RE intent at Castleton
Religious Education (RE) at Castleton provides pupils not only with knowledge of different religions and world views but also contributes to developing pupil’s skills of enquiry, their ability to make reasoned arguments and to reflect on their own and others views in a respectful way. The RE curriculum aims to nurture pupils’ awareness of the great benefits of diversity as well as a sensitivity to the questions and challenges that different views and cultures can present. We believe that a strong Religious Education enables pupils to make informed and resilient choices in relation to misunderstandings, stereotyping and division and in turn supports our pupils to become active citizens of the future.
Our school vision for RE is based on the national guidance issued by the RE Council in 2013 and the local agreed syllabus, 2019. The syllabus, Believing and Belonging, has three main aims for pupils:
- To investigate the beliefs and practices of religions and other world views;
- To investigate how religions and other world views address questions of meaning, purpose and value;
- Investigate how religions and other world views influence morality, identity and diversity.
Throughout school, pupils explore religious scripture, customs and modern day practices as well as having opportunities for reflection, tackling thought-provoking and challenging questions and becoming informed citizens of the world.
In Early Years, children are supported to reflect on their own experiences of religion as well as learning about the experiences of their peers. They learn about Christian and Islamic festivals and customs and the importance of respecting other people’s views and being a good citizen. In Key Stage One, pupils further develop their knowledge of Christianity and Islam alongside non-religious approaches to life. They develop their reflection skills and start to address questions of right and wrong being encouraged to respond with their own views.
In Key Stage Two teaching and learning builds upon the Key Stage One focus around Christianity and Islam and is extended further with the study of Judaism and Sikhism. Pupils are encouraged to be curious and to ask and discuss increasingly challenging questions about beliefs, values and human life. They are encouraged to respond with their own ideas and to draw upon the insights of religions and other world views.
