Religious Education
RE Intent Statement
At Jewell Academy we aim to encourage the use of a fun and exciting curriculum to inspire discussion and increase knowledge, whilst developing the skills of reasoned argument and reflection, through an enquiry based approach. We are committed to providing an understanding of belief within our society, whilst embedding the core values of respect and tolerance toward the opinion of others. At Jewell Academy we nurture a sense of belonging for each child within our multi faith school and aspire to instil a value of self-worth that will allow them to achieve within the diverse community of 21st Century Britain and beyond.
Our inquiry based approach is vibrant and engaging and allows us to provide the opportunity to show progression for all our learners through a wide range of opportunities, whether it be written work, role play activities, discussions, song, dance or through real life experiences. It is our intention to give children opportunities to experience religious buildings and festivals through real life experiences that may not be otherwise experienced by all. By providing a fun and exciting curriculum it is our intention that children of all abilities will be engaged and progress at their own level.
Spiritual, Moral, Social and Cultural opportunities are key to the development of our Religious Education Curriculum and we are proud to have regular support from the local community. British Values are at the heart of our Religious Education Curriculum and each enquiry addresses strands within the British Values Agenda. The inquiries we participate in develop through the years and lead to reflect today’s current society and issues that may surround religion, including media attention. Highlighting the need for Religious Education and the importance of it. The enquiries form a cycle in which the children develop opinions, discuss their views, creating a curiosity to know more and to be able to do so in a way that fosters the respect that is required within the working world in the 21st century, giving a purpose to their learning.
implementation
Using the Jigsaw RE curriculum as a basis of our learning our teachers provide a series of enquiry based lessons. Each year group has a Christianity based enquiry and each enquiry is linked to the British Values Agenda. The remaining enquiries reflect the current dynamics of our academy and allow us to develop an understanding of those beliefs within the school community. This is reviewed on a yearly basis, to meet the needs of our changing community. Each inquiry begins with the child applying the question to their own life experience and leads to knowledge based learning on a specific religion. The enquiries are open- ended and the children freely discuss their own opinions. The beliefs that are explored are set out below;
EYFS – Children are to encounter a range of religions which must include Christianity.
Year One – Christianity and Sanatana Dharma
Year Two – Christianity and Islam
Year Three – Christianity, Santana Dharma and Humanism
Year Four – Christianity and Buddhism
Year Five – Christianity, Sikhism and Humanism
Year Six – Christianity, Judaism and Humanism
Through discussions and enquiries – discussions include other faiths and beliefs in KS2 including – B’Hai and Pagan faiths.
Following Jigsaw RE, assessment is carried out throughout each enquiry and children are assessed on a three level descriptor. Each descriptor also has three strands, their own experience, their own knowledge and their critical thinking and evaluation allowing us to see the clear progress of the children, as each skill is important in terms of individual development and a child may progress more in one strand than another.
At Jewell Academy we believe that inquiry based learning demonstrates results through the progression made, as the children develop in their ability to discuss and share opinions and they do so with a mutual respect for the opinions of their peers. This approach embeds Jigsaw REs philosophy that “children are free to make their own choices and decisions concerning their own view of the world and their beliefs and morals.” RE does not try to persuade, but rather to inform and develop the skills with which evaluation can take place. They are able to explore the impact of the knowledge learnt on their own opinions. As individuals they have a respect for the beliefs of others and are able to understand and tolerate differences of opinion. They will confidently and openly discuss their own beliefs and opinions and be proud to do so, clearly demonstrating their self-worth. Skills that they take with them into secondary school and into the working world, demonstrating a clear understanding of British Values.