Whiteley Primary School
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RE
Religious Education
At Whiteley Primary School we believe that Religious Education has an important role to play in helping children to make sense of the world around them and to promote empathy, tolerance and understanding of others.
We aim to link this to our SMILE vision by: –
- Giving all children the opportunity to explore their own beliefs, values and attitudes and relationships with others to help them be the best they can be. (Success)
- Developing an understanding of the lives of others and a respect for those who choose to lead a different way of life. (Mutual Respect).
- Valuing other people’s differences and overcome barriers which might be encountered through lack of knowledge and understanding. (Inclusion).
- Developing pupil’s knowledge, understanding and awareness of a range of world religions and a Humanist approach to life and inspire them to continue this learning throughout their lives. (Lifelong learning)
- Encourage children’s natural curiosity about themselves and their environment in order to stimulate questions about their own and others’ experiences. (Enrichment)
Religious education is taught through units of work which follow a “concept” approach and is planned and delivered following the Living Difference IV programme followed by Hampshire, The Isle of Wight, Portsmouth and Southampton schools. This agreed syllabus follows the legal requirement for religious education to reflect the fact that the religious traditions in Great Britain are in the main Christian, while taking account of the teachings and practices of the other principal religions represented in Great Britain. For more information and detail about the “Living Difference IV” Hampshire agreed syllabus, please follow the link.
The children experience and encounter several world religions in order to understand both the differences and similarities between them.
In Year R, RE is taught with the Living Difference IV syllabus alongside the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) curriculum, to support the children’s “Understanding of the world” element of their development. Year R learn about Christian, Hindu and Jewish traditions across the year and through their continuous provision within the Early Years base.
Pupils study Christian RE topics in every year group. In addition, pupils learn about Hindu traditions in Key Stage 1, Jewish traditions in lower key stage 2, and Islam in upper Key Stage 2. Pupils are taught about the main traditions, practices and beliefs of the religions, but will also have the opportunity to relate the key concepts covered to their own experiences and explore their own beliefs.
At Whiteley Primary, we follow a themed approach to the curriculum, blocking subjects together to make meaningful links for pupils. As a result, RE is not necessarily taught for a set period each week, but may be taught in longer sessions over a shorter timescale, enabling pupils to spend quality time exploring a key concept and where appropriate linking work to other areas of the curriculum. Each year group has a different RE unit of work every half term.
We believe that pupils learn more readily and demonstrate greater enthusiasm when they are actively involved in the learning process. There are many opportunities for active learning in Religious Education including drama and role play, art, design technology, cooking, discussion and debate, imaginative writing, dance, examination of artefacts, visits and visitors, song and reflection.
All RE units consist of a series of lessons which follow the same ‘cycle of enquiry’ pattern. Initially the children are introduced to a concept/word which expresses a human experience, and explore what that concept/word means to them and how it might affect their everyday life. The cycle of enquiry consists of five steps. These are Communicate, Apply, Inquire, Contextualise and Evaluate. The cycle can be started at “Communicate” or “Inquire” but all the steps are completed. A description of these steps can be found in the “Living Difference” syllabus (see link above). As the children journey around the cycle of enquiry they also find out what the concept/word means to those whose follow different religions. Four concepts, community, belonging, special, love, are used as golden thread concepts and these flow through the curriculum in all key stages allowing children to revisit them, deepening and broadening their knowledge of religious education over time.
Parents have a legal right to withdraw their child from all or parts of RE or collective worship. If you are considering exercising your parental right of withdrawal, we would ask that you contact the Headteacher to discuss the elements of RE which you would like your child to be withdrawn from and the practical implications of withdrawal. The headteacher can also give further information about RE to enable you to make an informed decision.
