This activity, for the Ellen MacArthur Foundation, looks at textiles in fashion design. It provides an opportunity for students to increase their knowledge and understanding of a circular economy approach to developing textiles products and how textile companies are applying this approach to developing new products...

In this resource, students design a new glove for use in a sport of their choice. Students may find it helpful to talk with local people who partake in their chosen sport. The P.E. Department may be able to suggest suitable contacts.

A selection of tests, activities and factsheets are available for the...

One of the trial units from the Nuffield Primary Solutions in Design and Technology. In this unit, children work co-operatively to produce a large weaving suitable for display in the entrance hall of a school.

The purpose of this activity is to explore weaving, and to design and make a large woven
...

One of the trial units from the Nuffield Primary Solutions in Design and Technology. In this unit, children learn about woven fabrics, and to design and make a fish like construction using a primitive loom.

The finished loomfish can be displayed in the classroom, so that the different designs can be...

One of the trial units from the Nuffield Primary Solutions in Design and Technology. In this unit, children design and make a small printed cushion cover.

The purpose of this activity is to explore the decorative use of lettering and pattern when
applied to fabric, and also to produce a useful item for...

One of the trial units from the Nuffield Primary Solutions in Design and Technology. In this unit, children design and make a 'simpler sampler' using fabric crayons and patterns derived from handwriting patterns.

The purpose of the activity is to create modern samplers to display handwriting patterns. This...

One of the trial units from the Nuffield Primary Solutions in Design and Technology. In this unit, children design and make a fabulous artificial flower from a range of materials such as card, paper, fabric, art straws, pipe cleaners. Each child's flower will be used in a class display of flowers. The flowers...

One of the trial units from the Nuffield Primary Solutions in Design and Technology. In this unit, children design and make a useful resource for a home that meets all the family’s identified textile repair needs.

The purpose of the task is to show the need to repair textiles when they become worn or damaged...

The Fabric Fires activity for Key Stage Three students looks at how different fabrics catch fire and burn. Students are asked to first consider the commonest reasons for fires in the home. They then test and compare a fabric and a cotton wool ball, firstly when untreated and then having first soaked them in a fire...

This booklet is part of the ‘Innovations in Practical Work’ series published by the Gatsby Science Enhancement Programme (SEP). New applications for traditional fabrics are being found, but increasingly, fibres and fabrics are engineered for specific purposes. Much...

The Teaching Primary Science book Fibres and fabrics contains many suggestions for classroom work about fabrics and paper, both of which are made from fibres. It begins with a discussion of some of the problems of teaching and organising this topic and considers how...

In this activity, students investigate the uses of materials and fabrics in medical applications, such as pressure bandages for burns injuries and anti-embolism stockings for deep vein thrombosis. The students make their own pressure sensor using different types of fabric. They then calibrate their sensor and...

This collection of resources support students to increase their understanding of Kevlar, carbon fibre, glass reinforced polyester, phase changing materials, Nomex, geotextiles, LCD, Rhovyl, breathable clothing, UV protective clothing and microfibres. The resources provide a classroom presentation, student worksheet...

The Nuffield Design and Technology Teacher's File for Key Stage Three contains a large number of resource tasks which can be included in lessons. These short, focused activities are presented as instruction sheets and are intended to increase technical knowledge, skills and design strategies.

The file...

Fibres and Fabrics was one of the four topics that featured as a separate area of study in the Nuffield Home Economics course for students aged 14–16. The aim was to allow students to learn textile science in a way that would be useful to them in everyday life.