Design CPD with the Royal Ballet & Opera

A practical CPD course for primary and secondary teachers exploring creative approaches to Design & Technology through stage design.

This FREE CPD course from the Royal Ballet & Opera (RBO) explores practical approaches to teaching design through the creative process of stage design.

Led by RBO designers, the course will introduce teachers to accessible techniques and activities that can be used in the classroom to develop pupils’ research, creative thinking, sketching, model-making, prototyping and problem-solving skills.

The session is designed to support teachers in developing engaging, practical approaches to the Design & Technology curriculum, while drawing on the unique context of theatre and stage design.

What will the course cover?

During the session, you will:

• Explore practical strategies for introducing and developing design thinking with pupils.
• Try creative warm-up and engagement activities that encourage pupils to generate and develop ideas.
• Explore the key elements of design and how these can be applied within Design & Technology.
• Take part in practical activities that take you through the design process, from understanding a design brief and researching ideas through to developing and communicating a final design.
• Develop approaches to sketching, modelling and prototyping that can be adapted for use in the classroom.
• Consider how stage design can provide an engaging context for developing pupils’ creative problem-solving and decision-making skills.
• Explore the RBO Schools Design classroom resources and how these can support your teaching.

Who is the course for?

This CPD is suitable for:

• Primary and secondary teachers teaching Design & Technology, including those working across multiple subjects.
• D&T subject leads looking for new approaches and practical classroom activities.
• Teachers who are new to teaching design and would like to develop their confidence and practical skills.
• Experienced teachers looking to refresh and extend their approaches to design education.
• Teachers working with pupils across Key Stages 1–3.

The course will demonstrate approaches that can be adapted for different age groups, with opportunities to consider how activities could be applied within your own classroom context.

What will you take away?

By the end of the course, you will have:

• Practical, classroom-ready activities to support creative design.
• New approaches to developing pupils’ research, ideation, sketching, modelling and prototyping skills.
• Ideas for using a design brief to structure pupils’ creative problem-solving.
• Greater confidence in applying the stages of the design process within D&T.
• Access to RBO Schools Design resources to support further classroom practice.

RBO Schools CPD is funded to support teachers and schools in accessing high-quality creative learning opportunities. The programme is supported by Arts Council England, the Mohn Westlake Foundation and other charitable donors committed to creative education.

Please gain appropriate permissions prior to booking a place.

If you have booked a place and are subsequently unable to attend, please cancel your booking through your account. This enables the RBO to offer the place to another teacher or school.