All Saints’ Church of England Primary School

Religious Education

At All Saints Primary School, we have the privilege of providing a rich, broad, balanced curriculum, which is the entitlement of every pupil, against the backdrop of a caring Christian institution within the universal church where each person matters, where each achievement no matter how small is recognised and where each person grows, to recognise the importance of religion in life.

What are our aims?

• To enable pupils to know about and understand Christianity as a living faith that influences the lives of people worldwide and as the religion that has most shaped British culture and heritage. 
•  To enable pupils to know and understand about other major world religions and world views, their impact on society, culture and the wider world, enabling pupils to express ideas and insights. 
• To contribute to the development of pupils’ own spiritual/philosophical convictions, exploring and enriching their own beliefs and values. 

How is RE taught?

Religious Education stands alongside the National Curriculum. It is taught according to the Bury Agreed Syllabus for Religious Education. It takes into account other religions as well as focusing and reflecting on Christianity.

At Key Stage One – 45 minutes per week

At Key Stage Two – 1 hour per week

A variety of classroom strategies can greatly contribute to the above: -

• By identifying the personal point of reference for pupils, often as a starting point, or as the stimulus for deeper reflection, building bridges between the content of pupils own concerns, or more general human experience.
• By encouraging reflection, freely adopting processes familiar in English, Music, Art and Drama, to explore key areas and encourage personal expression of ideas and responses, spontaneous and discrimination.  By pushing discussion and reflection to the limits of on the grounds that Why? Is the most important question in R.E demanding reasons, justifications, explanations from the earliest age, distinguishing between good and bad reasoning, good and bad reasons, opinions and propaganda.
•  By always remaining sensitive to what pupils can cope with at any time, appreciating the significance of family and community in the process and by always recognising the limits of reason.

The children learn ABOUT RELIGION facts, practices, beliefs and traditions.

The children learn FROM RELIGION and this aspect should, in many cases become apparent in their various responses.

Within this Church of England (controlled) School, account is taken of the traditions and practices of the Church of England where appropriate.

How is RE assessed?

Assessment, recording and reporting is carried out in accordance with the schools ARR Policy.

• The end of the Key Stage statements provide broad guidance to teachers as to what they might expect from the average pupil when the material has been covered. They are not detailed statements of attainment but will provide some evidence of progress for teachers used as assessment objectives. 
• The crucial statement in each section is the one, which refers to reflection and response, and sensitive and imaginative ways must be found to allow pupils to express a considered response to material studied.
• Most importantly, assessment is about observing the pupils personal development and nurturing of a sense of religious or spiritual awareness.

Resources

We use a range of resources to teach Religious Education. Encouragement is given to the children to ask questions in order to gain

information, to make comparisons and to understand the various aspects of religion. Religious texts, beliefs, practices and traditions and festivals, together with signs and symbols, are studied and their meaning investigated. The use of religious artefacts make an important contribution to the teaching and learning process. Time and opportunities for reflection are built into the R.E programme at appropriate points.

How can you support your child at home?

We welcome you to take the children to All Saints Church at any time.  We have extremely strong links with the church, through the members of the governing body, many of whom play an active role in the life of the school.

We are also committed to openness and value links with other churches and denominations. 

Our Harvest, Christmas and Easter teachings culminate in celebrations at our church, led by the children. In the summer term the pupils and members of staff who are leaving, reflect on the past and look forward to their future, by sharing with the rest of us the highs and lows of their years at All Saints. It is a celebration of their successes and anticipation of ways in which they hope to consolidate on what they have learnt at our school.