News!
Current STEM Courses
Design Technology Team
Sessions:
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Wednesdays 10am -1.00pm
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Course Duration:
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30 weeks
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Blocks:
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5x6 weeks​
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Context:
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STEM - typically Advanced Level D&T
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Following our Aeroschool Curriculum
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Motor Mechanics and associated skills
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Prerequisites:
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A love of techy things
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Determiantion to solve problems
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Personal relevance = study beyond the session times
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Content:​
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Challenges: BMFA Payload Challenge or equivalent. Designing RC aircraft to achieve a task.
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CREST award accreditation - strategies for documenting progress so as to communicate with a thrid party.
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Independent learning skills: Identifying goals, scoping a project, setting a brief and spec, planning and execution, creativity techniques, sketching, CAD, file storing and cataloging, project review and evaluation. Knowing our strengths and challenges and resourcing solutions.
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Team skills:
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Specialism within a team
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Accountability for work allocated to you
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Reliability
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Encouragement
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Professional skills:
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Planning, presentation, ICT, Communication, Initiative, tenacity reliability - basically anything needed to get a job or into your next educational setting.
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Private Study Commitment
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You will be expected to commit 2 hrs per week of your own time in connection with this course.
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A Zoom session will be set at a mutually convenient time for the team to meet virtually to support private study. You will need your web cam to be 'on' so we can all see one another.
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Files will be shared on the Dropbox platform and should be accessible during the zoom session.
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Media
You will need to become familiar with the means of storing your work digitally for the purpose of collaboration and file sharing. This level of self support /problem solving is part of the criteria required for a place on this advanced STEM course.
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Community Commitment:
We operate as a mutually committed community which means that there is an expectation to get involved above and beyond the educational sessions - assiting in running the site, helping out with open days and tour bus events.
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Young Designers
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KS3/4 age 11-14
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Sessions: 3 hr weekly
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Book for a minimum 6 week block​
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Young Designers is the Home Ed equivalent of school Design Technology with many benefits thrown in above and beyond what you would get in school.​
What is Design?
'Design' is more than making things - its a way of life and you will definitely benefit from learning to design.
Design involves making - the best design is done through making prototypes that get better and better. Finally you get to market your products and see if you can sell them!​Making things is not just great for skills but for well being.
Key Skills
Observation, critical thinking, problem solving and tenacity are all involved. We teach workshop skills, tools and machinery, hand-eye coordination, sketching and drawing, presentation skills, ICT, systems and control and a bit of maths too.
Attendance/Access
​Ideally you would experience the whole year's course because we build on skills learned as we go through projects and challenges that use these skills. However, our CAD CAM (Computer Aided Design which features prominently in the course can be practiced at home on your computer with our training courses pitched at your project work.
Mission
We want to encourage Home Ed designers and engineers - those who like to design and make things and see themselves doing this throughout life. But we also want everyone to benefit from learning the strategies of life that asks: 'where am I? where do I want to go? How will I get there?​​
Eligibility
These courses are for Elective Home Educators. If you are looking for EOTAS/WASP provision please get in touch to discuss options.
Techies
KS2/3 Design & Technology
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Term 1:
Book for individual stand alone 2 hrs weekly or book the whole block for 10% discount.
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Term 2 Onwards:
Book for 2 hrs weekly for 6 sessions
Variety of challenges and tasks.
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Make, customise and use our kits.
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Make pre designed items
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Use tools etc inclusingh CAD CAM
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Learn safe workshop skills
Techies is a single session STEM activity for budding engineers who like making stuff.
This is about skills as opposed to original design projects.
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Each session will cover a workshop skill so you can book onto any or all of the sessions.​
We start with CAD CAM which we use throughout our design and making.
This activity is an ideal precursor to Young Designers or just for supporting STEM and having fun.
We cover light workshop tools and much content at KS2 and 3 D&T!!​
Our groups comprise up to six students.
As we are in a workshop environment safe, responsible and respectful behaviour is expected at all times.
These courses are for Elective Home Educators. If you are looking for EOTAS/WASP provision please get in touch to discuss options. Thanks
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Project Birdsong
Following the ongoing success of our ParaChirp's use in Rwanda for faciitating citzen science and training nature reserve tour guides for use in obtaining high quality recordings of wild birdsong we are launching our latest version - 'Turaco'
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Turaco comes ready to work with your smartphone with or without an external microphone, selfie stick compatibility, simpler construction and cost reductions over previous versions.
