Design, Creativity and Technology Level 3 (Years 3 and 4)
Learning focus
As students work towards the achievement of Level 3 standards in Design, Creativity and Technology, they begin to provide input into the development of design briefs. They generate ideas from a variety of sources, and recognise that their designs have to meet a range of different requirements. They learn to make realistic plans for achieving their aims and recognise that they are constrained by the availability of resources. They clarify ideas when asked, and use words, labelled sketches and models to communicate the details of their designs.
Students learn to describe ideas and concepts about design, materials/ingredients and technological systems in simple terms. For example, how and why a drawing is annotated; how materials/ingredients are classified; the systems components that are combined to create movement, such as gears and pulleys; what characteristics and properties make materials/ingredients suitable for a particular design or proposed product and how these can be combined in innovative ways to create solutions. In transforming novel ideas into products or simple systems, they are encouraged to take risks.
Students investigate what products and simple technological systems can do, how they meet people’s needs, how they are used and/or work, what they look like and why they look the way they do. They learn what evaluation criteria are and, with guidance, develop simple evaluation criteria and use these to make decisions about, and assess, design ideas. With assistance, they learn to plan basic steps in production. They develop skills in the use of a variety of simple production techniques, such as cutting, mixing, shaping, joining and assembling and a range of materials/ingredients to produce products, such as a healthy breakfast cereal and its packaging and simple systems; for example, a puppet with moving parts (levers) or a pulley arrangement to lift a weight. Production techniques could include cutting with a saw or knife, weighing with scales, measuring with a jug, filing with a file or rasp, sandpapering, whisking and hand sewing with a needle and thread. Materials could include paper and cardboard, food ingredients, fabrics, wood, plants and soil or other growing media. They learn to use tools and equipment safely and hygienically, and with some accuracy, to alter and combine materials/ingredients and put together components to make a simple system with moving parts.
Students are encouraged to give and receive feedback about their own and others’ products and simple systems (for example, a toy with moving parts), considering whether design solutions work and if they are appropriate for their purpose. They learn to keep simple records and reflect on the steps they took to design and make their own products and simple systems, including noting any problems encountered and changes made to accommodate these.
Standards
Investigating and designing
At Level 3 students, individually and in teams, generate ideas based on a design brief, demonstrating understanding that designs may need to meet a range of different requirements. They use words, labelled sketches and models to communicate the details of their designs, and clarify ideas when asked. They identify simple systems components and common materials/ingredients and explain the characteristics and properties that make them suitable for use in products. Students think ahead about the order of their work and list basic steps to make the product or system they have designed.
Producing
At Level 3, students use their list of steps and are able to choose appropriate tools, equipment and techniques to alter and combine materials/ingredients and assemble systems components. They use a variety of simple techniques/processes and a range of materials/ingredients to safely and hygienically alter and combine materials/ingredients and put together components to make products and simple systems that have moving parts.
Analysing and evaluating
At Level 3, students test, evaluate and revise their designs, products or simple systems in light of feedback they have gained from others. They identify what has led to improvements and describe what they consider to be the strengths and drawbacks of their design, product or simple system. They consider how well a product or simple system functions and/or how well it meets the intended purpose.
Downloads
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Design, Creativity and Technology booklet (
PDF - 247KB) - Design, Creativity and Technology standards table (Doc - 47KB)
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Victorian Essential Learning Standards Level 3 ( PDF - 649KB)
