Food Technology

The Art Faculty at Manshead comprises of Art, Food Technology, Product Design and Textiles. Each subject area is staffed with teachers that have a passion for their subject as well as being practitioners in their own right.

We value our food curriculum which promotes diet as central to health. Our healthy eating agenda makes explicit the correlation between poor eating habits, a sedentary lifestyle and the possible health risks that these pose.

We aim to provide a setting for important early experiences which help to develop students' enjoyment of their food, their understanding of the social contexts within which eating takes place, and their ability to make informed, healthy choices.

The Curriculum

The curriculum for Food Technology has been created to essentially equip students with knowledge, understanding and skills for them to successfully cook for good health and well-being. At key stage 3, year 7 and 8 students will study food preparation and nutrition. The course for year 9 continues to build on the previous course, but will also include ‘taster lessons’ based on some of the topics that would be studied at Key stage 4 for the Level 1 / 2 Vocational course in Hospitality and Catering.

The lessons are tailored to encourage students to:

Develop key life skills to prepare affordable and nutritious meals safely and hygienically for themselves and others.
Understand the relationship between diet, nutrition, and health, including the physiological and psychological consequences of poor diet and health.
Help them make informed decisions about possible entrepreneurial ventures and / or career pathways.
Develop valuable transferable life and workplace skills such as organisation, time management, teamwork, problem solving, creativity and initiative.

Year 7 – Food Preparation and Nutrition

Lessons for the year are based on the following key topics:

Safe Kitchen routines.
Kitchen equipment.
Nutrition and Healthy Eating.

The practical lessons are chosen to give students an opportunity to use different parts of the cooker, smaller electrical appliances and to practice safe knife skills to prepare simple healthy food products. Students will complete simple evaluations of their practical experiences to identify what went well (WWW) and to identify further skills practice, even better if (EBI).

Examples of Practicals:

Fruit Salad (Safe Knife Skills).
Blended Soup (safe use of small equipment and safe use of hob).
Pizza Toast (safe use of grill).
Breakfast Muffins (oven safety).
Christmas Treat Baking Activity.

Year 8 – Food Preparation and Nutrition

Lessons for the year are based on the following key topics:

The 4Cs of safe food preparation.
Types of Food poisoning and prevention.
Food provenance – origins and types of processes.
Ethical considerations of food production e.g. fair trade, food miles and carbon foot print.
The Eatwell Guide – the benefits of healthy and nutritional deficiencies.
Function of ingredients with focus on fermentation process of yeast, coagulation of gluten and the gelatinization in sauce making.
Special diets – e.g. vegetarianism.
Food labelling – identify suitability for healthy eating.

The practical lessons are chosen to give students opportunities to apply their knowledge of the Eatwell Guide to safely prepare and cook dishes containing high risk ingredients. Students will be required to write evaluations for some of their practicals to include points about the functions of ingredients used.

Examples of Practicals:

Burgers (safe meat or poultry preparation).
Tuna Pasta bake (basic sauce making using vegetables, starchy food and fish).
Dutch apple cakes (making small cakes using the creaming method to include fruit to improve fibre content).
Bread making (bread making process and using ingredients from a range of food groups to make a wholesome pizza).
Christmas Treat Baking Activity.

Year 9 Creative Curriculum – Hospitality and Catering

Lessons for the year will be based on the following four main topics and group activity:

Personal and food safety risks preventions practices in Hospitality and Catering

How Hospitality and Catering Provisions operate - Back of House.
Cooking methods – The impact of cooking on the nutritive value of food.
Catering for customers’ needs – nutritional and organoleptic needs in menu planning.
Mock controlled assessment - (cultural cooking research, generating and developing product ideas, time planning, practical and evaluation).

Examples of Practicals:

Meat or Poultry preparation - quesadillas.
Pasta making - ravioli.
Pastry making - Cheese and vegetable bake.
Christmas Treat Baking Activity.
Vegetable preparation - stir fry.
Fruit based dessert - low fat cheesecake.
Vegan or vegetarian dish - curry.
During the last term, students will be engaged in a meal planning and cooking project to demonstrate their ability to work as a team as members of a kitchen brigade.

Year 10 – Hospitality and Catering (WJEC Vocational Award – Level 1 / 2)

This vocational course is based on two units.

Unit 1 - The Hospitality and Catering Industry - completed in year 10.
Unit 2 - Hospitality and Catering in Action – completed in year 11.

Unit 1: The Hospitality and Catering Industry

This unit enables students to gain and develop comprehensive knowledge and understanding of the hospitality and catering industry including provision, health and safety, and food safety.

Course Outline:

1.1 Hospitality and catering providers

Hospitality and catering providers.
Working in the hospitality and catering industry.
Working conditions in the hospitality and catering industry.

1.2 How the Hospitality and catering provisions operate

1.2.1 The operation of the front and back of house.
1.2.2 Customer requirements in hospitality and catering.
1.2.3 Hospitality and catering provision to meet specific requirements.

1.3 Health and Safety in the Hospitality and Catering

1.3.1 Health and safety in hospitality and catering provision.
1.3.2 Food Safety.

1.4 Food Safety in the Hospitality and Catering

1.4.1 Food related causes of ill health.
1.4.2 Symptoms and signs of food-induced ill health.
1.4.3 Preventative control measures of food-induced ill health.
1.4.4 The Environmental Health Officer (EHO).

Towards the end of the academic year (i.e., June) student will complete an external written exam which is worth 40% of the total exam mark.

Year 11 – Hospitality and Catering (WJEC Vocational Award – Level 1 / 2) (Continued)

Unit 2: Hospitality and Catering in Action

In this unit students will gain knowledge and understanding of the importance of nutrition and how to plan nutritious menus. They will learn the skills needed to prepare, cook and present dishes. They will also learn how to review their work effectively.

Work completed for this unit will take the form of a controlled assessment or coursework. and it is based on an assignment brief produced by the exam board - (WJEC). Besides completing timed written tasks, students will also complete a three and a half hours practical under exam condition. This unit is internally assessed through controlled assessment and contributes 60% to the overall qualification.

Course Outline:

2.1 The importance of nutrition.
2.2 Menu planning.
2.3 The skills and techniques of preparation, cooking and presentation of dishes.
2.4 Evaluating cooking skills demonstrated during the three and a half hours practical.
Food Technology - Year 7 to Year 11 Curriculum 2023-2024