To ensure that children develop a secure knowledge that they can build on, our RE curriculum is organised into a progression model that outlines the learning and skills to be taught in a sequentially coherent way. Skill progression is planned under three key themes including thinking about religion, belief, practice and sources, enquiring and investigating meaning and reflecting, evaluating and communicating meaning.
Religious Education supports children to acquire and develop knowledge and understanding of Christianity and the other principal religions represented in Great Britain; to appreciate the way that religious beliefs shape life and behaviour, develop the ability to make reasoned and informed judgements about religious and moral issues and enhance their spiritual, moral, social and cultural development. It plays an important role, along with all other curriculum areas, particularly PSHCE, in promoting social awareness and understanding in our children. We encourage our children to ask questions about the world and to reflect on their own beliefs, values and experiences. We include and promote British values, ensuring that children are aware of their rights and responsibilities as UK citizens.
Core Elements of RE Teaching
- Engaging and inspiring lessons that promote critical thinking and curiosity.
- High quality instruction and questioning with teachers providing carefully planned sequenced lessons that build on knowledge, skills and understanding.
- Retrieval of previous learning and explicit links through concepts that connect new learning with what the children already know.
- Using artefacts/objects/image to stimulate conversation.
- Facilitated discussion supported by brainstorming/thought showering ideas, paired/group discussion, categorising/grouping statements, conscience corridor/role play/hot seating, scenarios and videos/texts/storyboards
- High quality talk providing children with opportunities to discuss and clarify understanding.
- Enriching learning experiences through artefacts, trips, workshops, visitors and high quality texts.
- A focus on ambitious vocabulary used in context.
Curriculum
Our EYFS follows the Early Years Foundation Stage framework. Children are taught about traditions, beliefs and world views outside of their own experiences through exploring other cultures and practices in the wider world.
In Key Stage 1 and Key Stage 2 children learn about the six major world religions: Christianity, Islam, Hinduism, Sikhism, Judaism and Buddhism. These are revisited in increasing depth as children move through the school. The most recent Hackney census identified that the largest group within the borough is non-religious and so our curriculum also includes units on Humanism.
By visiting and revisiting religions, concepts and values we encourage children to develop their questioning, and think more deeply about the spiritual, ethical, moral and social context of their learning. Children have the opportunity to ask ‘why’, ‘how’ and ‘who’, and are able to relate their thinking to a wider range of cultures and religions. As we recap prior knowledge, children will feel more able to link their learning; they begin to see similarities and differences between religions, where beliefs originated from, and how they have developed over time. Sensitive use of comparing and contrasting viewpoints are explored with emphasis placed on commonalities.
Cultural Capital
Children are offered a wide range of enriching and engaging experiences which are designed to develop their knowledge and understanding of the world around them and the concepts taught within RE. Children have the opportunity to visit various places of worship and meet people from various religious and belief communities. These include visits to a church, Sikh temple and mosque.
Whole school events such as key calendar events, assemblies and class council topics enable the children to further enhance their understanding of world religions, beliefs and practices.
Accessibility for all children
Our expectation is that the majority of children will move through the programmes of study at broadly the same pace through supporting children with additional inputs, interventions, peer support and resources.
The ambitious and inclusive nature of the curriculum allows a range of access points that ensure all children, including those with special educational needs, succeed, regardless of their circumstances, with high expectations set for everyone.
For more information on our approach to teaching Religious Education, please look at our coffee morning timetable for the next available session or make an appointment in the school office to speak with our RE subject leader.
