STEAM & Design and Technology

 

Seven-time Formula 1 world champion Lewis Hamilton, who is taking a lead to promote the importance of STEAM to pupils in schools, recently said:

“I didn’t have the opportunity to get into STEAM subjects when I was younger. Knowing what I know today, and with opportunities opening up, I would 100% have liked to get into it. I think I would have been a better driver if I could have pursued engineering when I was younger.”

STEAM magazines

John Lyon pupils have worked jointly with pupils from across the global Harrow family of schools to produce STEAM Mag Summer 2021.

In addition to this, pupils also produce a termly John Lyon STEAM Magazine that we are all very proud of:

Summer 2023

STEAM Magazine

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Spring 2023

STEAM Magazine

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Autumn 2022

STEAM Magazine

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STEAM stands for: Science, Technology Engineering, Art and Maths. At John Lyon, STEAM lessons focus on applying the skills and knowledge acquired in all of these disciplines to design and build solutions to real-life problems. The subject is more widely known as STEM, but it is increasingly clear that the Arts are essential to the design of creative solutions.

STEAM is a compulsory curriculum subject taught weekly at John Lyon at Key Stage 3. Pupils can then choose to continue it by taking Design and Technology as a GCSE subject.

The Government and many employers recognise how important and beneficial STEAM is. It makes young people employable through the skills they develop in the process.

In STEAM lessons, while working on solving real-life problems, pupils develop a variety of essential skills such as efficient group work, problem-solving, critical thinking and analysis, innovation and creativity.

At John Lyon, we have designed a bespoke STEAM curriculum. As well as learning how to innovate, design and build solutions to problems, students are taught a variety of useful skills such as soldering, 3D modelling, 3D printing and laser cutting. Robotics is also an important part of the STEAM department. The STEAM department provides a plethora of popular extra-curricular clubs, such as the robotics club, 3D printing club and laser cutting club.

During our Crest Award club, pupils are guided and mentored to complete Science projects that enable them to qualify for the Bronze, Silver and Gold Crest Awards.

Throughout the year, pupils are encouraged to enter internal John Lyon STEAM competitions as well as national competitions, such as British Science week competitions.

Our pupils recently achieved great success in VEX Robotics. They travelled to Dallas to compete in the VEX Robotics International Championships. It was an incredible experience for pupils and shows that robotics and the school’s STEAM provision are only going from strength to strength.

Pupils are also given an opportunity to complete the EDT Bronze Industrial Cadet Award, an engineering project completed by pupils under the supervision of engineers from the industry and are excited to be racing it in the summer.

We are fortunate to have world-class facilities, including a brand-new Design and Technlogy Lab, enabling us to deliver a high-quality course.