Religious Education
RE helps pupils develop by exploring the world’s major faiths and views. It supports them in constructing and reflecting upon their own values and their capacity for moral judgement. Giving them awareness and appreciation of the value of each other in a diverse society. This appreciation will help them in counteracting prejudices and intolerance.
Furthermore, RE is an essential component of a broad and balanced education. It enables teachers and pupils to approach different faiths and respectfully encourages each other to ask questions by being open and curious. It enables pupils to consider and respond to a range of faiths related to their own spiritual development of values and attitude and those tricky questions about the meaning of life.
Importantly, RE also promotes pupil’s spiritual, moral, social and cultural development and prepares them for the opportunities, responsibilities and experiences of the present and the future in the wider world.
From early years, there are introductions to faiths around us and the lessons are linked with things the pupils will understand. For example, looking and understanding special books leads nicely into Holy books of different faiths and some of the stories within them which contain a message. Lessons cover a variety of questions about faiths like, Muslim, Sikhism, Christian, Hindu and Jewish along with lessons about our world and our place within it.
Skills:
Year 1: To be able to recognise and name key features in faiths and beliefs.
Year 2: Retell faith stories, identify differences and similarities between faiths.
Year 3: Identify differences and similarities between faiths, make links between faiths and themselves.
Year 4: Comment on connections made between beliefs and values, identify similarities between faiths, describe the impact of beliefs on individuals and communities.
Year 5: Explain connections between beliefs and values, recognise and explain the impact of beliefs and ultimate questions on individuals and communities, explain how differences in faiths are expressed.
Year 6: Recognise and explain some of the challenges offered by faiths and beliefs in the world, explain the reasons for and the effects of diversity within and between faiths.
We currently use a scheme of work called West Yorkshire RE Resource Hub. This is updated regularly and easy to follow with lots of resources and lesson plans. This transitions nicely from topic to topic.
The Hub has been shared to all year groups and is downloaded on the school sharing file. Any member of the teaching staff can access these lessons easily and follow the plans. With the added pre and post sheets to show the learning journey of the pupils which will show which parts of the topic have been learnt.
The Hub resources are mapped out so there are weekly lessons, but the hub also encourages off plan lessons to teach current festivals within the year.
Visits and experiences are incorporated with trips to local churches and visitors coming into school sharing their faith.
The impact of RE within our school is seeing the children become more inquisitive whilst showing an understanding of World Faiths and seeing the links between them. This is proved by the further questioning, details and personal thoughts they put into the discussions or written work. Therefore, the children are accepting of other Faiths.
Quote: “Faith is like wi-fi, it’s invisible but it has the power to connect you to what you need.”
