RE

Intent 

As a Church of England school, the main focus of Religious Education at Scott Broadwood is the Christian faith that underpins the ethos and values of our school community.  Through RE we seek to give the children a rich variety of experiences from which they can develop knowledge, understanding and awareness of all faiths and through our value LOVE we celebrate and explore the rich diversity of religious experience in Britain today. R.E. also has a significant role in the development of pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural understanding. We encourage pupils to develop their sense of identity and belonging through self-awareness and regular opportunities for reflection.  In line with the Church of England’s Statement of Entitlement  we aim to: 

enable pupils to encounter Christianity as the religion that shaped British culture and heritage and influences the lives of millions of people today as a world religion; 

enable pupils to learn about the other major religions, Islam, Judaism, Hindiusm and Buddhism and their impact on culture and politics, art and history, and on the lives of their adherents; 

develop understanding of religious faith as the search for and expression of truth; 

contribute to the development of pupils’ own spiritual / philosophical convictions, exploring and enriching their own faith and beliefs. 

We believe that it is vital for all our pupils to learn from and about religion, so that they can understand the world around them. We encourage  pupils at Scott-Broadwood to ask ‘big questions’ about the world and to reflect on their own beliefs, values and experiences. 

Implementation 

We use the Guildford Diocesan Guidelines for Religious Education as the basis for our curriculum. As an enquiry model of learning, it helps pupils to deepen their understanding in RE and make secure connections as well as utilising higher level thinking skills. Our effective enquiry planning in RE follows the format Engage/ Enquire & Explore/ Evaluate/ Express. It: 

Starts by engaging the pupils in their learning. They are given opportunities to explore, wonder, respond, make links with their personal experiences, and build upon previous learning. 

Allows pupils time to gather information and draw conclusions before asking them to reflect and apply their learning 

Enables pupils to reconsider and extend their initial thinking as they begin to see new levels of possibility 

Allows pupils to use their creativity and imagination 

Emphasises impersonal evaluation and critical thinking 

RE is taught using the Early Years and KS1 Guidelines from the Diocese of Guildford through whole school, half-termly RE pause days which enable children to enhance and deepen their understanding, and allow sufficient time to challenge by engaging in higher level thinking over a meaningful and dedicated period of time.  Our Religious Education curriculum is enhanced further with trips to places of worship in our local area and visiting experts who support the learning experience. Experiences and enrichment opportunities include:  

handling artefacts 

exploring sacred texts and critically engaging with texts 

using imaginative play or drama to express feelings and ideas 

responding to images, games, stories, art, music and dance 

fostering close links with our local St John the Baptist Church community with regular visits and services as well as visits by clergy to the school 

making visits to religious places of worship  

taking part in whole school events e.g Harvest Festival, school performances at Christmas and Easter, Remembrance Service 

participating in moments of quiet reflection using Prayer stations and reflection areas 

participating in Open the Book assemblies 

using IT to further explore religion and belief globally 

comparing religions and worldviews through discussion 

debating and communicating religious belief, worldviews, theological and philosophical ideas and answering and asking ultimate questions posed by these through lessons and our collective worship programme 

Our Religious Education Curriculum is high quality, carefully sequenced and is planned to demonstrate progression. Teachers assess against success criteria learning about and from religion by capturing pupil discussions about their learning, reflecting on standards achieved against the planned outcomes and celebrating learning with our Big Questions booklets.  

Impact 

The children at Scott Broadwood enjoy learning about Christianity and other faiths and have a deep knowledge and understanding of the importance of religion in people’s lives. Through their R.E. learning, the children are able to make links between their own lives and those of others in their community and in the wider world. Through R.E our children are developing an understanding of other people’s cultures and ways of life and worship, making connections and critically engaging with texts to help them to understand the big questions of life.