The Home Economics department provides a range of opportunities for young people to develop their life skills in textiles, food and consumer issues.
Why study Home Economics?
*Allows you to make responsible choices about your diet and food.
*Helps you to manage your time, money and other resources.
*Provides you with information which can be disseminated to your parents and other members of the society.
*Helps you to connect content you learn with real life experience.
What will I learn in Home Economics?
*Your body – what is good to eat and how to keep healthy.
*Food – how it nourishes your body, how to choose it, store it, and how to prepare and cook it.
*Using money – how to spend it wisely, how to save it, and how you are protected as a consumer.
*Your home – about design in the home, about safety and hygiene.
*Practical assignments in food & nutrition, clothing & textiles and home management.
Courses and Qualifications
S1-3 The Broad General Education
The course aims to develop young people’s skills in:
- Researching and developing practical solutions to everyday problems.
- Class and group discussions.
- Using a broad range of equipment and techniques.
- Making healthier food choices.
- Understanding how advertising and the media can influence their choices.
- Developing healthy methods of cooking.
- Applying current healthy eating advice to their diet.
- Meeting the nutritional needs of different people.
- Maintaining good hygiene and safety during the purchasing, storing, preparation and consumption of food.
- Cooking a diversity of foods.
- Understanding where the food they consume in grown and reaches their plate.
S3 FOOD STUDIES (choice)
The course builds on the skills developed in S1/S2 and provides opportunities to investigate discuss and develop practical solutions to a range of food related issues.
These issues include the use of seasonal and local foods, methods to minimise food wastage and ways to reduce food costs in the home.
Working with local businesses and our community partners pupils will investigate the impact of our demand for imported foods and run a social enterprise making preserves.
This is a practical course and is suitable for those who wish to learn how to make tasty, healthy, inexpensive food for themselves, their family and friends.
It is also be suitable for those who are considering a career in the food industry.
S3 TEXTILES (choice)
This is a practical course which gives students the opportunity to learn about different sewing techniques and develop an understanding of the different textile properties of different fabrics.
They will become familiar with a range of textile equipment and confident in its use.
They will have the opportunity to design and make personal items and household textile items.
They will learn how recycled textiles can be used to create new and exciting new products and reduce costs.
This course is for anyone with an interest in fashion and in particular those who may be considering this as a possible subject choice in S4 or going into this line of study or employment when leaving school.
The National 4/5 Curriculum
CREATIVE CAKES – National 5
This course is open to all students who have completed S3 Food studies or Nat4 or 5 Hospitality.
The course as the name suggests is all about the production of cakes-baking them and decorating them with a range of specialist finishes.
The students will be given opportunities to develop and practice a wide range of specialist skills in baking and sugar confectionary to increase their dexterity and precision to a professional standard.
In addition an understanding of the properties of the individual ingredients and specialist equipment will be developed.
Students will use the skills developed in the early part of the course to design and make a range of cakes. This work will be undertaken individually and require students to interpret a product brief in the same way product developers do in the industry.
e.g. “Design and make a cake suitable for a 21st birthday party.”
This focus on individual work will encourage development of creativity, and personal evaluation.
FASHION AND TEXTILE TECHNOLOGY – National 4/5
The main purpose of the Course is to develop the skills and knowledge to enable students to be creative in the production of fashion/textile items.
The knowledge and skills that students acquire by successfully completing the Course will be valuable for learning, for life and for the world of work.
The course is practical and experiential. Students will plan, make and evaluate the fashion/textile items they make to given briefs, through doing so students will:-
- Develop their practical skills and textile construction techniques to plan and make basic fashion/textile items.
- Gain in confidence, improve knowledge and develop their technique in the use of tools and equipment used when working with textiles.
- Learn about textile properties and their characteristics.
- Develop their knowledge and understanding of a range of factors that influence fashion/textile choices.
- Learn and develop basic investigation and evaluation skills.
- Be able to communicate ideas effectively.
This Course or its Units will provide progression to: - National 5 Fashion and Textile Technology Course
- Other SQA qualifications in fashion and textile technology or related areas, e.g. health and wellbeing, creative arts or technologies.
- Further education and employment or training.
At National 5 Level students will continue to develop their skills and techniques through practical construction of fabric items.
They will plan the making of fashion/textile items prior to making them.
They will have to work to an appropriate degree of accuracy using a range of textile construction techniques.
Students will also have to take into account a range of factors that affect fashion and textile choices. Commercial paper patterns will be used to make their fashion/textile item.
HOSPITALITY –PRACTICAL COOKERY – National 4/5
The course is practical, designed to develop skills in cooking and presenting food. It will enable students to develop knowledge and range of practical skills, confidence and creativity with food.
These are valuable skills whether you wish to improve your skills for use at home or aim towards a career in the catering industry.
We will develop your knowledge of the properties of a wide range of fresh ingredients.
Skills already gained in S2/3 will be further developed through investigating the ways different foods can be used in a range of dishes.
We will also further develop knowledge of how to maintain a safe and hygienic working environment.
Students will study and develop an awareness of the issues surrounding responsible sourcing of food stuffs and making best use of these, economically and ethically, to ensure a healthy diet. This will be achieved through the study of current dietary advice and of how our food is sourced, both at home and from other countries. Information and contacts with our school links in Malawi will be used to give students an insight into implications of their choices when purchasing food from abroad. Students will be encouraged to use locally produced and seasonal foods.
Students will evaluate their own work and the work of others to help you identify how they can improve and become more creative in your use of food. Creativity will be encouraged through the practical application of garnishing and decorative work to create appealing dishes.
We will also learn the organisational and time management skills essential to producing meals for the family and for the hospitality/catering industry. This includes the opportunity to work with local catering personnel in class. Students will also be given the chance to take part in national cookery competitions, giving them the opportunity to show their skills as well as enhancing their record of achievement.
Students will be accepted into National 5 upon development of the appropriate level of skill.
POSSIBLE PROGRESSION IN THE SENIOR PHASE
Health and food technology Nat5/Higher
Nat4 student in Hospitality can progress to Nat5.
College catering courses
HEALTH AND FOOD TECHNOLOGY – National 4/5
The main purpose of the Course is to develop the skills and knowledge in working with food.
The course involves the students in both the study of food related issues and the design and production of food products.
The knowledge and skills that students acquire by successfully completing the Course will be valuable for learning, for life and for the world of work particularly in food science, medical and product development careers.
The course is both practical, experiential and knowledge based. Students will develop and understanding of food and plan, make and evaluate food products to given briefs, through doing so students will:-
- Develop their practical skills.
- Gain in confidence, improve knowledge and develop their technique in the use of tools and equipment used when working with food.
- Learn about food properties and their characteristics.
- Develop their knowledge and understanding of a range of factors that influence food choices including sustainability of food globally and organic food.
- Develop their knowledge and ability to cook for health.
- Learn and develop investigation and evaluation skills.
- Be able to communicate ideas effectively.
- Develop practical problem solving skills.
This Course or its Units may provide progression to:-
- Higher Health and food Technology Course
- Other SQA qualifications related areas, e.g. health and wellbeing, creative arts or technologies.
- Further education and employment or training.
Further Information
Extra – Curricular Opportunities
Chef’s club
This is an after school experience offered to all students who enjoy cooking and would like the opportunity to work with experienced chefs in the local community. We enter students into cookery competitions. This gives them the opportunity to develop their own dishes and to experience working with local chefs to have fun with food and develop their skills.
Student thoughts on the experience…
Skye Kenny‘s experience of chefs club
“Taking part in the Future Chef Competition has been a really memorable experience and I didn’t ever think I would improve so much in so little time. I have a much better understanding of cooking which had meant I can make my own recipes and be creative with cooking. As well as looking great on my CV, it has developed my confidence and I would recommend it to anyone – even if you can’t cook right now, it’s a vital skill and the competition has shown how cooking can actually be a really enjoyable time and the effort pays off in the finished product. I will be back to do it again next year.”
Fiona Rhind experience of chefs club
“Taking part in the Rotary cookery competition has developed my skills and understanding of food to a much higher level. It has also given me more of an idea that I would like to pursue this as a career. Through this experience I got to create my own recipes and decide how I was going to garnish them on the plate. It also shown me that getting through to the next level of the competition at Northern Scottish level that I could cook and people enjoyed my food. This also looks really good on a CV and has also helped broaden my understanding of the food world.”
Local links/partnerships business links:
The department works with the local community to provide alternative interactive, fun ways of learning.
Some examples include-
- Rotary club and future chef cookery competitions
- The sea fish authority
- Moray college catering department
- Cluny Bank Hotel
- Kristoffs
