RE Curriculum Leader: Mrs S Dring & Mrs J Barker

If you have any questions regarding the curriculum we teach, please contact the school office directly and the office staff will pass your enquiry on to the relevant Curriculum Leader.

Our Vision for Religious Education

At St Michael’s CE Primary School, Religious Education is a central part of our Christian character and contributes to our vision:

“Inspired by our heritage and the teachings of Jesus, St Michael’s is a community of love where everyone belongs, is nurtured and is empowered to flourish.”

As a Church of England Voluntary Aided school, Christianity is at the heart of our Religious Education. We want every child to develop a rich and deep understanding of the Christian faith, particularly the teachings and example of Jesus, while also developing a thoughtful and respectful understanding of other religious and non-religious worldviews.

We believe that RE should help children make sense of the world in which they live. It provides opportunities for pupils to ask big questions about God, faith, belief, identity, meaning, purpose and what it means to live a good life. Children are encouraged to think deeply, ask challenging questions, listen carefully to different perspectives and develop their own considered responses.

RE at St Michael’s is not about telling children what to believe. It is about giving them the knowledge, vocabulary and opportunities to explore faith and worldviews thoughtfully and respectfully. We want our children to be curious, courageous and compassionate learners who can engage positively with difference and diversity.

Our MICHAEL values – Mission, Integrity, Compassion, Honesty, Appreciation, Encouragement and Love – provide an important thread through our RE curriculum. Through their learning, children are encouraged to consider not only what people believe, but how beliefs influence the way people live and how they themselves can make a positive difference to the lives of others.

Intent

At St Michael’s, we intend for Religious Education to:

• develop a secure and meaningful understanding of Christianity as the foundation of our school’s Anglican identity;
• enable children to explore the teachings of Jesus and consider how these can influence the way we live;
• develop knowledge and understanding of a range of religious and non-religious worldviews represented in our local, national and global communities;
• help children recognise both the diversity within religious traditions and the similarities and differences between different worldviews;
• encourage children to ask thoughtful and challenging questions about faith, belief, meaning and purpose;
• provide children with the vocabulary and knowledge they need to talk confidently and respectfully about religion and worldviews;
• enable children to interpret stories, texts, symbols, artefacts, practices and experiences;
• develop children's ability to listen to and respectfully consider perspectives that may be different from their own;
• challenge stereotypes, prejudice and misconceptions;
• provide opportunities for children to reflect on their own beliefs, values and responses;
• develop empathy, compassion and respect for others;
• encourage courageous advocacy, helping children consider how their learning can inspire positive action in their school, community and wider world; and
• contribute to every child's sense of belonging, identity and flourishing.

We want our children to leave St Michael’s understanding that faith is lived in many different ways and that people’s beliefs and worldviews can be deeply important to their identity and the way they live.

Implementation

Our RE curriculum is carefully planned to ensure that children build knowledge and understanding progressively from EYFS through to Year 6.

As a Church of England school, Christianity has a significant and substantial place within our curriculum. We draw upon Manchester Diocesan guidance, the NATRE Primary RE Curriculum and Understanding Christianity to support teachers in developing coherent, engaging and appropriately challenging learning.

Our curriculum is designed so that children encounter Christianity in depth alongside a range of other religious and non-religious worldviews. We want children to encounter both the richness of Christian belief and the diversity of the world around them.

Children learn through a range of approaches, including:

• exploring Bible stories and other sacred and significant texts;
• asking and responding to big questions;
• examining religious artefacts and symbols;
• exploring artwork, music, poetry and other creative responses to faith;
• discussing beliefs and practices;
• comparing and contrasting different perspectives;
• considering the experiences of people who live out their faith in different ways;
• reflecting on their own ideas and responses;
• engaging with visitors and members of faith communities where appropriate;
• visiting places of worship and other significant places; and
• making links between beliefs, values, actions and everyday life.

Lessons provide a safe and respectful environment in which children can ask questions and express their ideas. We value children's questions, including questions for which there may be no simple answer.

We recognise that religious traditions are not uniform. Children therefore learn that there can be different beliefs, practices and interpretations within the same religious tradition. We seek to represent religion as something that is lived and experienced by real people, rather than simply as a collection of facts, festivals and traditions.

RE and our wider Christian life

RE is an important part of life at St Michael’s, but it is distinct from Collective Worship.

Through RE, children develop knowledge and understanding of Christianity and other religious and non-religious worldviews, ask questions, explore different perspectives and reflect on what they are learning.

Through Collective Worship, our whole school community comes together to encounter the Christian story, reflect, pray, celebrate and consider how we might live out our Christian vision and values.

The two complement one another. Learning in RE can deepen children's understanding of our Christian story and values, while Collective Worship provides opportunities for children to reflect on and respond to these ideas.

Our Christian vision and MICHAEL values provide a common thread across both.

Impact

We want every child who leaves St Michael’s to have developed the knowledge, understanding and confidence to engage thoughtfully with questions of faith, belief and the world around them.

By the end of their time at St Michael’s, pupils will be able to:

• demonstrate a secure and increasingly sophisticated knowledge of Christianity;
• explain important Christian beliefs and understand how the teachings of Jesus influence Christian life and action;
• describe and explain aspects of a range of religious and non-religious worldviews;
• recognise diversity within and between different religious and worldview traditions;
• use appropriate religious and theological vocabulary when discussing their learning;
• ask meaningful and increasingly challenging questions about religion, belief, meaning and purpose;
• listen respectfully to different perspectives and articulate their own responses thoughtfully;
• identify and challenge stereotypes, prejudice and misconceptions;
• make connections between beliefs, values and the way people live;
• reflect on how their learning might influence their own choices and actions;
• demonstrate empathy, compassion and respect towards people whose beliefs or worldviews may differ from their own; and
• show courageous advocacy by recognising injustice and considering how they can contribute positively to their community and wider world.

Most importantly, we want RE to help our children become thoughtful, knowledgeable and compassionate young people who understand themselves, appreciate others and are prepared to flourish in a diverse society.

Through Religious Education, children are encouraged to live out our MICHAEL values: to show Mission through purposeful action, Integrity in the choices they make, Compassion towards others, Honesty in their relationships, Appreciation of people and the world around them, Encouragement of one another and, above all, Love.

In this way, Religious Education contributes to our shared vision of being a community of love where everyone belongs, is nurtured and is empowered to flourish.