Intent
As a Catholic School in the Diocese of Westminster, St. Mary’s is committed to the Catholic faith, recognising and valuing every individual as special and unique in the image and likeness of God. It is our vision to teach the children to know and love God our Father through prayer and worship.
As a Catholic school, we aim to teach the children to understand the Catholic Faith and its traditions. We share this responsibility with parents, the first educators of their children and with the parish where the children and their families worship.
Religious Education at St. Mary’s promotes awe, wonder, reverence and spirituality within every child. We will ensure that each child will develop a deeper understanding of the Catholic Faith, promote respect religious and moral values and tolerance of other races and religions. Each child is encouraged to develop and promote an understanding and care of the environment.
At St. Mary’s we provide opportunities for each child to experience and practise showing love for others especially the vulnerable and the disadvantaged, by participating in charitable work.
Implementation
The Curriculum hours in RE are non-negotiable and will be followed by all staff in the school.
Our programme of study’ The Way, The Truth and The Life’ is based on the Religious Curriculum Directory produced by the Catholic Bishop's Conference of England and Wales in 2012.
Each class covers two topics a term, each for approximately 6 weeks. These link teaching and learning in RE to the four strands of study in the RE Curriculum Directory: Revelation, The Church, Celebration and Life in Christ.
References to the RE Curriculum Directory are made in teachers’ planning for each topic. Planning is thorough and teachers are encouraged to be imaginative and creative and to use a range of resources to illuminate lessons and foster learning. Teachers are asked to adapt planning so that tasks and learning outcomes meet the needs of all pupils.
Other Faiths and Religions
Judaism, as the root of Christianity, is studied by all classes every year during ‘Other Faiths Week’. A range of high quality work appropriate to age and ability is produced including, ICT, Art, D.T and Literacy.
Furthermore, all classes study aspects of another major world religion (Islam / Hinduism / Sikhism/Buddhism).
ICT resources, books and artefacts are available to deepen pupils’ knowledge and understanding of other faiths. Members of staff with personal knowledge of other faiths visit classes to answer questions.
‘Sharing’ assemblies celebrate pupils’ new learning and help to foster respect and love for our brothers and sisters of other faiths.
Parents may obtain more information from the following sources:
- Class Meetings at the beginning of the academic year
- Class Termly Newsletters
- RE Termly Newsletter
- RE News Board at the front of the school building
Overview of Content
The Way, The Truth and The Life Syllabus
Foundation Stage and Key Stage 1
|
|
Autumn 1 |
Autumn 2 |
Spring 1 |
Spring 2 |
Summer 1 |
Summer 2 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Nursery |
N.1 God’s Wonderful World |
N.2 My Family |
N.3 The Holy Family |
N.4 Good Friends |
N.5 New Life |
n.6 Our Church Family |
|
Reception |
R.1 God’s World |
R.2 God’s Family |
R.3 Getting to know Jesus |
R.4 Sorrow & Joy |
R.5 New Life |
R.6 Our Church Family |
|
Year 1 |
1.1 God’s Great Plan |
1.2 Mary Our Mother |
1.3 Families & Celebrations |
1.4 Following Jesus |
1.5 The Resurrection |
1.6 Miracles |
|
Year 2 |
2.1 The Chosen People |
2.2 The Mystery of God |
2.3 The Good News |
2.4 The Mass |
2.5 Eastertide |
2.6 The First Christians |
Key Stage 2
|
|
Autumn 1 |
Autumn 2 |
Spring 1 |
Spring 2 |
Summer 1 |
Summer 2 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Year 3 |
3.1 The Christian Family |
3.2 Mary, Mother of God |
3.3 Sacrament of Reconciliation |
3.4 Celebrating the Mass |
3.5 Celebrating Easter& Pentecost |
3.6 Being a Christian |
|
Year 4 |
4.1 The Bible |
4.2 Trust in God |
4.3 Jesus, the Teacher |
4.4 Jesus, the Saviour |
4.5 The Early Christians |
4.6 The Church |
|
Year 5 |
5.1 Creation |
5.2 God’s Covenants |
5.3 Inspirational People |
5.4 Reconciliation |
5.5 Life in the Risen Jesus |
5.6 Other Faiths |
|
Year 6 |
6.1 The Kingdom of God |
6.2 Justice |
6.3 Exploring the Mass |
6.4 Jesus, the Messiah |
6.5 The Transforming Spirit |
6.6 Called to serve |
Impact
At St. Mary’s our children are happy leaners and through RE they are able to deepen their appreciation of their faith. The children of St. Mary’s are able to talk, define, describe and discuss areas of RE. They confidently use skills such as retelling, describing, comparing and explaining the meaning of bible stories and considering the impact of beliefs.
Through the provision outlined above, the impact of our RE curriculum on our pupils means that the majority of children:
- Achieve age related expectations in RE at the end of the academic year
- Are inspired by what they have learnt and continue to develop their knowledge of both the Catholic faith and other faiths
- Are prepared for life in modern Britain and that they leave St. Mary’s school knowing that they have a purpose in the world and a responsibility towards one another.
St. Mary’s are now using the Age Related Standards to mark and assess learning in RE. RE requires 10% of the weekly timetable. In Key Stage 2 this equates to two and a half hours a week and in Key Stage 1 this equates to two and a quarter hours per week.