Evaluate
KS2DT-KS2-D003
Investigating and analysing existing products, evaluating their own work against design criteria, considering others' views, and understanding how key events and individuals have shaped design and technology.
National Curriculum context
The evaluate domain at KS2 becomes more analytically rigorous, requiring pupils to investigate and analyse existing products in depth. Pupils evaluate their own work against design criteria and also consider the views of others, introducing the concept of user feedback as part of the design process. A distinctive addition at KS2 is the requirement to understand how key events and individuals in design and technology have helped shape the world, giving pupils historical and cultural perspective on the subject. This domain develops pupils' ability to think critically about products, processes and the broader impact of design and technology on society.
2
Concepts
1
Clusters
1
Prerequisites
2
With difficulty levels
Lesson Clusters
Investigate existing products and understand the history of design and technology
practice CuratedProduct investigation (C008) and the history and influence of D&T (C009) are explicitly co-taught: C009 carries C008 in its co_teach_hints. Investigating existing products is the practical activity through which historical and cultural context becomes meaningful — studying Brunel's bridges or Dyson's vacuums combines both concepts naturally.
Teaching Suggestions (2)
Study units and activities that deliver concepts in this domain.
Bridges: Beam, Arch and Truss
Design & Technology Design, Make, EvaluatePedagogical rationale
Bridges are the classic structures project because they have a clear, testable success criterion: how much weight can the bridge hold before it fails? Comparing beam, arch, and truss designs teaches that the same materials arranged differently produce vastly different strengths. This is engineering principles made tangible through direct experiment.
Shell Structures: Packaging
Design & Technology Design, Make, EvaluatePedagogical rationale
Designing packaging for a real product teaches shell structures (structures whose strength comes from their shape rather than internal framework) while connecting to real-world design. Pupils disassemble existing packaging to understand nets, folds, and tabs. They then design packaging for a specific product, learning that form follows function -- the packaging must protect, display, and inform.
Prerequisites
Concepts from other domains that pupils should know before this domain.
Concepts (2)
Product Investigation and Analysis
process AI DirectDT-KS2-C008
Product investigation involves systematically examining existing products to understand their purpose, intended users, materials, construction methods, mechanisms, aesthetics and how successfully they fulfil their design intent. At KS2, investigation is more structured and analytical than at KS1: pupils use frameworks to compare products, consider both strengths and limitations, and relate findings to their own design work. Understanding how existing products solve design problems is a valuable source of design inspiration and technical knowledge.
Teaching guidance
Provide a range of products for pupils to disassemble, examine and discuss. Use a consistent analytical framework: purpose, user, materials, construction, mechanisms, aesthetics, fitness for purpose, cost, sustainability. Encourage comparison between similar products: how does product A solve the problem differently from product B? Connect product analysis to design: what can we learn from this product that will inform our own design? Invite pupils to evaluate how well each product meets its intended purpose and to suggest improvements. Use products from different periods and cultures to build historical and cultural awareness.
Common misconceptions
Pupils may describe products superficially (colour, size, shape) without analysing function, materials or construction. Teaching structured analytical frameworks develops deeper investigation. Some pupils equate 'analyse' with criticise; framing investigation as learning from the solutions others have found is more productive and more accurate.
Difficulty levels
Examining a product and describing its purpose, materials and one feature of how it works.
Example task
Look at this torch. What is it for? What is it made of? How does it work?
Model response: It is for seeing in the dark. It is made of plastic and has glass over the light. You press the button and the light comes on — there must be a battery and a bulb inside.
Analysing a product using a structured framework: purpose, user, materials, construction, mechanisms and fitness for purpose.
Example task
Investigate this pencil sharpener. Analyse it using our framework: who uses it, what it's made of, how it's constructed, and how well it works.
Model response: Purpose: sharpening pencils. Users: schoolchildren. Materials: plastic body, steel blade. Construction: the blade is screwed into the body at a specific angle. Mechanism: the pencil turns against the angled blade which shaves off wood and graphite. Fitness for purpose: works well for standard pencils but can't sharpen thick ones. The shavings container is small and fills up quickly.
Comparing products systematically, evaluating strengths and weaknesses, and using findings to inform their own design work.
Example task
Compare two different water bottles. Which is better designed? How will your findings inform your own design?
Model response: Bottle A: steel, keeps water cold, durable, but heavy and expensive. Bottle B: plastic, lightweight, cheap, but scratches easily and doesn't insulate. Bottle A is better for long use; Bottle B is better for young children who might drop it. For my design, I would combine ideas: a lightweight material with insulation, and a secure lid like Bottle A's screw cap rather than Bottle B's flip top which leaks.
Delivery rationale
DT knowledge concept — material science, mechanisms theory, and systems knowledge deliverable digitally.
History and Influence of Design and Technology
knowledge AI DirectDT-KS2-C009
Design and technology has been shaped by key individuals, inventions, events and movements that have transformed how people live, work and communicate. Understanding the historical development of design and technology — from Isambard Kingdom Brunel's engineering to the Apple Macintosh, from the spinning jenny to the Internet — gives pupils perspective on design as a human activity with cultural significance and social impact. At KS2, pupils are introduced to significant moments and people in the history of design and technology and consider how these have influenced the products and systems we use today.
Teaching guidance
Introduce significant figures in design and technology history with a focus on the problems they were solving and how their solutions changed the world. Connect historical design to contemporary products: how is a modern bridge or bicycle derived from earlier designs? Use timelines to situate developments in historical context. Investigate how design and technology reflects the values and needs of different historical periods. Discuss how design has also created problems: pollution, obsolescence, inequality — alongside its benefits.
Common misconceptions
Pupils may think of design and technology history as a simple story of progress from primitive to advanced. Understanding that design always reflects its cultural context, and that some past innovations created new problems, gives a more nuanced picture. Pupils may not understand the difference between invention (creating something new) and innovation (improving or applying existing ideas); most design and technology history involves both.
Difficulty levels
Recalling a significant designer, inventor or design event and stating what they did or created.
Example task
Who was Isambard Kingdom Brunel and what did he design?
Model response: Brunel was a famous engineer. He designed bridges, tunnels and ships, including the Great Western Railway and the SS Great Britain.
Describing the problem a designer or inventor was solving and explaining how their solution changed people's lives.
Example task
What problem was James Dyson trying to solve with his vacuum cleaner? How did his invention change things?
Model response: Traditional vacuum cleaners used bags that clogged up and lost suction over time. Dyson invented a bagless vacuum using cyclone technology that doesn't lose suction. This changed vacuum cleaners because now most are bagless. It shows how one person's frustration with an existing product can lead to a better design.
Explaining how a design innovation reflects its historical and cultural context, and discussing how design and technology have evolved over time.
Example task
How did the Industrial Revolution change the way products were made? What were the benefits and drawbacks?
Model response: Before the Industrial Revolution, products were made by hand, one at a time, by skilled craftspeople. Machines allowed mass production — making many identical items quickly and cheaply. This made products affordable for more people but meant factory workers did repetitive jobs in poor conditions. Skilled craft workers lost their livelihoods. Design also changed — products were designed for machine production, not individual craftsmanship. Today we still benefit from mass production but are returning to valuing handmade quality.
Delivery rationale
DT knowledge concept — material science, mechanisms theory, and systems knowledge deliverable digitally.