Our Curriculum

Our curriculum offers our pupils broad and rich topic coverage, spanning over several of the main world religions whilst also allowing them the opportunity to learn that there are those who do not hold religious beliefs. Alongside religion, children learn about the importance of spirituality and its links across both the curriculum, and their own lives.

Our Curriculum aims to support pupils to become religiously literate; it provides opportunities for pupils to develop positive attitudes and values and to reflect and relate their learning in RE to their own experience. Through each unit, children will learn about and understand a range of religions and world views (including non-faith world views). They will learn through creative, enquiry-based, theological, philosophical and human and social science approaches.

As stated in the Church of England Statement of Entitlement, religious education in a Church school should enable every child to flourish and to live “life in all its fullness” (John 10:10). It will help educate for dignity and respect encouraging all to live well together.

Central to religious education in Church schools is the study of Christianity as a living and diverse faith, focused on the teaching of Jesus and the Church. There is a clear expectation that as inclusive communities, church schools provide sequenced learning about a range of religions and worldviews fostering respect for others.

Parents and pupils can expect that, in a Church school, RE will have a high profile within the curriculum and will be a priority for senior leaders. The RE curriculum is intrinsic to the outworking of a Church school’s Christian vision in enabling all pupils to flourish (Helping Everyone Shine their light – Matthew v5 14-16).

In addition, the RE curriculum will contribute to British Values and to spiritual moral social and cultural development. Learning activities must provide fully for the needs of all pupils. Pupils should develop a wide range of skills including enquiry, analysis, interpretation, evaluation and reflection. Pupils should have a safe space to explore their own religious, spiritual and/or philosophical ways of seeing, living and thinking, believing and belonging. They should have opportunities to engage in meaningful and informed dialogue with those of all religions and worldviews.

Teaching and learning in RE, within our church schools, will be rooted in three key disciplines: theology, philosophy and the human/ social sciences; adapted for the school context in the following ways:

Theology	Philosophy	Human/Social Sciences
We call this *thinking through believing*. It is about asking questions that believers would ask. It requires pupils to think like theologians, or to look at concepts through a theological lens. Pupils will explore questions and answers that arise from inside religions and worldviews.	We call this *thinking through thinking*. It is about asking questions that thinkers would ask. It requires pupils to think like philosophers, or to look at concepts through a philosophical lens. Pupils will explore questions and answers raised through considering the nature of knowledge, existence and morality.	We call this *thinking through living*. It is about asking questions that people who study lived reality or phenomena would ask. It requires pupils to think like human and social scientists, or to look at concepts through a human/social science lens. Pupils will explore questions and answers raised in relation to the impact of religions and worldviews on people and their lives.