Religious Education at Gade Valley Primary School

Intent:

• We aim to ensure that all pupils develop as tolerant young people with respect and understanding of the views of others, including the beliefs and practices of religions and other worldviews. 
• We aim to enable pupils to become religiously and theologically literate so they can engage in life in an increasingly diverse society. 

Our curriculum ensures pupils develop knowledge and understanding of sources of wisdom and their impact whilst exploring personal and critical responses.

A. Sources of wisdom and their impact

All pupils should:

• know, understand and explore the significance and impact of sacred texts, other sources of wisdom and ways of expressing meaning
• express ideas and insights about the nature of beliefs, values and practices and their impact upon the identity of individuals and communities
• recognise and explore the diversity which exists within and between religious tradition

B. Personal and critical responses
All pupils should:

• express with increasing discernment their personal reflections, critical responses and connections to faith and belief enquiring into philosophical, moral and ethical issues
• engage with the questions and answers offered by religions and worldviews concerning ultimate questions and human responsibility
• develop the skills requires to engage with others in dialogue and to cooperate in society with respect and compassion

Implementation:
Teaching of R.E at Gade Valley will provide pupils with a systematic knowledge and understanding about Christianity, principal religions and worldviews, which give life value. Lessons will not be about telling pupils what religious views they should have but rather assist them in gaining shared human understanding, developing their personal identity and supporting them in searching for meaning in the context of evaluating different viewpoints. Over each term, children in KS1 will receive approximately 10 hours of R.E per term and children in KS2 will receive approximately 13 hours per term.  Some classes will have weekly lessons but others may use a topic approach can block the lessons into 1 week.  In the Early Years, R.E is delivered flexibly according to the statutory requirements of the EYFS.
Throughout their time at Gade Valley our pupils take part in many activities to develop their learning further including; trips to local churches, Easter bonnet parades, carol concerts and nativity performances. We also hold regular religious themed assemblies led by school staff and visitors from the local community.
 
Impact:
The intended impact of the RE curriculum is that the very large majority of pupils in each year group will be working at or above the expected level for their year group (see the skills progression document),  It is also hoped that the learning in RE will also contribute to pupils’ personal development and well-being and to community cohesion by promoting mutual respect and tolerance in a diverse society.
RE also makes important contributions to other parts of our school curriculum such as PSHE, History and Geography.
 
Up to December 2019, the following measurable impact includes:

• Pupil voice (in Key Stage 2) showed that 100% of the pupils surveyed said:

1. They enjoyed learning about R.E.
2. That they can get help when they need it.
3. The teachers’ feedback helps my learning in R.E.