Abbotswood Primary School
Together We Aim High, Believe and Achieve
Being a philosopher (Religious Education)
R.E at Abbotswood
(Being a philosopher)
Rationale (Intent)
The principal aim of RE at Abbotswood (provided by the South Gloucestershire SACRE scheme see below) is to engage philosophers in systematic enquiry into significant human questions which religion and worldviews address, so that they can develop the understanding and skills needed to appreciate and appraise varied responses to these questions, as well as develop responses of their own.
With pupils we discuss this aim, ‘RE explores big questions about life, in order to find out what people believe and what difference this makes to how they live, so that pupils can make sense of religion and worldviews, and reflect on their own ideas and ways of living.'
We learn about religions and worldviews in local, national and global contexts to discover, explore and reflect on challenging questions about the meaning and purpose of life. They make sense of religions and worldviews reflecting on their own ideas and ways of living. As philosophers, they learn to evaluate wisdom from a range of religions and worldviews. They should gain and deploy skills needed to understand, interpret and evaluate a range of sources to build understanding.
Religious traditions explored in depths develop through the school include:
4-5s Reception - Pupils will encounter Christians and people of other faiths, as part of their growing sense of self, their own community and their place within it
5-7s KS1 - Pupils will encounter Christians and Muslims or Jewish people
7-11s KS2 - Pupils will encounter Christians, Muslims, Hindus and Jewish people
How do we teach RE at Abbotswood? (Implementation)
RE is taught for an hour a week across the school. Teachers work from the short term plans that are provided as part of the South Gloucestershire SCARE scheme. Each short term plan is taught over a half term period and begins with a key question E.g Which people are special and why? (Reception topic). Each years overview can be seen below. Each individual lesson then also begins with a question. The plans are adapted slightly where necessary to suit the class and the children. In the Foundation Stage (reception) RE is taught as a stand-alone lesson like in the rest of the school but some of the learning time is conducted through continued provision.
How do we assess RE at Abbotswood? (Impact)
RE is assessed at Abbotswood in a meaningful and manageable way. The small step questioning approach ensures that children develop their knowledge in a linear way. These small questions build knowledge and awareness of worldviews and religions as well as developing their awareness of their own beliefs and ways of living. They build the child's answer to the big over-arching question.
If you have any questions regarding the provision of teaching in RE please don’t hesitate to contact Jonathan Edwards who is the RE subject leader.