Religious Education

Oulton C.E. First School

RE Intent, Implementation and Impact.

At Oulton, our aim is to enable pupils to take their place within a diverse society with an understanding and appreciation of the beliefs of those of different faiths and none. We will challenge them intellectually, guiding them to ask questions and providing them with the skills to seek out the answers to these questions in order to promote their personal, spiritual, moral, social and cultural development.

As pupils move through our school, they will gradually broaden their understanding of what it means to be a person of faith, developing their understanding of the ways in which beliefs influence people in their behaviour, practices and outlook, with a focus on Christianity, Islam and Judaism. This will enable learners to become aware of their own beliefs and values and to have a positive attitude to the search for meaning and purpose in life. Our curriculum will help pupils to make sense of their own place in a diverse world and will enrich them as they move towards that goal.

The RE rolling programme is designed around Understanding Christianity and the Lichfield Diocesan Board of Education (LDBE) resources, with progression following the LDBE Progression in RE document. RE topics throughout the school are based around a key question, such as “What can we learn from a mosque?” and “Why do Christians put a cross in an Easter Garden?”

In EYFS the main area of study is Christianity. In KS1, pupils learn about Christianity, Islam and festivals of different faiths. In KS2, pupils deepen their knowledge about Christianity and Islam and start to learn about Judaism.

RE is timetabled weekly across the school, although lessons may be delivered for an equivalent amount of time during “RE Days” when appropriate.

Lessons are delivered in a variety of ways ensuring that all children can access and participate in lessons. The school has a bank of artefacts and books relating to the faiths studied; these are used by the children and staff in RE lessons. Interactive, practical activities encourage the children to discuss their ideas and extend their understanding of difficult concepts and challenging questions.

Whole- school RE “Dropdown” days, for example with a Holy Week, Interfaith or Festivals focus are held in school, supported by  local clergy and other faith visitors. Children access the Derby Open Centre, either through visiting as a class or via workshops held by the Centre. We have also visited such events as “Exploring Islam and Christianity” as a whole school. Children visit places of worship, starting with regular visits to our village church through to other places of worship including a Mosque, Gurdwara and Hindu Temple in LKS2.

The study of RE and understanding of our diverse nation are also supported in other ways across the curriculum and in our school, for example in the choice of texts studied in English. Our school and class libraries for free choice reading have characters representing diversity and different faiths.

Throughout the school, our pupils show very positive attitudes towards RE. They have a knowledge of key faith stories, beliefs, celebrations and artefacts. By the time they leave our school in Y4, they are able to talk confidently about the impact of faith on the lives of believers in Christianity, Judaism and Islam using subject-specific vocabulary. They are able to tackle key questions in life, understanding that there can be a variety of viewpoints on these, depending on religious or non-religious influences and beliefs. Our children are comfortable with diversity and have a keen interest on learning about opinions and beliefs which may differ from their own. Our pupils are engaged and are ready for the next stage in their learning in RE, with the majority of children working at age related expectations by the end of EYFS, Key Stage 1 and Key Stage 2.