Intent

At Moor Hall we believe that knowledge and understanding of beliefs (both our own beliefs and those of others) is key to being a responsible, healthy, achieving and confident member of society.

The teaching and learning of RE gives opportunities for pupils to learn about religious beliefs as well as reflect on their own beliefs.

We believe that RE promotes the spiritual, moral, cultural and mental development of our pupils and prepares them for the opportunities, responsibilities and experiences of adult life.

We strongly believe that all children have the right to practice their own religion (UNCRC Article 30) and have the right to give their own opinion, and for it to be listened to (UNCRC Article 12).

At Moor Hall, we believe in empowering our pupils by giving them knowledge and understanding of different religious beliefs in order to develop empathy, tolerance and mutual respect. We give pupils the opportunity to express their own opinions and beliefs about religious, spiritual, social and moral stimuli so that they can go on to be confident and responsible members of our diverse local and global community.

Implementation

All pupils are entitled to access the RE curriculum at Moor Hall. Parents have the right to withdraw their child from this curriculum area.

The RE curriculum at Moor Hall follows the Birmingham Agreed Syllabus. Across each phase (KS1, LKS2 and UKS2) pupils explore all of the 24 dispositions set out in the Syllabus through learning about religion as well as learning from religion.

RE is taught in units; each class will focus on 2 dispositions each half term. The curriculum is designed so that each of the dispositions is revisited at a deeper level in higher year groups. As our school community is majority Christian, this is reflected in our RE curriculum. Other world religions and non-religious worldviews that reflect our school community, local and the wider communities, are introduced through the context of the different dispositions. Each year group also has a focused unit on one of the 6 main world religions (Christianity, Islam, Sikhism, Hinduism, Judaism, Buddhism) with opportunities to either visit a place of worship or speak to someone from that religious tradition.

Through their RE learning, pupils are encouraged to engage with the stimulus, join in with enquiries and questioning, developing their thinking skills, express their opinions, learn to be caring, creative, critical and collaborative.

The curriculum provides the opportunity to:

• Listen to the opinions of others in a caring way
• Consider personal attitudes and beliefs, deepening feelings
• Be collaborative in answering moral and philosophical questions
• Develop questioning skills and critical thinking
• Develop an understanding of moral issues

British Values are an integral part of the RE curriculum. Pupils explore religious beliefs and the impact of those beliefs on followers of that religious tradition. They then make connections to their own life experience and understanding of the world, reflecting on their personal beliefs. These skills promote individual opinions, tolerance and mutual respect of the opinions and beliefs of others and an appreciation of democracy and the rule of law.

Impact

RE is assessed against our learning ladder, with key questions in each phase.