Religious Education - Clapham Terrace

Religious Education (RE)

Subject Link: Sarah Batchelor

Link Governor: Helen Twist

As a school, we follow the 2017-2022 Coventry and Warwickshire Agreed Syllabus for Religious Education.

This syllabus enables pupils to explore Buddhism, Hinduism, Islam, Judaism and Sikhism as well as Christianity. It also allows for the consideration of secular world views.

Learning is planned around key questions and made relevant to the school and local community.

Early Years – Discovering

In Early Years children encounter Christianity and other faiths as part of their growing sense of self, their own community and their place within it. They visit local places of worship including the local Church at Easter and the temple at Diwali. At Christmas time, they take part in a Nativity Play. As part of their continuous provision, they have access to a range of role play, small world and creative activities linked to enhance their learning. Learning is based on Big Questions for example; which stories are special and why?

Key Stage One – Exploring

In Year One and Two, children develop their knowledge of the principle religions and recognise that many people hold non-religious views. The main focus is on Christianity along with Islam and Judaism. They also learn about festivals and events which are relevant within the school community and local area. They take part in a Diwali day and complete home learning and presentations about celebrations, religious and secular, which are important to their families. Older children within the school join Year 1 and 2 for some of their RE lessons to share their lived experiences. They visit and explore local places of worship.

Key Stage Two – Connecting

In Key Stage Two, children continue to learn about the principle religions and a range of world views. They are given opportunities to discuss and debate. There is a focus on the knowledge and use of specific vocabulary. Children are given the opportunity to share their beliefs and experiences with their peers and younger pupils. Religious leaders from the local community such as the Parish Priest support children’s learning through engaging workshops.

Religious Education: Statement of intent

It is our intent at Clapham Terrace Primary School that all children leave with a deep knowledge of the six principle religions whilst appreciating that many people hold secular views also. We intend to enable pupils, through RE, to develop their knowledge and skills to prepare them for life in a modern, diverse Britain and in a plural world.

The principle intent of RE:

To engage pupils in systematic enquiry into significant human questions which religion and worldviews address, so that they can develop the understanding and skills needed to appreciate and appraise varied responses to these questions as well as develop responses of their own.

We share our intent with the children using the following statement:

In RE we are exploring big questions about life and finding out what people believe and what difference this makes to how they live. It’s a chance for you to think about your own ideas and beliefs too.

We used the RE Agreed Syllabus for schools in Coventry and Warwickshire to design our curriculum. We ensure that our curriculum in its implementation is relevant to and enhanced by the school community and local area. We have strong links with the local church and Hindu temple and members of Warwick University’s religious organisations. Parents and carers are also involved in our RE learning and children are encouraged to share their beliefs and experiences with their peers and younger children. Being close to Coventry an importance is also placed on themes of peace and reconciliation.

We use ‘Big Questions’ to challenge and engage children to develop their communication and debating skills alongside their knowledge and to apply what they have learnt to their own lives. Themes of Believing, Living and Expressing areexplored. The ‘Big Questions’ link through different threads and are planned to build children’s knowledge and skills as they progress through each Key Stage.

Through assessment we ensure that every child achieves their potential in RE; those few pupils who find learning in RE challenging are identified and supported as appropriate. Children working at Greater Depth within RE are identified and are supported to deepen their learning through the use of challenging learning outcomes as suggested in the Syllabus.

Living and growing up in the world of the 21st century will challenge pupils and RE is important to help them make informed choices about how they want to live their lives whilst also understanding more about the faith of other people they meet. RE is relevant to all.

RE Progression Grid

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