Religious Education
RE at Messingham
At Messingham Primary School we recognise the importance of a high quality PSHCE curriculum that is taught both explicitly in lessons and through a wide variety of experiences.
Our intent:
Our R.E. curriculum is underpinned by our locally Agreed R.E. Syllabus for Lincolnshire. Through R.E. our pupils will develop religious literacy and knowledge of significant religions including Christianity, Islam, Judaism and Hinduism. Pupils will develop their abilities to articulate the beliefs and practices of the major religions and diversity within a religious community. They will be taught to value the religions and religious beliefs and practices of their peers as well as question thoughtfully, and to compare compassionately, in order to celebrate the diversity of thinking across the globe. We aim to teach our pupils about equality and to instil in them a tolerance, understanding and respect of all cultures, faiths, disabilities, and ways of life and living. They will be taught to respect the rights of others to hold diverse opinions and participate in culturally different practices. Pupils will be able to defend ideas and/or practices with which they do not necessarily agree. They will develop their ability to make morally based decisions, and to behave with respect and compassion to fellow citizens.
Our religious education curriculum follows the Lincolnshire Agreed Syllabus.
The aim of RE in Lincolnshire
To produce pupils who are religiously literate and able to hold balanced and informed conversations about religion and belief.
Good RE should:
- develop pupils’ knowledge and understanding of Christianity as well as other principal religions and world views focus on concepts as well as content, within the context of enquiry based learning
- explore authentic religious material, g. sacred texts
- reflect diversity in terms of the changing religious landscape of the UK (see 2011 census below) so that they are prepared for life in modern Britain
- engage and challenge pupils
- reflect pupils’ own experiences and provide a safe space for discussion
- present religious belief as a real, lived phenomenon, not something exotic or belonging to the past
- take into account the increase in the number of people with non-religious beliefs and identities
- provide opportunities for personal reflection and spiritual development
- help to prepare pupils for adult life, enabling them to develop respect and sensitivity for others
Skills in RE
Pupils should develop key skills in RE in order to enhance learning and this should be evident across key stages:
- Investigation and enquiry: asking relevant and increasingly deep questions; using a range of sources and evidence, including sacred texts; identifying and talking about key concepts.
- Critical thinking and reflection: analysing information to form a judgement; reflecting on beliefs and practices, ultimate questions and experiences.
- Empathy: considering the thoughts, feelings, experiences, attitudes, beliefs and values of others; seeing the world through the eyes of others.
- Interpretation: interpreting religious language and the meaning of sacred texts; drawing meaning from, for example, artefacts and symbols.
- Analysis: distinguishing between opinion, belief and fact; distinguishing between the features of different religions.
- Evaluation: enquiring into religious issues and drawing conclusions with reference to experience, reason, evidence, and dialogue.
How we implement this:
In the early years the elements of RE taught through a wide range of areas and form a platform on which to build their subsequent RE knowledge and learning.
All teachers plan from the agreed long-term planning and our concept mapping and unit documents which identify key substantive knowledge and uses the disciplinary lenses of ‘believing, ‘living’ and ‘thinking’ to scaffold learning. These are underpinned by the Agreed Syllabus. R.E. is taught in weekly discrete lessons of one hour. Teachers adapt the planning to best support the progression of pupils in their class, consulting with the subject leader if there is any major variation. Opportunities to positively reinforce learning through global or national events are used through wider SMSC opportunities such as assemblies, productions and festivals.
The impact:
We know our RE curriculum is having an impact when children:
- Can talk with confidence about what they have learned, using correct
- Can show adults examples of their learning and describe the ‘why’ behind work they have
- Are able to explain how their learning within RE builds on previous
- Are able to make thoughtful links between
- Can develop the skills to analyse, reason and interpret information and think creatively and critically
- Produce work that captures their increasing understanding of key concepts within each