Year 7 Technologies – Term 4 (WA Curriculum): Production Systems and Design Solutions

What this unit covers

In Term 4, Year 7 Technologies in the WA Curriculum centres on the unit “Production Systems and Design Solutions”.

Students explore food and fibre production systems, investigate material properties and specialised technologies, while developing design thinking skills to create locally relevant solutions.

Lesson sequence (20 lessons)

The unit breaks down into the following lesson-by-lesson sequence — each title below is a teachable lesson, in order:

1. Investigating Farm to Fork: Milk Production Systems
2. Exploring Quality and Safety in Food Production
3. Comparing Cotton and Synthetic Fibre Production Processes
4. Analysing Wool Production from Sheep to Fabric
5. Understanding Regulatory Requirements in Food Systems
6. Examining Sensory Properties of Familiar Foods
7. Identifying Macronutrients in Local Food Sources
8. Creating Menu Plans Using Australian Dietary Guidelines
9. Exploring Social Aspects of Food Sharing and Mindful Eating
10. Investigating Food Waste and Security Issues
11. Testing Properties of Combined Materials
12. Operating Electronic Cutting Machines for Design Projects
13. Using Sewing Machines to Create Functional Cushions
14. Learning Lathe Techniques for Wooden Serving Trays
15. Designing Purpose-Built Tote Bags for Athletics Equipment
16. Creating Embossed Pet Name Tags Using Metal Technologies
17. Planning Local Solutions for Community Design Problems
18. Implementing Design Solutions Using Production Systems
19. Evaluating Forces and Motion in Everyday Technologies
20. Reflecting on Ethical Considerations in Technology Design

Curriculum codes in this unit

Content codes:

Skills codes:

Reading the codes: WA codes (the ones starting with WA) pack the year level, learning area, strand and content number into one string, while the national Australian Curriculum v9 uses a different anatomy that starts with AC9 — same content family, different labels. Our complete WA Curriculum guide decodes both, character by character.

Planning notes for Term 4

WA terms run roughly 9–11 weeks, and in 2026 Term 4 runs from Monday 12 October to Thursday 17 December — 10 weeks for WA public schools. With 20 lessons in this unit, that leaves breathing room for assessment, moderation and the weeks that disappear to carnivals, camps and public holidays — plan the assessable work to land two to three weeks before the end of term rather than in the final week.