Religious Education

What Religious Education looks like at St. Luke's

Religious Education Whole School Coverage

Religious Education Curriculum Overview EYFS & KS1

Spirituality in R.E

How we Help Lights Shine in R.E

What R.E looks like in the EYFS

Our academy strives to ensure the best possible learning journey for all in our care. We encourage the development of positive attitudes, skills and knowledge underpinned by our Christian values, allowing all to flourish; ‘Helping Lights Shine for all’ Luke 11:33. This is the underpinning theology for the teaching and learning of Religious Education across all the classes.

Our academy strives to ensure the best possible learning journey for all in our care. We encourage the development of positive attitudes, skills and knowledge underpinned by our Christian values, allowing all to flourish; ‘Helping Lights Shine for all’ Luke 11:33.This is the underpinning theology for the teaching and learning of Religious Education across all the classes.

INTENT

We aim to ensure that all pupils flourish through the provision of high quality Religious Education that expresses the academy’s Christian vision, whilst reflecting the Church of England Statement of Entitlement.

Our R.E curriculum aims to create children who:

• Know about and understand Christianity as a living world faith through the exploration of core theological concepts using an approach that critically engages with text

• Can consider the impact and connection that Christianity has on Britain’s cultural, heritage and the lives of people worldwide

• Develop knowledge and understanding of other major world religions and world views and their impact on society and culture

• Can critically reflect on their own religious, spiritual and /or philosophical convictions

• Develop a positive attitude towards other people who hold religious beliefs different from their own.

IMPLEMENTATION

As a Church of England academy, we ensure that Religious Education (RE) is non-confessional and is considered a core academic subject. The 1988 Education Act states that ‘Religious Education has equal standing in relation to core subjects of the National Curriculum in that it is compulsory for all registered pupils’. However, should they wish, Parents may withdraw their child from RE lessons or any part of the RE curriculum.

We ensure that we comply with the legal requirements and the Church of England’s Statement of Entitlement by following yearly plans which are sequential and in place from Foundation Stage to Year 6 (please see below). We teach and cover units from; Understanding Christianity and Diocese of Lichfield SOW 2017, which link and meet with the objectives and intended outcomes of the Staffordshire Agreed Syllabus.

Religious Education is taught on a weekly basis but is also enriched through RE ‘drop-down’ days, first-hand experience visiting different places of worship, visitors of different faiths, Godly Play sessions and cross-curricular opportunities such as whole school termly themes e.g. ‘Freedom and Justice’ and the study of biblical and modern day role models from diverse backgrounds.

Lessons are planned and delivered in a variety of ways ensuring that all children can access and participate in lessons this may include art, music, dance and drama with all classes involved in a performance related to key events in the Christian calendar i.e. Nativity, Easter service.

Children are given opportunities to read and explore stories from the Bible and other religious text. Interactive activities encourage children to discuss their ideas and extend their understanding of difficult concepts and  challenging questions.

All classes are visited at least termly by the Methodist Church to experience Godly Play where the children are given the opportunity to reflect and wonder about the meaning or message of the story they have heard.

Our Religious Education curriculum is further supplemented by regular Collective Worship, Classroom Worship and Worship and Song with purposeful themes over the school year.

Pupils’ progress in RE is based on the expected outcomes outlined in the Agreed Syllabus and in Understanding Christianity, which in turn have been developed in line with guidance produced nationally. Children are assessed half-termly against these expected outcomes.

We track individual pupil’s progress in this way, whilst also bearing in mind that the statements do not cover all aspects of teaching and learning in RE. For example, pupil’s personal views and ideas are not subject to formal assessment, and yet are central to good RE. Progress in RE is reported annually to parents and has a prominent position in the end of year report.