S1-S2 Design and Technology Report Comments (Scotland)
Design and technology covers the design process from brief to specification, ideas and models, graphic communication including sketching and computer-aided design, making products safely and accurately in the workshop, engineering ideas such as structures and mechanisms, and evaluating products.
Below are 13 sample sentences for S1-S2: two strengths and one next step for each of the 4 comment levels (Secure / Consolidating / Developing / Beginning), plus a tip for families. They are a small selection from the 288 design and technology sentences in the full pack. Copy one, then add a detail only you know about the student.
Jump to: Secure · Consolidating · Developing · Beginning · Writing tips
Fills in the name and pronouns on this page. Nothing is sent anywhere.
Secure S
Strengths
- [Name] sorts materials into woods, metals and plastics with ease and explains why each one suits a particular job in the workshop.
- Choosing suitable hand tools and machines for each task, [Name] works safely and skilfully and achieves a high-quality finish.
Next steps:
- [Name] could research how a common product, such as a water bottle, is made and recycled, and share the findings with the class.
Consolidating C
Strengths
- [Name] can name the main groups of materials, such as softwoods, hardwoods, metals and plastics, and suggest a suitable one for a simple product.
- [Name] marks out with a steel rule, try square and pencil or scriber, and finished pieces are usually close to the sizes on the drawing.
Next steps:
- To build on this, [Name] could learn which materials are renewable or recyclable and explain these choices in design annotations.
Developing D
Strengths
- Given a circuit diagram and some guidance, [Name] builds a simple circuit and is learning to name the battery, switch and output parts.
- With practice, [Name] is improving at marking out with a steel rule and try square, and some measurements now match the drawing closely.
Next steps:
- Learning the circuit symbols for a battery, switch, bulb and LED will help [Name] build circuits from diagrams more quickly.
Beginning B
Strengths
- Using pictures and samples, [Name] is beginning to tell woods, metals and plastics apart in the workshop.
- With support, [Name] measures and marks a straight line using a steel rule and try square and is starting to check it before cutting.
Next steps:
- Learning two properties and one use of a common wood, metal and plastic, with picture cards to help, will make material choices easier for [Name].
Support at home
- On a walk, you could spot triangles in bridges, pylons and roof frames and talk together about how they keep structures rigid.
How to write design and technology comments for S1-S2
- Name the workshop skill: measuring and marking out accurately, using a coping saw or file safely, finishing a wooden or plastic piece. Schools call this technical, design and technology or similar, so describe the skill clearly.
- For design work, describe whether the pupil sketches and annotates several ideas, and how they choose between them. A next step such as adding notes on materials and sizes to each sketch is concrete.
- Note graphic skills such as sketching in 3D, drawing to scale or using drawing conventions. Many pupils meet computer-aided design for the first time in S1 or S2, so a small, specific next step works best.
Watch out: Avoid judging only the finished product. Pupils start with different hand skills, so describe the process too, such as accurate marking out or how a design developed, and give a next step for the next project.
The four levels describe how secure, accurate and independent the learning is in what has been taught, never a CfE level. Secure suits detailed, accurate work applied to unfamiliar tasks; Consolidating suits a sound grasp with occasional guidance; Developing suits sometimes, or with a model or worked example; Beginning names what is starting to show and the support that helps. Show the level through the work rather than writing the level word.
What Design and Technology covers
In these comments, design and technology covers these behaviours:
- designs solutions to a brief: research, specifications, sketching, modelling and annotation
- graphic communication: sketching, drawing conventions and computer-aided design
- makes products safely and accurately with materials, tools and machines
- applies engineering ideas: structures, mechanisms, electronics and energy
- tests and evaluates products, considering users, sustainability and impact on society
More Scottish secondary subjects comments
- English, S1-S2
- Mathematics, S1-S2
- Sciences, S1-S2
- Social Studies, S1-S2
- Art and Design, S1-S2
- Music, S1-S2
- Drama, S1-S2
- Design and Technology, S3
- Computing Science, S1-S2
- Home Economics, S1-S2
- Physical Education, S1-S2
- Modern Languages, S1-S2
- Religious and Moral Education, S1-S2
- Opening and closing sentences
- All Scottish secondary subjects skills and grade bands
- For the same report: Scottish Primary Report Comments, P1-P7
- Build a comment with the comment picker
How these sentences were made, and what has been checked: About these comments.