R.E. AT GOLDSTONE
Intent
At Goldstone Primary School, we believe that it is important for all our pupils to learn from and about religion, so that they can understand the world around them. The aim of religious education in our school is to help children to acquire and develop knowledge and understanding of Christianity and the other principal religions represented in Great Britain. To learn 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.
RE plays an important role, along with all other curriculum areas, particularly PSHE, in promoting social awareness and understanding in our children. We encourage our pupils 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.
Implementation
Enquiry based approach
In line with the Brighton and Hove Agreed Syllabus for RE (2018), Goldstone Primary School adopts an enquiry based approach to RE. This involves:
1. Making sense of beliefs, where children know and understand the key concepts and beliefs of religions and worldviews and their sources of authority.
2. Understanding the impact, where children explore how people express their faith and beliefs.
3. Making connections, where children reflect on their learning about religion by asking thoughtful and challenging questions about meaning, purpose and truth, making connections to their own lives and deepening their understanding of the world around them.
4. Interconnection, where children are supported to make connections between different worldviews, developing an understanding of interrelated themes, concepts and practices and how these are related to the children’s own life experiences both religious and secular.
Argumentation
To support the enquiry based approach to RE, Goldstone will employ a growing use of argumentation in RE lessons to give children the opportunity to question what they have learnt. This argumentation will take the form of class debates and personal reflection and will be focussed on both teacher-generated and pupil-generated questions.
Through this, children will be given the opportunity to express their own thoughts and feelings in a structured, respectful way while validating their own worldviews.
Experiences
At Goldstone Primary School we will allow the children to explore a wide variety of religious practices, celebrations and places of worship through enriching experiences. This will include:
- Visits to different religious buildings and places of worship as well as visitors from different faith communities coming into school to talk about their lives and communities.
- Experiential lessons where the children are given the opportunity to take part in recreations of religious practices (e.g. Shabbat meal)
Impact
Children will leave Goldstone Primary School with
- An understanding of a broad range of beliefs, faiths, religions and communities both religious and secular.
- The ability to draw comparisons and make connections between different faith and belief structures.
- The ability and confidence to question an idea respectfully and to think about how it relates to their own lives.
- An interest and continuing enjoyment in RE and the desire to keep learning at secondary school.
