Intent

At Our Lady Catholic School, our R.E. curriculum is central to the whole ethos and curriculum, underpinning all teaching and learning that takes place. As a school, we are committed to the Catholic faith, recognising and valuing every individual as special, unique and loved by God.

Our children will develop an awareness of God's presence in their lives and in the lives of those around them. We promote a close, cooperative relationship between home, Our Lady of Apostles Parish and school, whilst encouraging values of understanding and care for those within and beyond our community. We will provide a safe and nurturing environment for children to develop an understanding of right and wrong, following the Word of God. This will prepare them to contribute positively within and beyond our school community.

As a Catholic school, we follow the recommendations of the Diocesen, using the new RED curriculum for Religious Education lessons throughout the school. Through this, we intend to provide a religious education that covers all aspects of the Catholic faith and introduces children to other faiths, as we recognise the responsibility of living in a multi-faith and multicultural society.

We aim to introduce children to other world faiths and practices with an attitude of mutual respect and tolerance. Currently, we teach Judaism, Hinduism, Sikhism and Islam every year.

Sacramental knowledge progresses from Baptism in Early Years and Key Stage 1, to Confirmation, Marriage and Ordination in Key Stage 2. Our ultimate intention is for our children to leave Our Lady Catholic School and live by the Word of God. They will be prepared for life in a multi-faith society, with respect for and an understanding of rich cultural diversity.

Implementation

Our approach to the teaching of RE in school is closely aligned to the approaches and principles of teaching in other subject areas, with the key elements being:

• Teachers ensure that pupils see the ‘purpose’ of each lesson, making sure to use driver words in the learning objective of each lesson.
• Teachers ensure pupils understand the relationship between the content they are learning and the context of their everyday lives.
• Deliberate and intentional retrieval of previous knowledge to build on prior learning.
• Regular checkpoints and formative assessments within lessons to tailor teaching to the needs of pupils.
• Exceptionally positive relationships in school that create conditions conducive to effective learning.
• High levels of subject knowledge.
• Referring to the school rules, mission, vision and values when teaching; this supports pupils to contribute to and engage in lessons, and to use all they learn in every aspect of school life.

Each child will develop a close connection and sense of belonging to our school community and to the family of God. Children will develop their spirituality through engaging and memorable RE experiences delivered in a variety of stimulating and creative ways, including exploration of Godly Play and opportunities to read for pleasure linked to Religious Education. These include class prayer, hymn singing, collective worship, nativities, liturgies, art and written work. Children will also have time to reflect and wonder through rich Godly Play experiences.

Teachers use their knowledge of progression in the Age-Related Standards to ask questions that lead children to develop the skills we intend to promote, and to challenge children to answer in greater depth where possible.

Impact

Assessments are carried out formatively during lessons and at the end of each lesson. Teachers assess children’s current level of skills when marking against the learning objective.

Teachers update our tracker on a termly basis, using end-of-topic assessment tasks and teacher judgement. Task design is intentionally open-ended in order for children to demonstrate their level of depth. Teachers report termly outcomes using the Interim Standards, based on the learning observed in class and the evidence in children’s books. This data is then analysed by the Subject Leader and shared with governors.

It is expected that tasks are designed with reference to the skills outlined in the RED document, giving children opportunities to display and build these skills. Throughout a unit, there should be opportunities to develop skills in all areas and reflect on an open enquiry question, producing an extended piece of writing in response. Teachers are encouraged to be creative in task design, and work may take the form of artwork, discussion, drama, song, extended writing, or a mixture of these.

There is an expectation that learning in RE is evidenced in books at an age-appropriate level. All classes also have a ‘Big Book’ to evidence collaborative practical work, as well as pupil voice in response to reflections and visits to church.

The Subject Leader will dedicate time regularly to the scrutiny of books, discussion with teachers, enhancement of subject knowledge, and discussion with pupils. Pupils will have opportunities to talk about their work, their enjoyment and understanding of lessons, and how much they can recall. Their responses will be used to inform teaching.