Religious Education– Intent, Implementation and Impact

Intent

Our core Christian values of Respect, Responsibility, Kindness, Courage, Honesty and Forgiveness provide the foundation for maximising academic and spiritual growth of every member of our school. Our vision, is that all members of our school community; grow through faith in God, or are inspired by faith to reach our full potential. Our hope is that we are the best that we can be, both now and in the future so that we make a responsible contribution to the world, showing love, patience and kindness to those around us. 

So now faith, hope, and love abide, these three; but the greatest of these is love. 1 Corinthians 13

At Bow Brickhill CE Primary School, we believe that the teaching of Religious Education is vital for the development of each child as an individual.  R.E contributes to our children’s development; further empowering them to become tolerant, understanding citizens, who live out the British Values and who are spiritually, morally, socially and culturally literate. Our R.E lessons are intended to offer a broad and rich R.E curriculum to allow for coverage over a rolling 2 year cycle. We follow an enquiry based approach, beginning with the children’s own life experience before moving into learning about and from religion. 

Our curriculum;

• Provokes challenging questions about the meaning and purpose of life, beliefs, the self, and issues of right and wrong, commitment and belonging.

• Develops pupils’ knowledge and understanding of Christianity, other world religions, and religious traditions that examine these questions, fostering personal reflection and spiritual development.

• Encourages pupils to explore their own beliefs (religious or non-religious), in the light of what they learn, as they examine issues of religious belief and faith and how these impact on personal, institutional and social ethics; and to express their responses.

• Enables pupils to build their sense of identity and belonging, which helps them flourish within their communities and as citizens in a diverse society.

• Teaches pupils to develop respect for others, including people with different faiths and beliefs, and helps to challenge prejudice.

• Prompts pupils to consider their responsibilities to themselves and to others, and to explore how they might contribute to their communities and to wider society.

• Encourages empathy and kindness.

• Develops a sense of awe, wonder and mystery.

• Nurtures each child’s own spiritual development.

R.E lessons have an intention of providing a high quality, coherent and progressive experience of the subject, with scope for cross-curricular learning. The intent is to make sure that children understand the relevance of R.E in today’s modern world and how it affects our lives.

Implementation

Using our bespoke R.E curriculum, based on the Milton Keynes syllabus, we have planned lessons to ensure we offer a broad range of study for our pupils. Each unit of work starts from the children’s own life experiences using these as a bridge into the investigation of the religion being studied. Learning is assessed and children have the opportunity to express their own thoughts and beliefs and empathise with believers of that religion or belief position. R.E is taught in mixed year groups by skilled and knowledgeable teachers. It is taught as a discrete subject for an hour in each class every week, with appropriate links to other curriculum areas wherever suitable.

In addition to our regular visits to our local Church and from church representatives, each year group where possible, either visits a place of worship of a faith other than Christianity or is visited by a faith representative. 

In KS1, children begin to look at other religions, focusing on celebrations and rituals. In KS2, we offer a wider range of learning opportunities about the world’s religions including deeper understanding of the origin of those religions and their key stories and teachings. Throughout both key stages, emphasis on personal growth and community cohesion is evident, allowing for personal development for the children from KS1 to the end of KS2. Each unit builds on prior learning as well as introducing new knowledge, skills and challenge. Teaching strategies are varied and are mindful of preferred learning styles and the need for differentiation to meet the needs of pupils within each mixed year group. This allows for the development and progression of skills through a range of opportunities and experiences. Key words are also highlighted on our progression maps to ensure the children are engaging with subject specific vocabulary involved in learning.

Impact

We believe that the impact of our bespoke R.E curriculum will allow for children to have a better understanding of world religions and how they can learn from and work alongside each other demonstrating our core Christian values to create community cohesion. All children will be more informed about their position in the world, and the decisions they can make impacting their future. Our R.E curriculum will promote inquisitive minds, respect, tolerance and understanding for all those around them including themselves. 

Our lessons enable high quality work to be produced and evidenced, showcasing a deep understanding of different faiths, their community and what it means to belong. Lessons include both formal and informal opportunities for teacher assessment of the children’s knowledge of that religion, depth of critical thinking, and ability to answer the enquiry question. These opportunities are used in conjunction with other evidence such as records of discussions, annotated photos, pupil’s contributions in class, the confidence and willingness with which they answer questions and share their own ideas, their use of appropriate vocabulary and their recall of appropriate links from previous learning. Impact will be seen by all teachers and children enjoying the experience of teaching and learning R.E and understanding how it can help them in their future.