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Exploring materials
Kent LEA
Submitted by: Paul Shallcross and Jennifer Ayres
ReceptionWhole Class ProjectResistant MaterialsEngineering
KS1Individual ProjectGraphicsCADCAM
KS2Short TaskFoodCatering
KS3Research and InvestigationTextilesFashion
KS4Enterprise activityICTElectronics
Post 16Product AnalysisSystems and ControlStructures
Embedding ICT in DT   

Lesson Context
This is one of three food technology units that focus on understanding materials: one in year 7 on using and understanding materials; this one in year 8 on exploring materials in greater depth; and one in year 9 on critically selecting materials. These units ensure progression in understanding about materials.

This is part of a series of three units in year 8 on exploring materials; there are equivalent units, with similar learning outcomes, on resistant materials and textiles. Together these units are expected to take 15–22 hours. It is important that the department plans as a team so that pupils are able to draw on knowledge, skills and understanding from across the units to reinforce their learning and avoid unnecessary repetition.

Resources Needed
o Our healthier nation report (Department of Health, 1999)
o a collection of products in order to investigate how different materials/ingredients are used
o tools, equipment and materials/ingredients to practise finishing techniques
o useful websites, eg
- www.foodonline.com
- www.acs.org/education
- www.ohn.gov.uk

Teacher Preparation
It is helpful if pupils have:
o classified foods by their sources, eg animals, crops and plants produced organically, grown locally or imported, by commodity groups and by the plate model in the Balance of good health (HEA, 1994)
o considered nutritional information, eg healthy eating guidelines
o mixed ingredients with different functional properties and measured and considered the effects of varying ingredients, eg proportion, ratio
o carried out sensory tests to evaluate food products
Pupils should have gained the above knowledge, skills and understanding in year 7, through unit 7A(i) 'Understanding materials (food)', or similar projects.

Project Brief
Layered dessert:

Supermarkets sell many chilled desserts, eg yoghurts, trifles, cheesecakes, mousses. Design a layered chilled dessert containing fruit, for one person. Consider presenting it in a vacuum-formed package to show off the layered effect.

The right combination:

Many ready-prepared foods on the market consist of sauces combined with other ingredients, eg pasta with a sauce, curry with rice, casseroles with dumplings. Develop ideas for a meal in which a sauce is combined with other ingredients.

Design and Manufacture
Pupils gain the knowledge, skills and understanding they need to carry out the DMA successfully through
product evaluation activities and focused practical tasks.

They:
o apply their understanding of the physical and chemical properties of foods, eg coagulation of protein, gelatinisation of starch, caramelisation of sugar, shortening of fats, water absorption of fibre
o consider the aesthetics of food, eg appearance, taste, odour, texture, and how this affects what consumers choose consider nutritional aspects and values, sources and functions, eg protein, fat, carbohydrate, vitamins, minerals, water
o standardise the results of sensory testing and use their findings

Differentiation
At the end of this unit

most pupils will:
select materials/ingredients for particular purposes, considering their working properties and performance characteristics, the available tools and equipment, and the form, size and performance specifications of the materials/ingredients available; process materials/ingredients to change their working properties and performance in use, if appropriate, using techniques to alter materials on a temporary basis, to make them easier to work with; apply their understanding of the properties of materials/ingredients and how these can be managed and exploited; select finishing techniques for materials/ingredients that are appropriate to their end use, with the aim of enhancing their appearance and maintaining their performance in use

some pupils will not have made so much progress and will:
choose appropriate materials/ingredients from those available, drawing on their previous experience of working with them, and explain reasons for using particular materials/ingredients; cut, shape and form materials/ingredients, working with a range of tools and equipment; use finishing techniques that are suitable for the product’s end use

some pupils will have progressed further and will:
draw on their knowledge of materials/ingredients and production processes, recognising the advantages and disadvantages of particular tools and equipment and processes; make decisions which resolve conflicting demands, eg balancing cost and aesthetic appeal against function and performance; evaluate how effectively they have used information on the properties of materials/ingredients when testing their product.

Additional Information
Out-of-school activities and homework

Pupils could:
· collect labels from food products to show their nutritional content and any nutritional or other claims. They could also find out about legislation and guidelines that restrict nutritional claims
· survey users’ reactions to a range of products, including those intended to meet the same need, in order to identify the criteria used to evaluate and compare them

Download a WinZip file of the full Y8 SoW

Link URL: http://www.winzip.com