Our FOOD TECHNOLOGY CURRICULUM

Food technology at Coopers is an inspiring, rigorous, and practical subject. Using creativity and imagination, pupils plan, prepare and make dishes, considering their own needs, wants and values.

At Coopers, we believe that the study of Food Technology essential for the understanding of a healthy wellbeing and provides an important life skill to take into adulthood. It gives pupils a love of cooking food with the potential of entering the hospitality and catering employment sector such as the chance to run their own restaurant or hotel. All pupils learn how to cook and prepare well balanced dishes demonstrating their understanding of nutritional needs and skills that are needed in cookery with at practical cooking sessions systematically built into our curriculum. Pupils can identify and discuss the need for a balanced diet and implement changes in their own lives.

By studying food technology we ensure that pupils develop an interest in the creative aspect and enjoyment of food. From Key stage 3 we focus on developing confidence in using the high level skills necessary in food preparation and cooking. We explicit teach and support our pupils so that they make connections between theory and practice so that they are able to apply their understanding of food and nutrition and food science to practical cooking. In every year group we have a strong focus on practical experience so that pupils develop the skills needed to continue their studies at GCSE.

Our curriculum aims at developing an informed approach that will help pupils to evaluate choices and decisions about their own diet and health.

 Coopers Values: Trust, RESPECT AND RESILIENCE

In Food Technology we develop trust by:

• Trusting pupils to be responsible for their health and safety, their work, arriving on time and making sure they work safely in the practical environment
• Working in groups and independently trusting each other and ourselves to complete a task
• Developing confidence in practicals so that pupils can trust in their abilities to prepare and cook a range of dishes

In Food we develop respect by:

• Making sure the pupils know how to respect each other’s work and workspace, we also make sure the pupils follow a strict health and safety guideline for their own and others safety.
• Giving feedback to others in a supportive way that helps them to improve
• Valuing our resources so that we look after our Food Technology rooms

In food we develop resilience by:

• Food technology is a subject that thrives on things going changing and new trends.  The pupils will need to develop resilience to make changes and improve choices throughout their experiences in food technology.
• Understanding that sometimes our food preparation and cooking goes wrong and learning from these mistakes and developing our skills

 WHOLE SCHOOL INTENT: INCLUSIVE

In food we ensure our curriculum is inclusive by:

• Scaffolding by personalising the learning based on individual pupil needs.
• In Food Technology a lot of our tasks are based on the outcome.  We will have different practical expectations of the pupil depending on their ability within the subject but always challenge all pupils to stretch their own learning and abilities.

 WHOLE SCHOOL INTENT: FOCUSED

In Food Technology we identify powerful knowledge that were having a good understanding of it is a prerequisite for understanding other related content. 

By clearly identifying the powerful knowledge in each unit, teachers can ensure that their teaching and assessment is focused on the content that makes the biggest difference. 

We share this with pupils and their families using Knowledge Organisers. These are valuable tools for revision and retrieval practice

 WHOLE SCHOOL INTENT: SEQUENCED

Each project will build on the knowledge and skills the pupils have learnt before so that progress can be shown through ability, skill and outcome.

 WHOLE SCHOOL INTENT: COHERENT

In Food Technology we ensure our curriculum is coherent by the use of Big Ideas that underpin all the learning in our subject. Each lesson is linked to a Big Idea, shared with the pupils at the start of the lesson, so they can call on prior learning and understand where each lesson fits within our curriculum.

Our Big Ideas are:

• Looking closer: Reflection, evaluation, and analysis.
• Responding creatively: Design, make and create.
• Seeking exploration: Materials, ideas, concept, and techniques.
• Gaining independence: Adapting, modifying, and developing.
• Presenting with care: layout, literacy, written work, portfolio.
• Working environments: Health and safety.
• Personal experience: Sensory, taste, feel, texture and exposure to the new

 KS4 QUALIFICATIONS

OCR Food Preparation and Nutrition

 All content is covered in all components. There are four sections.

Section A: Nutrition

• The relationship between diet and health
• Nutritional and dietary needs of different groups of people
• Nutritional needs when selecting recipes for different groups of people
• Energy balance
• Protein
• Fat
• Carbohydrate
• Vitamins
• Minerals
• Water
• Nutritional content of the main commodity groups

Section B: Food (food provenance and food choice)

• Food provenance: source and supply
• Food processing and production
• Food security
• Technological developments to support better health and food production
• Development of culinary traditions (pupils study British cuisine and a minimum of two international cuisines)
• Factors influencing food choice

Section C: Cooking and food preparation

• Food science
• Sensory properties
• Food safety

Section D: Skills requirements (preparation and cooking techniques)

• Knife skills
• Preparation and techniques
• Cooking methods
• Sauces
• Set a mixture
• Raising agents
• Dough
• Judge and manipulate sensory properties