Religious Education

RE

Intent

At Mill Lane Primary, we believe that it is important for all our pupils to learn from and about religion, so that they can understand the world around them. Through Religious Education, pupils develop their knowledge of the world faiths, and their understanding and awareness of the beliefs, values and traditions of other individuals, societies, communities and cultures.

Our school, and the wider local community, are made up of many religions and cultures which allows us to learn and celebrate first hand with our families. Celebrating our diversity is important to our delivery of RE at Mill Lane.  We encourage our pupils to ask questions about the world and to reflect on their own beliefs, values and experiences.

At Mill Lane, we feel that we have so many opportunities on our door step and so our Religious Education curriculum is enhanced further with trips to places of worship in our local area.

Progression will be assessed through evaluation of the children’s written work and consideration of their responses and contributions to discussions.

All religions and their communities are treated with respect and sensitivity and we value the links, which are, and can be made between home, school, and a faith community.  We acknowledge that each religion studied can contribute to the education of all our pupils.  We promote teaching in Religious Education that stresses open enquiry and first-hand experiences wherever possible for both staff and children. 

Implementation:

At Mill Lane, we use the agreed Stockton on Tees Religious Education (SACRE) syllabus as the basis for our curriculum across Key Stage 1 and 2. The syllabus has been designed by subject experts and provides a breadth of coverage of world religions and beliefs and practices, whilst remaining respectful of the cultural and diverse needs of our local community.

The following religions have been selected for study:

  • Christianity
  • Islam

Alongside this, some year groups also look at the following religions:

  • Buddhism
  • Hinduism
  • Judaism
  • Sikhsim

We explore religious ideas, beliefs and practices along several themes.

  • Belonging
  • Festivals
  • Beliefs and Practices
  • Sacred Text
  • Places of Worship
  • Rites of Passage
  • Founders and Leaders

The main thread of teaching and learning objectives follow the SACRE long term plan, ensuring fidelity of the curriculum, but class teachers are able to adapt the SACRE suggested activities in order to plan lessons to suit the needs of the children in their class.  

In EYFS, RE is taught in a cross curricular approach through our Personal, Social and Emotional Development with a particular focus on Building Relationships and also in the Understanding the World part of the curriculum with a particular focus on Past and Present and People and Communities.

The children in Class 7 and 8 are taught using their own personalised curriculum.  They access a hands-on curriculum that follows the thread of the whole school planning.  Their work is differentiated following assessments using PIVATs and personal assessments. 

Impact:

Our Religious Education Curriculum is high quality and is planned well to demonstrate progression, building on and consolidating prior learning.

We measure the impact of our curriculum through assessment, learning walks, work scrutinies, pupil voice and staff voice to ensure that all children have quality teaching and learning in this area of the curriculum.

Documents

MLPS RE Agreed Syllabus Scheme of Learning

RE Agreed SACRE Syllabus

2023-24 RE Termly Overview

Overview of RE in the EYFS curriculum