Key stage 3 curriculum

The course is designed to provide all pupils with a range of cookery skills, knowledge of nutrition and healthy eating, as well as understanding of food science, food safety, food choice and food provenance. Pupils will have a 1 hour practical and 1 hour theory lesson per week.

A number of ‘Cook-along’ YouTube videos have been produced by the Department to help pupils familiarise themselves with the recipe prior to the practical lesson (or merely to use as a revision aid) Cookalong with Mrs B - YouTube

Check out the Food Tech Instagram: @jkhs_nutrition

Year 7 – Topics covered:

Practical lessons: Healthy potato wedges, Healthy Quesadilla, Fruit crumble, Pizza pinwheels, Roasted vegetable filo tart, Frittata, Vegetable stir-fry, Spaghetti bolognaise or Chilli con carne, and Cheesecake.

Theory lessons: Health and Safety, Food hygiene practices, Healthy eating, Raising agents, Food miles and seasonal foods, Theory of eggs, Vegetarian diet, Nutrients and Energy balance, Dairy products.

Experimental work: Investigating the effects of different raising agents in scones.

Year 8: Topics covered:

Practical lessons: Risotto, Pasta bake, Sweet and sour chicken stir-fry, Upside Down cake, Shish-Kebabs, Chicken curry, Fish goujons and Tartare sauce.

Theory lessons: Nutrients and deficiencies, Theory of cereals, Carbohydrates (function/sources/food science), Athletes diet, Food poisoning bacteria, Special diets, Health related diseases, Analysis of fast-food products, Theory of pulses, Theory of chicken and eggs, Fish (nutrition and sustainability).

Experimental work: Investigating the functions of ingredients in cakes.

Year 9: Topics covered

Practical lessons: Chicken Ballotine, Enchilada, Perfecting knife skills (julienne, baton, cross chopping etc) Spring rolls, Cottage pie, Bread-making – Healthy Pizza, Fresh Pasta making, Lasagne, Short-crust pastry – Maid of Honour, Puff pastry – Pasties, Whisked sponge - Swiss roll.

Theory lessons: Carbon footprint and Food security, Food choice (moral and ethical issues), Packaging and food waste, Protein (LBV/HBV + Complementation), Diet through life, Science of bread-making, Multicultural cuisine, Theory of fats (function/types/sources/health issues, Science of pastry making, Science of a whisked sponge.

Experimental work: Investigating the function of fats in pastry making, Yeast experiment.

 

Key stage 4 curriculum: AQA GCSE Food Preparation and Nutrition GCSE

Specification link AQA | Food | GCSE | Food Preparation and Nutrition

This qualification focuses on practical cooking skills to ensure that students develop a thorough understanding of nutrition, food provenance, and the working characteristics of food materials. At its heart, this qualification focusses on nurturing students’ cooking skills to provide them with a strong understanding of nutrition and healthy eating. All practical skills will be taught in Year 10. We will begin with the basics, building on existing skills that pupils have learned in KS3.

This course is suitable for anyone who is interested in pursuing a career in the food industry, or simply wants to develop their knowledge of food and cooking, adding an important additional life-skill.

In Year 10, pupils have the opportunity to visit further education colleges to gain an insight into the type of ‘Post-16’ courses that are available to them. This will usually involve a tour around the facilities and a 3-course lunch. There will also be an opportunity to watch live food demonstrations.

Pupils will also have the opportunity of visiting ‘Cadbury World’ where they will observe how chocolate is made and manufactured, and gain insight into the traditional chocolate-making technique of tempering. As part of the visit, Pupils will also be able to expand class knowledge by participating in a one-hour curriculum-linked educational session e.g., Sensory Analysis, Food Hygiene and Quality, and Food Marketing and Labelling (which will aid with revision). During the year we also have many in-house food competitions and guest chefs are invited to teach specific food preparation skills.

Course information:

Pupils will have 5 lessons per fortnight including 2 double lessons for practical work.

 

Year 10:

Course content – theory lessons to be covered in Year 10:

• Nutrition/Healthy eating
• Diet and health
• Special diets
• Food Science
• Food Safety
• Food Choice
• Food Provenance
• Food Processing and Production
• Food labelling and marketing influences
• Environmental and Ethical issues
• Sensory Analysis

 

Examples of practical skills covered in Year 10 (in preparation for the NEA 2 task) include:

• Knife skills (Filleting fish, batons, julienne etc.)
• Making a dough (pasta, bread, pastries)
• Sauce making (reduction e.g., tomato/curry sauces, starch based e.g., béchamel/veloute, emulsions e.g., salad dressing/mayonnaise)
• Raising agents (Meringue, Cakes e.g., Swiss roll, scones, Choux pastry e.g., eclairs/profiteroles)
• Setting mixtures (Quiche, Cheesecake, layered desserts)
• Shaping (burgers, fish cakes, meatballs)

A number of ‘Cook-along’ YouTube videos have been produced by the Department to help pupils familiarise themselves with the recipe prior to the practical lesson (or merely to use as a revision aid).Year 11:

In Year 11, Pupils will complete two non-exam assessment (NEA) tasks worth 50% and a final 1 hour 45 minute examination for the remaining 50%, which will test knowledge and understanding.

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Year 11:

• Task 1 - Food Investigation (15% of GCSE): Student understanding of the working characteristics, functional and chemical properties of ingredients.  Practical Science investigations are a compulsory element of this task.
• Task 2 - Food Preparation (35% of GCSE): Student knowledge, skills and understanding in relation to the planning, preparation, cooking and presentation of food, and application of nutrition related to the chosen task. Students will prepare, cook and present a final menu of three dishes.
• Written Exam Paper (50% of GCSE): Students will be assessed on their theoretical knowledge of food preparation and nutrition from the subject content. The exam is 1 hour 45 minutes and the first section of the paper comprises multiple choice questions (20 marks) and for the second section there are five longer questions, each with a number of sub-questions (80 marks).

 

There are many career opportunities linked to the course including:

• Quality Assurance Management
• Nutritional Analyst
• Dietician
• Microbiologist
• Food Hygiene
• Food Marketing
• Product Development
• Production Management
• Catering Manager
• Food and Beverage Manager
• Chef
• Environmental Health Officer
• Restaurant/Hotel Management
• Sports Nutrition/Science
• Education/Training
• Research and Development
• Food Stylist
• Home economist.