RE Intent

At St. Augustine's CE Primary School, we believe at that Religious Education (R.E.) both supports and strengthens what we aim to do in every aspect of school life. Our caring ethos and the values which we place on the development of the whole child - spiritually, morally, socially, culturally and intellectually - is reflected in the RE curriculum and we aim to ensure RE enables all children to live life in all its fullness. As a Church of England school, we aim to develop a strong understanding of Christianity as a living faith through the exploration of core theological concepts which critically engages with Christian text.

We want to enable all children to become religiously literate and to offer a systematic enquiry- based approach to the teaching of RE so that the following skills in children can be developed:

• ability to be critical thinkers;
• ability to engage critically with texts;
• ability to ask deep and meaningful questions;
• ability to make connections within and across religions and worldviews;
• ability to reflect, respond and express their own religious, spiritual and/or philosophical convictions;
• ability to make their own choices and decisions concerning religion and belief based on a deep knowledge and understanding of religions and worldviews, belief systems, values and practices.

RE 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. RE should encourage all pupils to reflect on their own beliefs and values and to acknowledge that others hold beliefs different to their own. As well as teaching about Christianity, our curriculum explores other world faiths, such as Judaism, Islam, Buddhism, Hinduism and Sikhism.

We aim to ensure that the teaching of RE supports and enhances the Christian vision of the school and have close ties with St Augustine’s church, as well as with the London Diocesan Board for Schools (LDBS).

RE Implementation

At St Augustine’s, RE is taught weekly as a Core subject through engaging and well-planned lessons which build on children’s prior knowledge. We use the LDBS scheme of work to plan and resource our lessons, which meet the requirements of the National Curriculum. Following this scheme of work ensures that every pupil receives what is mapped out in the Statement of Entitlement and that children acquire the necessary knowledge. The scheme of work also promotes a theological literacy through the depth of study.

We offer units of learning that:

• Are rooted in theological concepts, strong subject knowledge and content.
• Offer a balanced curriculum which enquires into religions and worldviews through theology, philosophy and the human and social sciences.
• Offer sequential learning both in terms of knowledge and skills across the primary age range.
• Offer motivating, engaging and creative lessons for all children
• Provide opportunities for children to develop empathy towards people of similar or differing religious or worldviews to their own.