My dd is in year 5 and is doing a dt project that involes pretending you are a company. I can tell you a bit about it. The class has been divided into 4 (about 4 in each group) and each group has built an island….cardboard, newspaper, modrok or whatever that plaster stuff is called, rocks, sea aroud, painted etc. Now each group has to work as a construction company and build a bridge each to join the islands together. (The teacher told me at parents evening that a hurricane is going to stike at some point, but they dont know that yet!) Anyway each group has had to allocate a boss person, a money person, a design person and maybe a construction or marketing person…something like that. It seems to be about what people make up a company at the moment, and how they work together, have meetings, make decisions etc but will then be chosing a design, calculating cost and dd has talked about selling it for more than it cost to make. I wouldnt worry too much as I think its broad concepts at this point, but if dd was in the class you are talking to she would probably have questions about margins and how to make the most money…its quite scary how she has got into the mindset of profit margins! They watched a clip of the apprentice and they are really into appealing logos and names for the comapany…and also firinf people! Scary that dds favourite subject is maths and she is talking about being an accountant to make enough money to fund her other job as an author when she grows up! Theres a plan! Dds group is the only girls group out of the 4 and they are determined to prove women can be successfull in business. I was at first slightly dubious and though of suggesting calculating real cost, including cost to the environment, and did suggest an artspace under the bridge or fairy lights on the suspension poles and an opening event or sponsoring a brick….but Im not sure Im helping her group win. They all seem to be really loving it though.
