Year 7 Designers’ Sweet and Treat Dispenser Project
Year 7 have been busy designing sweet and treat dispensers in Design, briefed to design and produce a decorative object that could be filled with and dispense objects through a turning part. Throughout this project they worked with various materials and tools, learning how to use the hand drill, pillar drill, scroll saws and sanders. We joined them as they began the evaluation stage of their project.
Looking closely at what went well, what could be improved and what the learnings had been from the different stages of the project and design, most agreed that trial and error were possibly the most important part of the process. Making mistakes, spotting them and considering how they could be rectified, is an integral part of design and one our students have enjoyed learning about.
Talking to Darcy she shared,
“There were lots of different options I could base my design on, I decided on Spongebob’s Patrick as I love that character! I needed help with the turning wheel of the dispensing mechanism, as I hadn’t got it quite right the first time. I love design, we have lots of freedom in terms of what we might want to create, and it’s great fun working on something that you could actually use at home. Mine is dispensing sweets at the moment but I might change that to cat treats!”
Harrison explained,
“This project has made me really think about what goes into the design of lots of things I see and use every day. I had a few problems getting the dispenser wheel part of to turn, but with some readjustments it’s now working – and I’m really pleased with it. I really enjoy building things, creating objects from my own ideas that I can actually use at home.”
Emilia’s Jellycat bear design challenged her in a different way, she explained,
“Getting the design to match up where you put all the different parts of the dispenser together was really hard! The gluing was also hard work, but really rewarding once I’d completed it – I love it! It looks how I wanted it to and it works. I love creating, and being able to come up with our own designs; this project has been really fun.”
Others in the classroom shared similar challenges with the dispenser mechanism and ensuring the side panels line in in terms of design and aesthetics. There was a variety of sweet and pet treat dispensers around the classroom – but one thing was completely consistent – everyone thoroughly enjoyed the project and the time spent bringing their creations to life!
