Religious Education
What have we been learning during RE?
Overview
At Copthorne CE Junior School, Religious Education (RE) plays an important role in defining the school’s distinctive Christian character and achieving the vision. The subject is central to the school’s understanding of education. As a school we recognise that spiritual development lies at the heart of the curriculum.
Religious Education provokes challenging questions about the ultimate meaning and purpose of life, beliefs about God, the self and the nature of reality, issues of right and wrong and what it means to be human. It develops pupils’ knowledge and understanding of Christianity, other principal religions, other religious traditions and other world views that offer answers to questions such as these. It enhances pupils’ awareness and understanding of religions and beliefs, teachings, practices and forms of expression, as well as of the influence of religion on individuals, families, communities and cultures.
Our Curriculum
The programme of study we cover at Copthorne is The Emmanuel Project which is a scheme of work that includes both Christianity and other world faiths.
Our RE curriculum offers an Enquiry Approach to RE and supports non specialist RE teachers to deliver excellent RE lessons. Our curriculum has been created using The Emmanuel Project and Understanding Christianity and uses big questions as central to its approach. These questions are then explored in different ways. Our curriculum offers opportunities to explore a religious key concept through the following areas:
• Text or Narrative
• Community Practice
• Living
The focus on the areas above, plus the central enquiry approach, ensures that the six key strands of enquiry contained within the West Sussex Agreed Syllabus for RE are fully addressed. Our teaching and learning approach enables learners to look first at a religious text before moving on to looking at the impact of this concept in the religious community and on the life of the individual. The approach ensures there is a clear progression of knowledge and skills. We have outcomes for Key Stage Two which build on each other year on year so children know more and can do more.
You can find our whole-school curriculum overview below.
RE is timetabled into the school week to ensure full coverage. It is taught discretely as well as blocked teaching in exciting and engaging whole school 'RE Weeks'.