NAAIDT: NAAIDT Project Exchange: Let's Keep Clean

Let's Keep Clean - designing and making aprons
St. Peter's C of E School, Bratton, Telford and Wrekin LEA
Submitted by: KS1 D & T C-ordinator

Reception	Whole Class Project	Resistant Materials	Engineering
KS1	Individual Project	Graphics	CADCAM
KS2	Short Task	Food	Catering
KS3	Research and Investigation	Textiles	Fashion
KS4	Enterprise activity	ICT	Electronics
Post 16	Product Analysis	Systems and Control	Structures
Embedding ICT in DT

Lesson Context
Lesson Context
This is a whole term’s work that has cross-curricular links.
The context was to solve a problem to meet a direct need.
This D & T work was linked with a materials investigation in Science.
The F.P.T. involved joining materials and working in a role play area where aprons could be designed to fit the children’s own teddy bears before they designed full size aprons.

Resources Needed
Resources Needed
The resources needed were different fabrics, cotton, tape, elastic and a range of hooks and fasteners. A range of materials and fabrics were tested in the Science investigation before the final decisions were taken about which fabrics would be purchased and how much of each.
A good place to buy fabrics from is Dunelm’s where a wide range of different fabrics are available.
Large sheets of brown wrapping paper were used to make patterns on.

Teacher Preparation
The whole project was planned using a structure that would incorporate the children’s own initial ideas.
The fabrics that were eventually purchased were as a direct result of the children’s results from their science investigation and their evaluation of the existing products in school. The children were required to write a letter to the Head Teacher to outline the problem and request funds to buy the fabrics.

Project Brief
The context was established by taking a series of pictures around the school of pupils and teachers who were engaged in different activities e.g. baking, using clay, painting, water play etc.
The children viewed these photographs and decided that there was a problem that needed to be solved.
Aprons were not suited to the task. Some were too small or did not fasten. Inappropriate materials had been used.
The brief was that the children had to design and make a series of aprons that would meet different needs. The criteria was water play to fit Reception children, art work to fit Y1 and Y2 children, food to fit Y1 and Y2 children and general purpose aprons for the adults in school.

Design and Manufacture
The children generated their own ideas and evaluated a wide range of aprons. They established their own criteria that would need to be kept in order to fulfil the brief. They discussed the steps in designing and making and what equipment they would need. A role play area was established where children could practice designing and making small versions of their aprons. They would be able to test out a range of ways of joining materials. Using their experiences they then designed aprons that would fit the children using the fabrics which they had bought that met the need. They were able to choose the most suitable way of joining the fabric to the way in which they had chosen to fasten it.
The final products were evaluated.

Expected Outcomes
The children were expected to design and make an apron to fit a teddy bear for either use with food, art work or water play. They had to work out a way of joining the fabric to the fastening.

Let's Keep Clean - the aprons in school that were evaluated

Differentiation
The children worked at their own level. Class sessions were followed by plenty of role play experience which helped the children to learn form each other. Ideas were then shared in class again and evaluated together.

Classroom Organisation
Children worked in a role play area in small groups and mainly in the shared area again in small groups and usually with the teacher, a classroom assistant or a parent helper.

Additional Information
In the initial brainstorm and listing of equipment the children were asked to consider the Health and Safety aspects of using scissors, needles and the sewing machine.
The cross curricular links were as follows:-
English – report writing on existing aprons
- Letter writing to request the money for the fabrics needed.
- Flow diagrams for the plan of action
- Explanations of why choices were made
- Explanations of the making process
- Evaluations of existing products and of the finished aprons
Science – testing materials and their properties investigation
ICT - digital camera to record children and adults in action around the school
- digital photographs to record the whole project in its stages
- Catena Chart to record measurements of the children
Maths - Measuring using standard measures
- data handling for the sizes and measurements collected

NAAIDT Project Exchange: Let's Keep Clean - designing and making aprons