Food and Nutrition
Food & Nutrition is a practical subject which teaches useful skills important for a pupil’s future independent living.
At Key Stage 3 all pupils can develop skills and strategies useful for making wise food choices, for developing and promoting positive relationships with their family and peers, and for living independently in the future.
This includes learning to:
• Make healthy food choices;
• Prepare and cook food and make healthy dishes;
• Be an effective consumer;
• Look after the environment; and
• Be aware of roles and responsibilities within the home.
Staff
Mrs T Purdy: Head of Food and Nutrition, Health and Social Care, Occupational Studies,
Mrs M Edgar: Food and Nutrition Occupational Studies Health and Social Care
Mrs R Simms: Food and Nutrition Health and Social Care
Key Stage 3
At Key Stage 3 pupils have three50-minute periods of Food and Nutrition each week on rotation with Technology. Lessons include practical cooking activities, food comparisons, written activities, group work, research activities, discussion and evaluation.
Recipes booklets containing the recipes used during Year 8, Year 9 and Year 10 practical classes are available to pupils through the department.
Key Stage 4
The Food and Nutrition Department offer several subjects at GCSE/Level 2. Students are guided through our options process in Year 10 to choose subjects and the qualification level that suits their interest, career aspirations and ability.
GCSE Food and Nutrition (CCEA)
This GCSE is designed for those want to take their KS3 Food and Nutrition to the next level. The course focuses on two main areas:
Component 1: Food and Nutrition
This Food and Nutrition specification encourages students to develop knowledge and understanding of the science behind food. Topics include food provenance, food processing and production, macronutrients and micronutrients, government nutritional guidelines, food safety and resource management. Students develop practical skills in food preparation, cooking and presentation.
This component is externally assessed.
Component 2: Practical Food and Nutrition
In this unit, students carry out a task that develops unique transferable skills. They research the given task title and various viewpoints on it. They choose and justify a practical activity using a range of criteria. They complete the activity in a single session and evaluate all parts of the task.
The course further develops skills required not only for employment in the future e.g. in industry, in food preparation, etc. but is also useful for everyday choices and independent living.
This component is internally assessed.
Occupational Studies: Contemporary Cuisine/Patisserie and Baking (Level 2)
This is a practical cooking course with a focus on the development of cooking skills:
Contemporary Cuisine
Topics and practical activities include:
• Putting food hygiene and personal hygiene into practice as food handlers.
• Looking at career opportunities within the food and catering industry.
• Putting health and safety into practice.
• Prepare, cook and finish four starters, mains and desserts.
• Consider safe food storage and how packaging can be recycled.
• Healthy eating alternatives.
• Consideration of environmental issues in the catering industry.
Patisserie and Baking
• The second year of the course builds on the knowledge of the Contemporary cuisine and the practical activities include:
• Preparing and baking bread and scones
• Preparing cook and finishing cakes and biscuits
• Preparing and cooking pastry products
• The continued development of practical cooking skills plays a vital role in both of the above courses.
CCEA GCSE Health & Social Care
Unit 1: Personal Development, Health & Wellbeing
50% Exam in Year 11
In this unit, you will study:
• Human development;
• Factors affecting health and well-being;
• Relationships;
• Self-concept; and
• Major life changes and sources of support.
Unit 2: Working in the Health & Social Care and Early Years Sectors
50% controlled assessment in Year 12
In this unit, you will study:
• Service users’ needs
• Health and social care services;
• Early years services;
• Job roles of health and social care and early years practitioners; the values of care; and safeguarding.
Occupational Studies Children’s Care (CCEA, Level 2)
This is a practical course with a focus on the development and understanding of the physical care of babies needs.
Children’s Care
This unit is suitable for learners will identify the basic care needs of babies and develop their knowledge and practical skills to meet these needs.
This unit includes:
• Consideration of the role of the childcare worker and associated career opportunities;
• Basic hygiene needs of babies;
• Measures to prevent cross infection;
• Consideration of the disposal of waste and related environmental impacts when caring for babies;
• Products and clothing for babies;
• Feeding babies;
• Consideration of health and safety issues when caring for babies; and
• A review and evaluation of performance.
The Play Environment
This unit will introduce learners to working with children in a childcare environment. It focuses on the importance of play and children’s development.
This unit includes:
• Children’s physical, linguistic, intellectual, emotional and social development;
• The importance of play and children’s learning and development;
• Books, poems, rhymes and games for the age group of your choice;
• Communication difficulties;
• Role of the children’s care worker in various settings and related career opportunities;
• Consideration of health and safety issues within the unit;
• Consideration of environmental issues within the unit; and
• A review and evaluation of performance.
Key Stage 5
Health and Social Care
This CCEA course covers a wide variety of different units which not only provides one (Single Award) or two (Double Award) GCE qualifications to gain entry to Further and Higher Education courses but also provides knowledge and skills which are useful when studying these courses.
Assessment is a blend of internally assessed units and some which are externally assessed.
AS topics include:
• Promoting Quality Care,
• Communication in health, social and early year’s settings.
• Health and wellbeing.
• Safeguarding Children
• Holistic Therapies
• Understanding the Physiology of Health and Illness
A2 topics include:
• Health Promotion
• Body Systems and Physiological Disorders
• Providing Services
• Applied Research
• Supporting the Family
• Understanding Human Behaviour
Many of our students have progressed to university courses such as Early Years Studies, Nursing and Psychology. Others have opted to study an HND in Health and Social Care or sought employment within the Care Industry.