At Toft Hill Primary, we recognise the importance of RE as a way of contributing to pupil’s education by provoking challenging questions about meaning and purpose in life, beliefs about God, issues of right and wrong and what it means to be human. In RE lessons the children will learn about religious and non-religious worldviews in order to explore and consider answers to key questions.
We teach three key elements of Religious Education and cover the aims of Religious Education:
- Knowledge and Understanding
- Critical Thinking
- Personal Reflection
These elements are interlinked and enable pupils to make good progress in Religious Education:
We follow the Durham Agreed Syllabus for RE (Revised 2020), which aims to ensure that all children:
- develop deepening knowledge and understanding about a range of religious and non-religious worldviews so that they can:
- describe and explain beliefs and theological concepts
- describe and explain some sources of authority and teachings within and across religious and non-religious traditions
- describe and explain ways in which beliefs are expressed
- know and understand the significance and impact of beliefs and practices on individuals, communities and societies
- reflect on their own thoughts, feelings, experiences, ideas, values and beliefs
- gain and deploy deepening understanding of specialist vocabulary and terms
- know and understand about religious diversity within the region, as well as nationally and globally
- know and understand how religion can be defined and what is meant by the term “religious and non-religious worldviews” and with increasing clarity know that these worldviews are complex, diverse and plural
- gain and deploy skills that enable critical thinking and enquiry in relation to the material they study
- reflect on their own thoughts, feelings, experiences, ideas, values and beliefs
We teach our children to have a clear balance of knowledge and understanding about a particular range of religious and non- religious worldviews as well as having opportunities to personally reflect, giving their own views and feelings. Through our RE teaching, we provide opportunities for children to be able to think about wider questions, developing their critical thinking, and debate their views and opinions.
There are termly plans for all Key Learning in RE and lessons are usually delivered in weekly timetabled sessions, from Reception Class to Year 6.
The RE curriculum is taught according to the Durham Agreed Syllabus and allows children time to gain an understanding about religious and non-religious worldviews. RE lessons at Toft Hill Primary provide our children with opportunities to reflect on their own thoughts, feelings, experiences and ideas. Teaching encourages children to think about the values and beliefs of others and develop their own curiosity and to ask questions.
The anticipated impact of our curriculum is that children will leave our school well prepared for the next stage of their learning because they will have built their religious literacy by;
- developing knowledge and understanding of religious and non-religious worldviews
- becoming increasingly able to respond to religious and non-religious worldviews in an informed and insightful way
- reflecting on their own ideas and the ideas of others.
- meeting the aims of the Durham Agreed Syllabus for RE (2020)
