Teacher Guidance
To support students to develop understanding of technological modelling at Level 1, teachers could:

• provide students with the opportunity to discuss why technological modelling is important to the development of Technological Outcomes and that  it involves both functional modelling and prototyping
• guide students to identify that functional models are representations of potential Technological Outcomes and that they exist in many forms (for example, thinking, talking, drawing, physical mock-ups, computer aided simulations etc)
• provide students with the opportunity to discuss that design concepts includes design ideas for parts of an outcome, as well as the conceptual design for the outcome as a whole
• provide students with the opportunity to interact with a variety of functional models and guide them to identify that the purpose of functional modelling is to test design concepts to see if they are suitable for use in the development of an outcome
• guide students to identify that prototypes are the first versions of fully completed Technological Outcomes
• provide students with a range of prototyping examples and guide them to identify that the purpose of prototyping is to test the outcome.

Describe what a functional model is

Define physical and functional attributes first (Technological Practice) before defining functional modelling.

Identify link between physical/functional attributes and functional modelling

Using a range of functional models discuss:

• what they look like (physical appearance)
• what they enable (function) in terms of design decision making

Discuss examples of functional models.

Identify examples of functional models, such as drawings, talking, mockups, recipes.
Create a class definition of a functional model and discuss why these help us when developing Technological Outcomes

 What is a functional model?

Class discussion:

• What is a model?
• What is modelling?
•  What is technological modelling?

 Look at a product, such as a torch:

•   What did the technologist do to help them make this torch (such as drawings, model, test materials, circuit diagram, prototype)?
• Why did they do these things?
• How did this modelling help them?  

Discuss images of the different forms of modelling

• What is functional modelling?
• What is prototyping?
• What is the difference (eg,purpose)?

Give students a everyday product they are familiar with (such as a stapler):

• Which forms of modelling might have been used to create it?
• What would it have told them?

Class discussion:

• What forms of technological modelling (such as  draft drawings, final drawing, pattern) have been done for this outcome?
• Why?

Identify the purpose of functional modelling

Compare a range of functional models to prototypes.

Provide examples of prototypes (such as photos of prototype cars – Future for all) and examples of functional models (such as a sketch of car):

• What is the difference?  
• What is similar?
• Why have functional models?
• Why have prototypes?
• What is the purpose of both?

Use a Venn Diagram to record differences and similarities.

Functional modelling of everyday items.

Share examples of functional modelling of everyday items (such as the bendy straw, or check out Google Patents):

• Why did the technologist create this model?
• What did it tell them?
• How did it help them?

Describe what a prototype is

Look at prototype products (such as cars and other products – see Future for all).

• What stage of production process is a prototype at?
• Why is it at that stage?
• What is the ext stage?
• What information is gained from a prototype?

Identify the purpose of prototyping

Share examples of prototypes of everyday items (escuh as the bendy straw, or check out Google Patents).

• Why did the technologist create this model?
• What did it tell them?
• How did it help them?