New
New
Year 2

Designing a vehicle

I can design a vehicle and create the chassis.

New
New
Year 2

Designing a vehicle

I can design a vehicle and create the chassis.

These resources will be removed by end of Summer Term 2025.

Switch to our new teaching resources now - designed by teachers and leading subject experts, and tested in classrooms.

These resources were created for remote use during the pandemic and are not designed for classroom teaching.

Lesson details

Key learning points

  1. A design specification can help a designer to design and make a vehicle for a specific use.
  2. Right-angled card triangles (triangulation method) can be used to make a frame or joint more stable and stronger.
  3. Different joining methods can be used to secure a joint.

Keywords

  • Vehicle - a machine with wheels used for transporting people or goods

  • Design - the process of creating a plan for a product or structure

  • Joint - a point at which two parts of a structure are joined together

  • Reinforce - to strengthen or support an object or structure

  • Body - the main structure of a vehicle that holds its components

Common misconception

All vehicles are made from the same materials.

Discuss the diversity of materials used in vehicle construction and why different vehicles require different materials.


To help you plan your year 2 design and technology lesson on: Designing a vehicle, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...

Encourage the use of recycleable materials for the chassis and to reinforce the chassis.
Teacher tip

Equipment

Specifications, worksheet, pencil, recyclable packaging, pre-cut cardboard triangles/cardboard, scissors, ruler,sticky tack,holepunch,cardboard & corrugated card, glue stick,PVA,range of tapes,staples

Content guidance

  • Risk assessment required - equipment

Supervision

Adult supervision required

Licence

This content is © Oak National Academy Limited (2025), licensed on Open Government Licence version 3.0 except where otherwise stated. See Oak's terms & conditions (Collection 2).

Lesson video

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4 Questions

Q1.
True or false? If you put different sized wheels on the same axle, the vehicle will wobble.
Correct answer: True
False
Q2.
Axles need to be __________ to each other.
at angles
Correct answer: parallel
close
Q3.
Which of these materials could you use to make an axle and axle holder on a cardboard vehicle?
Correct answer: thick straw
string
Correct answer: pre-cut wooden dowel
pipe cleaner
Q4.
Which of the following could you use as axle holders for a cardboard vehicle?
Correct answer: wooden pegs
Correct answer: straws
cardboard
Correct answer: cardboard triangles
sticky tape

4 Questions

Q1.
Match these words their meaning:
Correct Answer:vehicle,a machine with wheels used for transporting people or goods

a machine with wheels used for transporting people or goods

Correct Answer:design,the process of creating a plan for a product or structure

the process of creating a plan for a product or structure

Correct Answer:joint,a point at which two parts of a structure are joined together

a point at which two parts of a structure are joined together

Correct Answer:body,the main structure of a vehicle that holds its components

the main structure of a vehicle that holds its components

Q2.
True or false? Design specifications help designers create objects that people want.
Correct answer: True
False
Q3.
__________ means to make something stronger and more stable.
Glued
Correct answer: Reinforced
Dismantled
Q4.
Which of these are good ways to join card?
Correct answer: sticky tape
Correct answer: glue stick
paper
Correct answer: PVA glue
card

Additional material

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