Poplars Farm Primary

Rationale

Religious Education makes a valuable contribution to the school curriculum at Poplars Farm by developing pupils' knowledge and understanding of religion, religious beliefs, practices,  language and traditions.

 Our children are able to gain an interest, respect and empathy for many religions.  Many are often able to draw on their own experiences, including their own faiths, to help them  reflect more deeply on different forms of worship as well as to recognise their commonalities.  This is vital as children begin to understand their own place in our diverse world and how they can feel equipped to contribute to wider, more cohesive communities.

• Religion and beliefs inform our values and are reflected in what we say and how we behave. RE is an important subject in itself, developing an individual’s knowledge and understanding of the religions and beliefs which form part of contemporary society.
• Religious education provokes challenging questions about the ultimate meaning and purpose of life, beliefs about God, the self and the nature of reality, issues of right and wrong, and what it means to be human.  

(Religious Education in Schools Non-Statutory Guidance)

Religious Education is taught following the Bradford Agreed Syllabus for RE.  RE is a compulsory subject and can provide the foundation for many people’s lives, as well as promote acceptance and understanding of other beliefs, along with the aim to promote the spiritual, moral and cultural development of all pupils.  At Poplars Farm, we enable children to have a sound knowledge of the six major religions.  Both religions and non-religious world views are studied.  Children reflect on what it means to have a faith and to develop their own spiritual knowledge and understanding; we help children learn from religions and well as about religions.  

Breadth and depth in the agreed syllabus

• Pupils should develop understanding of concepts and mastery of skills to make sense of religion and belief, at an appropriate level of challenge for their age.
• RE should provide opportunities for pupils to develop positive attitudes and values and to reflect and relate their learning in RE to their own experience.
• Building on the statutory requirements, it is recommended that there should be a wide ranging study of religion and belief across the key stages as a whole.
• Not all religions need to be studied at the same depth or in each key stage, but all that are studied should be studied in a way that is coherent and promotes progression.
• Pupils should have the opportunity to learn that there are those who do not hold religious beliefs and have their own philosophical perspectives, and subject matter should facilitate integration and promotion of shared values.
• The study of religion should be based on the legal requirements and provide an appropriate balance between and within Christianity, other principal religions, and, where appropriate other religious traditions and world views, across the key stages as a whole, making appropriate links with other parts of the curriculum and its cross-curricular dimensions.The breadth of study should take account of the four levels of community cohesion which all maintained schools are now obliged to promote. Decisions by SACREs and ASCs about the religions, other than Christianity, to be studied should take account of the balance of religion within:

1. ​ the school community

2.  the community within which the school is located

3. ​ the UK community

4. ​ the global community

RE and the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS)

While the statutory requirement for RE does not extend to children under compulsory school age, it can form a valuable part of the educational experience of children in the EYFS.  It can provide stimulating and relevant learning experiences for all young children as well as laying firm foundations for work in Key Stage 1.

It can contribute particularly to: 

• personal, social and emotional development

• communication, language and literacy

• knowledge and understanding of the world

• creative development  Pupils should encounter religions and world views through special people, books, times, places and objects and by visiting places of worship. 

Pupils  should listen to and talk about stories. Pupils should be introduced to subject specific words and use all their senses to explore beliefs, practices and forms of expression. They should ask questions and reflect on their own feelings and experiences. They should use their imagination and curiosity to develop their appreciation of and wonder at the world in which they live.

Please click on this link to read the full progression of knowledge and skills document.