Year 7 Exploration

Healthy Eating

In Year 7, students begin to develop a foundation of knowledge and practical skills needed for success in Food and Nutrition. Through a range of practical activities using different food commodities, students are introduced to the principles of healthy eating and learn how to make informed food choices. A key focus is developing an understanding of the Eatwell Guide, enabling students to recognise the different food groups and the role they play in maintaining a healthy, balanced diet.

Throughout the year, students explore the basic nutrients required for good health, including carbohydrates, proteins, fats, vitamins and minerals. They learn about the nutritional value of a variety of foods, government healthy eating recommendations, and the importance of making positive lifestyle choices. Food safety and hygiene are embedded throughout the curriculum. Students learn the importance of the 4 Cs of food safety: cleaning, cooking, chilling and cross-contamination and develop safe working practices in the kitchen. They also begin to understand where food comes from by exploring the journey of food ‘from farm to fork’, considering how food is produced, processed and reaches the consumer.

The key vocabulary that they will be expected to learn is chilling, cooking, cleaning, cross contamination, ‘Eatwell Guide’, nutrients, carbohydrate, fat, protein, vitamins, minerals, recommendations, vocabulary, hygiene, safety, bacteria, commodities, risks, grilling, frying, boiling, guidelines, improvements and adaptions.

What will we be cooking?

During practical sessions students will create shortbread, scones, carrot cake, cous cous salad and fajitas. Their skills will be tested at the end of the course as they make a curry independently. This will form part of the assessment grade for the Food coursework.

Year 8 Exploration

Understanding Commodities

In Year 8, students will continue to build on the practical food preparation skills developed in Year 7 by creating more challenging dishes and working with greater independence. The rotation begins with a refresher on health and safety to ensure good practice in the kitchen. Students will explore key food commodities, with a particular focus on wheat, farming, and vegetables. They will develop an understanding of where food comes from and how it is produced on different scales.

The curriculum introduces important scientific concepts, including heat transfer and gelatinisation. Students will apply this knowledge through a practical scientific investigation, where they will plan, carry out, and evaluate an experiment to better understand how ingredients behave during cooking. Learners will also study the function of yeast and apply this knowledge by making bread and pizza, which will form part of their practical assessment.

What will we be cooking?

We will be creating sushi, chow mien and savory rice. Students will be baking bread and understanding the function of the ingredients, combining ingredients in a pizza and looking at gelatinisation and heat transfer in macaroni cheese. The final dish will be spring rolls. This will require a certain degree of self-organisation and application of previously learnt knowledge of health and safety, sensory judgement, temperature judgement, and presentation.

Year 9 Excitement

In Year 9, students will significantly deepen their knowledge of good practice in the food room. They will cover the topics of ‘Nutrients and the Eatwell Guide’ in more depth, ‘Diet and Good Health’, ‘Science and Cooking Food’, ‘Food Provenance and Waste’ and finally ‘Factors affecting Food Choice’.

Nutrition, Diet and Food Science

In Year 9 students will explore how nutrients support good health, learning the functions and sources of key macro and micronutrients, along with the effects of deficiency and excess. The rotation also covers food spoilage and bacteria, dietary needs across life stages, cultures, religions, and health conditions, and adapting recipes for allergies and intolerances. Students learn why dishes succeed or fail, how to reduce food waste, and how to plan balanced diets by calculating energy and nutritional values, understanding recommended intakes, and recognising how nutritional needs change with age, lifestyle, and health.

What will we be cooking?

Students will make jam tarts, looking at the food science behind pastry. They will then make choux pastry profiteroles, pasta and tomato sauce, focaccia and samosas. The final dish will be fruit tarts which will form part of their assessment for Year 9. This will require a certain degree of self-organisation and application of previously learnt knowledge of health and safety, sensory judgement, and presentation.

Year 10 (GCSE) Expertise

The OCR GCSE Food Preparation and Nutrition course develops students’ understanding of nutrition, healthy eating, food science, food safety, food provenance and practical cookery skills. Throughout the course, students learn how diet influences health, how food is produced and sourced, the science behind cooking processes, and the practical skills needed to prepare, cook and present a wide range of dishes. The specification is divided into four key areas: Nutrition, Food Provenance and Food Choice, Cooking and Food Preparation, and Practical Skills Requirements. Students will demonstrate their knowledge in practice tests and practical tasks across the year where they will also build key practical skills and develop more complex skills.

Autumn term:

During the autumn term, students are introduced to the foundations of food preparation and nutrition. They begin by developing an understanding of food hygiene, food safety, and health and safety procedures within the kitchen environment. Students then explore the principles of healthy eating, using the Eatwell Guide to understand how a balanced diet contributes to health and wellbeing. They study energy balance and the functions, sources and nutritional importance of macronutrients, including carbohydrates, proteins and fats, alongside micronutrients such as vitamins and minerals.

As part of their food science learning, students investigate enzymic browning and understand how and why it occurs in food products. They also explore nutritional requirements throughout the life stages, considering how dietary needs change from infancy through to older adulthood. They will also study special dietary requirements, including vegetarian and vegan diets, religious dietary practices, and medical diets linked to allergies, intolerances, and health conditions. Practical work throughout the term focuses on developing safe working practices, knife skills, food preparation techniques, and the production of healthy dishes.

What will we be cooking?

Fakewell tarts, sushi, mille feuille (puff pastry), choux pastry, profiteroles, pasta and sauce, gnocci, focaccia, apple strudel with sweet short crust pastry and a Christmas yule log.

Spring term:

In the spring term, students explore the journey of food from farm to fork. They investigate food provenance by considering the source and supply of food, food security, and the impact of food production. Students examine seasonality and sustainability, encouraging them to make informed decisions about food choices and understand the environmental consequences of food production and consumption. They also learn about food processing, technological developments within the food industry and factors that influence food choice, including cultural, ethical and economic considerations. British cuisine and a range of international cuisines are explored to broaden students’ understanding of culinary traditions.

Alongside this, students continue their study of food science by investigating yeast and fermentation, as well as the different types of raising agents used in food production. Students also examine the relationship between diet and health through the study of diet-related diseases, including obesity, coronary heart disease, Type 2 diabetes, osteoporosis, and tooth decay. Practical lessons will include a focus on food science processes behind the dishes and developing high level skills.

What will we be cooking?

Hand cut noodles and chow mien, Viennese whirls, lemon meringue tarts. De-boning and de-jointing chicken, boa buns, chicken kebab, chicken curry.

Summer term:

Students will further investigate a range of food science concepts, including gelatinisation, dextrinisation, caramelisation, coagulation, denaturation, gluten formation, aeration, emulsification, shortening. Students explore how ingredients behave during cooking and how scientific processes influence the appearance, texture, flavour and overall quality of food products.

Students also develop their understanding of sensory properties, learning how appearance, aroma, taste and texture contribute to food products. Throughout the term, students build confidence in planning, producing and evaluating their own dishes while applying their knowledge of nutrition and food science. The students will be given the opportunity to plan, prepare and cook dishes of their own choosing, completing research, a time plan and an evaluation of their performance during their practical.

What will we be cooking?

Gyozas, fish and chips (filleting fish), own choice practical, presentation challenge.

Year 11 (GCSE OCR) Expertise

The majority of Year 11 is dedicated to completing the two OCR Non-Examined Assessments (NEAs), which together account for 50% of the final GCSE grade. These assessments allow students to demonstrate their investigative, analytical and practical cooking skills by applying the knowledge gained throughout the course. The remaining 50% of the qualification is assessed through a 1 hour 30-minute written exam in the summer term.

NEA1 (15%) Food Investigation Task

The Food Investigation Task is a scientific investigation set by OCR which requires students to demonstrate their understanding of the working characteristics, functional and chemical properties of ingredients. Students are provided with a task by the examination board and must plan, carry out and evaluate a series of practical investigations. Students are required to produce a written report of approximately 2,000 words that documents the entire investigation process.

Previous tasks have focused on topics such as the effectiveness of different raising agents in baked products, the role of emulsifiers in food products, and the factors affecting enzymic browning. As the task changes annually, students are not aware of the specific investigation focus until it is released by OCR.  A strong understanding of food science and the ability to apply scientific principles to practical outcomes are essential for success in this assessment.

This task will be marked out of 45 as follows:

Planning – (9 marks)

Investigation – (21 marks)

Analyse – (9 marks)

Evaluate – (6 marks)

NEA2 (35%) Food Preparation Task

NEA 2 is presented as a written portfolio of evidence and allows students to demonstrate their ability to plan, prepare, cook and evaluate a range of dishes in response to a brief set by OCR. The task is released by the examination board during Year 11 and forms an important part of the GCSE Food Preparation and Nutrition qualification. Students are required to investigate the requirements of their chosen brief, research relevant ingredients and dishes, and apply a range of technical skills and nutritional knowledge throughout the project.

The task will be marked out of 105 marks as follows:

Planning – (20 marks)

Method of working – (20 marks)

Skills and Cooking – (25 marks)

Presentation – (25 marks)

Analyse and Evaluate – (15 marks)

Written exam (50% 100 marks)

The written examination assesses students’ knowledge and understanding of all areas of the OCR GCSE Food Preparation and Nutrition specification and accounts for 50% of the overall GCSE grade. The examination is 1 hour 30 minutes and draws upon learning from across both Year 10 and Year 11. Revision activities will include exam-style questions, retrieval practice, knowledge organisers, past paper questions and structured revision tasks designed to build confidence and examination technique.