Intent

At Maidenbower Infant School and Nursery, we believe that Religious Education (RE) plays a significant role in pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development. RE promotes both respect and an open-minded attitude towards others with different faiths and beliefs and it helps to create a sense of identity and belonging through self-awareness and reflection.

Our school values of respect, kindness, curiosity and ambition are embedded throughout our RE teaching and learning. We aim to engage all pupils through enquiry and practical approaches to RE where pupils will learn to appreciate a variety of beliefs and cultural practices of major world religions within the local, national and global community.

We enable the children to make their own informed decisions and to have the confidence to voice their views.  It is a subject for all pupils, whatever their own family background and personal beliefs and practices. 

During RE teaching, lessons and provision, we provide opportunities for children to:

• Develop an understanding of the range of religions practised in both the local community and wider world
• Develop religious knowledge and conceptual understanding
• Develop understanding of Christianity, Islam, Hinduism, Judaism and any other religions reflected in our school community.
• Discuss and consider questions about world faiths and issues
• Make connections between world religions, considering their similarities and differences
• To develop skills to use both today and in the future

At Maidenbower Infant School and Nursery, we recognise the importance of an ambitious and engaging curriculum which develops children’s religious knowledge and skills. We have carefully sequenced RE learning from Nursery to Year 2 in a spiralling curriculum to ensure that children can build on their prior knowledge. This will ensure that children know more and remember more over time. For example, the Christian festivals of Christmas and Easter are revisited each year, but skills and knowledge are developed to in an interesting and engaging way. We ensure that our curriculum is bespoke and meets the needs of the children within our community.

Implementation

Our RE curriculum is designed to engage and enthuse our learners. We believe that it is an essential area of study which ensures that children are well prepared for life in a world where there are a multitude of viewpoints and beliefs. Our RE curriculum enables children to make their own informed decisions and to have the confidence to voice their views. It is a subject for all pupils, whatever their own family background and personal beliefs and practices. 

RE nurtures spiritual, moral, social and cultural development and pupils’ understanding of diversity.  The children discuss challenging questions about a variety of beliefs and moral issues.  RE has holistic approach which is inclusive of British values and prepares or children for life in the 21^st Century.

Our school RE knowledge and skill progression document has been guided by the West Sussex Agreed Syllabus produced in 2021 and The Discovery RE scheme of work. We have also adapted this scheme to ensure that our RE curriculum is bespoke and reflects the needs of the community around us. Our RE learning covers major world faiths and is structured around a spiral curriculum, enabling children to revisit and develop their idea and skills each year.

RE in the Early Years Foundation Stage

In the Early Years Foundation Stage, RE is taught through the area of learning ‘Understanding the World’. Children in Nursery and Reception learn and make sense about the world around them. They work with a range of practical resources both inside and outside of the classroom. The children learn about cultures, celebrations, festivals and faiths through whole class teaching inputs and exploring resources and experiences in continuous provision. The children learn about the world around them through stories, discussions, exploring through playful and practical tasks and asking questions to promote their curiosity.  

RE in Key Stage 1

In Key Stage 1, the children have defined RE lessons and 6 hours are taught per half term, in alignment with the West Sussex RE syllabus. RE lessons will build on the children’s foundation stage learning and will revisit topics such as Christmas and Easter each year. Each teaching unit begins with a ‘big question’ which is explored and revisited over the unit enabling the children to think of their own questions and responses as the unit develops.

Teachers plan practical and engaging lessons which are progressive and build on children’s knowledge and skills. Each unit follows the same progression throughout Key Stage 1. The lessons follow a sequence of engagement, investigation, evaluation and expression.

Where possible, a rich variety of enrichment activities are planned for RE learning, including regular assemblies from The Lighthouse Team, visits from the local church of England Clergy, parents and visitors from different faiths sharing their lifestyles and experiences of their religion, practical and engaging workshops plus visits to two contrasting Christian churches in our community. The Year 2 children also have the opportunity to participate in a lunchtime club organised by The Lighthouse Team.

Impact

As a result of a carefully planned and progressive RE curriculum which is ambitious and engaging, children know more and remember more over time. Our curriculum ensures that children can transfer and embed key concepts into their long-term memory and apply them fluently.

By the end of their learning journey at Maidenbower Infant School and Nursery, children will be able to:

• Demonstrate kindness through an awareness and tolerance for different religions and show respect for others, despite their differences in beliefs and cultures.
• Be ambitious with their RE learning as they retain knowledge about world faiths and how they affect individual lives.
• Be curious to answer and ask questions about different religions.
• Show an appreciation and understanding of different cultures, traditions and beliefs within our community and the wider world.

Teachers use our school’s collection of formative assessment opportunities such as retrieval opportunities, quizzes, ‘brain dumps’, presenting their learning and ‘speak like an expert’ to assess children’s religious knowledge and understanding. The impact of RE learning will be assessed by:

• Children demonstrating respect and tolerance for others and their beliefs
• Collecting images and video of the children’s experiences
• Book scrutinies to monitor how RE knowledge and skills are applied
• Regular, informal teacher assessments
• Collecting pupil voice and talking to children about their RE learning

Below, you will find our Religious Education (RE) curriculum overview. This overview shares our vision for RE at our school, what the children will learn about in RE lessons, the end of year expectations for EYFS and Key Stage 1 and the enrichment opportunities that we provide in RE.