over the year and compare these to their mock results. All this data is copied to the front page where the results from the NEA are added to give an accurate grade prediction based on the previous year’s grade boundaries. There is scope for teachers to tweak this resource to suit but for now, cells that have formula or references are locked to prevent any errors. Each worksheet can be unlocked with the password ‘advanced’.

(Updated July 2020) This is a set of lesson presentations in Powerpoint Show format which will run without having Office installed. However, they can be opened within Powerpoint and edited if you wish. Each lesson is approximately 20 slides with the following content: Lesson outcomes Introduction Main content Summary of unit Revision notes Past paper question. It is recommended to use and/or edit these presentation slides to support your own style of teaching rather than relying on them to provide all the relevant information to your students. All past papers in the slides match those in the AQA A Level tracker available and provide you with everything you need to deliver and assess theory learning for AQA A Level Design and Technology. It is recommended that they are used with this tracker to assess student progress in theory. The content of this section is based on the Hodder AQA approved A Level book. A document with the official answers from the relevant AQA mark scheme is also included with each unit.

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.

Two PDF booklets with images, graphs and charts taken from over 1500 slides that make up the A Level theory presentations. These can be given to students as a quick reference guide to the relevant units and to help them when revising. Please note that these are not comprehensive and only use graphics from units that have charts etc. It is not a replacement for the theory units themselves.

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.

Update February 2022: A mark scheme has been added to help with assessment of the theory questions A set of 22 lessons in editable Powerpoint Show format divided into units which match the specification. Each lesson in the unit includes a lesson outcome, introduction, summary of the lesson and revision tips as well as links to maths and science. 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.

This is a set of lesson presentations in Powerpoint Show format which will run without having Office installed. However, they can be opened in Powerpoint and edited as necessary. Each lesson is approximately 20 slides with the following content: Lesson outcomes Introduction Main content Summary of unit Revision notes Past paper question. It is recommended to use and/or edit these presentation slides to support your own style of teaching rather than relying on them to provide all the relevant information to your students. All past papers in the slides match those in the AQA A Level tracker available and provide you with everything you need to deliver and assess theory learning for AQA A Level Design and Technology. It is recommended that they are used with this tracker to assess student progress in theory. The content of this section is based on the Hodder AQA approved A Level book. A document with the official answers from the relevant AQA mark scheme is also included.

A high resolution image providing a simple guide to 20th Century Design History. Certain sections are deliberately blank so that they can be used for students to investigate and add their own details. A completed version will be added shortly at no extra charge. Updated 2020 with more details but still space to add more of your own choice.

An A3 poster which shows the main Apple products in several categories and the years they were released. Updated 2020 with recent products.

Important update November 2020: The two trackers have been updated to include a suggested time plan for delivering the theory content and mock exams over 51 lessons and assessing after each unit of work. The specialist material choice could be covered in as little as 23 lessons This replaces the Prep page of the previous version and is far more useful. There is space for the teacher to choose a past paper question for each unit, add in the marks and keep an average of the students’ results. They can also take sample papers and compare these to the formal mock exam. these additions make it a more comprehensive document and all cells that don’t need editing are locked. Fill in the context page with details, use the sheets for Paper 1 and Paper 3 as well as the comments sheet and all will be copied to the Overall sheet for easy analysis and feedback. Due to several requests, all the grade boundaries are now unlocked so the document is easier to edit. All relevant links have also been updated. Please re-download the new version. These two trackers cover the A-E grade based iGCSE and the new 9-1 level based iGCSE in Design and Technology. Simply update the context page and the grade boundaries each year to keep this up-to-date and comprehensive. A guide on how to use the trackers is now included.

Two products. One design. UPDATE (August 2020): The Solidworks tutorial has now been added to the resource in Powerpoint Show and PDF formats. A pair of physical resources aimed at primary learners but also useful for teaching mechanisms at KS3 and KS4. The resource contains a 96 page step-by-step Solidworks tutorial on how to model, render and animate the Automaton as well as how to make working drawings and process these to make laser cutting files. The full 3D model for each product is supplied in Solidworks format with editable parts and they are already mated and animated. Also provided are the laser cutting files to make your own if you dont wish to work through the tutorial. These are in Adobe Illustrator format and ready to cut. Alternatively they can be converted to .DXF to use in your program of choice.

This is a poster with simple diagrams derived from the A Level presentations available in the TES shop. It is designed to provide students and teachers with a ‘quick glance’ revision of the material groups, processes and finishes. It is included in the A Level Theory bundle.

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.

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.