Our RE subject intent
At Laycock Primary School we serve an extremely diverse community, with families from various backgrounds. Our Religious Education Curriculum is reflective of this and taught in accordance with the Islington agreed syllabus – RE Today. As our school is a community one that does not have a particular religious character, it is important that the children learn the value of their own and others religions.
Our Religious Education curriculum celebrates the cultural diversity at our school and the wider community through a progressive curriculum that is age suitable and accessible by all. It develops the children’s understanding of what British Values truly means by giving them cultural experiences that may not ordinarily have. We intend to promote their understanding of religion by challenging prejudice, discrimination and stereotypes.
Religious Education has a significant role for the development of pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development. It promotes respect and open-mindedness towards others with different faiths and beliefs and encourages pupils to develop their sense of identity and belonging through self-awareness and reflection. The principle aim of RE is to engage pupils in an enquiry approach where they can develop an understanding and appreciation for the expression of beliefs, cultural practices and influence of principle religions and worldviews in the local, national and wider global community.
By the end of their time at Laycock, children will have a knowledge of Christianity, Judaism, Buddhism, Sikhism, Islam as well as Humanism, so that they can reach and exceed their potential to learn, understand and remember more.
Our RE Scheme of work
Government guidance states that schools should teach RE to support children’s:
- Spiritual, moral, cultural and social development
- Personal development and wellbeing and
- Understanding of community cohesion
For further information please see this website for government guidance: Statutory RE in schools
At Laycock, we follow the Islington scheme of work for RE. This was developed by Islington and supported by a number of other schools in the borough including Laycock. The scheme of work covers a number of different religions and gives the children a general overview of each, so they develop a basic understanding.
The full scheme can be found here: RE Scheme of work Islington
Year groups are given 5 questions to cover over the course of each academic year. Each question allows them to investigate how these faiths impact the people’s lives who study them. This is done in a variety of ways:
- workshops
- exhibitions
- visits to places of worship
- role play
RE Culture Challenge!
