Food Technology

Intent

At Grange we believe that making positive food choices helps us maintain a healthy weight and it is essential in human physical development. It is essential to help promote a healthy lifestyle and is also important for concentration, mental health and wellbeing. We want our pupils to have a good understanding of this as well as understand how to feed themselves and their family on a budget whilst minimising food waste. To this end, our pupils will be provided with a variety of opportunities to enable them to engage in activities which allow them to make connections from Food Technology into their everyday lives as well cross curricular activities. We will strive to make the pupils confident learners who are ready to take risks and strive to fully develop as independent learners who have an interest in self-improvement, pupils will be free to voice their own aspirations and wishes for the future, opportunities to further study and working in the catering environment will be available. The overarching concepts for Food Technology at Grange Academy are: being independent and self-sufficient, understanding food safety and safe working practices, understanding healthy living and nutrition, preparing a balanced diet and making good food choices, preventing food waste, feeding a family, cooking for themselves and others, knowing how to budget for meals, knowing where our food comes from and knowing how to use a range of ingredients in different ways.

We intend to teach our pupils how to use weighing, measuring and equipment to prepare meals. We will teach them how to use the correct cooking times, knife skills - including: fruit, vegetables, meat fish or alternatives to prepare fruit and vegetables for cooking. We will teach them how to use a range of equipment: blenders, food processors and microwave ovens. We will also teach them how to use different cooking methods including: steaming, boiling, simmering, poaching and frying and how to make main meals, sauces, dough, cakes and biscuits from a range of different ethical backgrounds and cultures. We want our pupils to be able to able to prepare a range of meals both for themselves, their families and friends and possibly cook as a career.

Implementation

Food Technology is a journey throughout the school, aspirations are achieved through exploration, practice and application of skills over time. Success and failure are treated as a learning process and is both acknowledged and celebrated as such. At each stage of learning pupils are expected to demonstrate understanding of theory modules as well as safe demonstration of skills. These range from fully supported to working independently. This understanding will be evidence in both written work as well as demonstration of practical skills and end products. Termly themes and assessment criteria are used as topic discussion points and there is an ongoing assessment system in place through Grange steps, unit awards and qualifications. Pupils are encouraged to review their own learning progress over time. Food Technology units are completed in Red Kites to make up entry pathway awards.

Impact

Pupils’ aptitude, progress, motivation levels and ability in this subject will determine the pathway that they move into. Progress is measured in the first instance through the Grange steps. If a pupil is able to achieve unit awards or a level 1 qualification they will be put onto the pathway that will allow them to do so. The curriculum is designed to be both challenging and enjoyable and where possible pupils are given the opportunity to develop their skills in a real environment like the school kitchen or a local catering business. It is hoped that those pupils with a keen interest will continue to study catering at their post 16 placement.