What does RE look like at South Wonston?

Intent:

Religious Education at South Wonston Primary School has a significant role for the development of pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development. It is our intent, through Religious Education, to promote respect and open-mindedness towards others with different faiths and beliefs while encouraging pupils to develop their sense of identity and belonging through self-awareness and reflection.

Our aim is to prepare our children for life in a diverse world and to engage our pupils so that they develop an understanding and appreciation for the expression of beliefs, cultural practices and influence of principle religions and worldviews in the local, national and wider global community. T

Implementation:

Religious Education at South Wonston Primary School follows the agreed Hampshire syllabus, “Living Difference IV”. Our RE curriculum is fully inclusive of religions and beliefs. 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.

We encourage our pupils to ask questions and reflect upon their own beliefs, values and responsibilities. Our curriculum promotes respect and open-mindedness towards others within the local, national and global community.

This will be achieved through a multi-layered approach of communication, apply, inquire, contextualise and evaluate. We believe that an in-depth exploration of religious concepts, particularly the “Golden Threads” of Special, Love, Belonging and Community makes an important contribution to the culture and well-being for all those in our school.

At South Wonston, we follow the clear and effective schemes of work from Hampshire’s RE teaching packs. These are all in line with the Living Difference IV syllabus. Our curriculum is taught on a two-year cycle [cycle A and cycle B] and within phases [Y1/2, Y3/4, Y5/6]. Early Years follow Hampshire’s RE at the EYFS documentation and scheme of work. Children will study Christian traditions in depth in each academic year. In addition to this, pupils will explore a mixture of Abrahamic and Dharmic faiths. This includes: Jewish, Buddhist, Hindu, Islamic and Sikh religions.

We incorporate “Pondering Time”, when children have the opportunity to explore even further concepts that are of interest to them.

At South Wonston, we deliver our RE curriculum weekly, ensuring we cover the statutory 36 hours [KS1] and 45 hours [KS2] per year. We use artefacts and invite visitors into school, where they can share their own experiences. We organise trips to a variety of places of worship.  We incorporate a mixture of drama, art, IT, writing, speaking and listening into our lessons. Work and evidence are recorded in individual RE scrapbooks which are passed up each year. This collection of the child’s RE journey shows the child’s progress and learning. Each lesson builds upon prior knowledge and follows the enquiry cycle.

Impact:

Through R.E. learning at South Wonston, our children will have made links between their own lives and those of others in their community and in the wider world. They would have developed an understanding of other people's cultures and ways of life. As such, R.E. is invaluable in an ever changing and shrinking world.