Religious Education

Intent

At Monks Risborough CE 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. As a result of this, they will become independent and responsible members of a society who can understand and explore big questions about life, to find out what people believe and what difference this makes to how they live. Children will be able to critically reflect on religion and link them to their own ideas and ways of living. Additionally, children will develop the British Value of tolerance and respect for different faiths and opinions. 

Through Religious Education (RE) at Monks Risborough, children will acquire and develop knowledge and understanding of Christianity and the other principle religions (Judaism, Sikhism and Hinduism), to appreciate the way that religious beliefs shape life and behaviour. They will be equipped with systematic knowledge to understand a range of religions and worldviews, enabling them to develop their ideas, values and identities and develop spirituality by providing children with creative opportunities. They will have the opportunity to refine their skills of reasoned and informed judgement about religious and moral issues and enhance their critical thinking of spiritual, moral, social and cultural development. Children will understand and be respectful of the importance of worship and prayer in their own and other people’s lives. 

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. Our curriculum is designed to encourage creativity, imagination, enquiry, debate, discussion and independence.

Implementation

Teachers plan RE based upon the Oxford Diocesan Scheme of Work and is split between KS1 and KS2, with children in each year group timetabled one hour of RE learning a week. In order to ensure progression, the teachers write a medium term plan for each subject, aiming to demonstrate active purposeful and exciting learning. In each key stage the following key skills are taught:

• Enquiry about the Nature of Religion and Belief
• Knowledge and Understanding of Christianity
• Knowledge and Understanding of Other World Religions including Judaism, Hinduism  and Sikhism. 

At Monks Risborough, we know how important it is for children to experience hands-on, engaging learning and we aim for the children to visit a place of worship linked to their learning topic each year. This allows children the chance to apply their learning and ask relevant or creative questions. 

• Reception - St Dunstans, our local church (celebrations)
• Year 1 - Church (Christianity)
• Year 2 - Synagogue (Judaism) 
• Year 3 - Buddhism Temple (Buddhism) 
• Year 4 - Hindu Temple - Mandir (Hinduism)
• Year 5 - Mosque (Islam)
• Year 6 - Gurdwara (Sikhism) 

Within each classroom, children have access to a Bible, cross, RE display, Christian value display and a large range of resources which are stored in the RE cupboard. Through using these resources children are able to apply the key vocabulary and their learning to make links and connections within their RE curriculum. 

In Early Years Foundation Stage, the children are encouraged to think about celebrations of festivals such as Harvest, Christmas, Easter and Divalvi and key individuals associated with them. They are given the opportunity to explore what makes individuals unique and themselves, linking to the faiths of the world. The children also think about what makes places of worship and the key vocabulary of these places. 

All children also experience a Daily Collective Worship in which their understanding of Christianity and other world religions develops in line with our Collective Worship Policy. 

Impact 

Teachers assess children’s work in RE by making formative assessment judgements through observing them working during lessons. All pupils are encouraged to evaluate their own learning and to suggest ways to progress further with their knowledge and understanding. Teachers record the progress made by the children against the learning outcome for each unit; below expected for age, at expected, or greater depth. Teachers record this information on the Oxford Diocese format and use it to plan the future learning for children. These records also enable the teacher to make an annual assessment of progress for each child, and to pass this assessment information on to the child’s next teacher at the end of the year. 

The monitoring of the standards of children’s work and of the quality of teaching in the RE is the responsibility of the RE subject leader. The work of the subject leader involves book scrutinies and learning walks to provide strategic direction for the teaching of RE at Monks Risborough. This is fed into the subject's development plan and is monitored termly, with discussions around the subject continuously ongoing.