Religious Education

At Horbury Primary Academy, we believe that Religious Education has a significant role for the development of our pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development. Through Religious Education, pupils are more aware of different faiths, traditions and beliefs in the local and wider community . Our aim is to design a curriculum subject which results in children understanding what it means to be a British Citizen. We encourage children to ask questions about the world we live in whilst reflecting on their own values and experiences. We are committed to stimulating our children’s curiosity and providing them with the very best learning opportunities in the subject, both through class based lessons and additional learning opportunities, in order to inspire our pupil’s desire to become enthralled in RE.  We intend to provide every child with the opportunity to visit places of worship within the community such as the local church during Christmas and Easter time.

In Early Years, children learn about other cultures and religions. We build on children’s prior knowledge and we develop their understanding through quality first hand experiences, such as celebrating Eid, Diwali, Christmas, Easter, Harvest and Chinese New Year.

approach to teaching and learning. We invite visitors from our local community to share how religion impacts on their life. In our Foundation Stage, religious education is predominantly covered within the Understanding of the World area of learning, but children are encouraged to embed learning through other areas such as Being Imaginative and Communication and Language. In key stage one and two, we use the Wakefield agreed syllabus and Discovery RE. Our RE curriculum:

• Teaches children facts on different religions through stories, themes and key questions.
• builds a curriculum subject which develops learning and results in the acquisition of knowledge
• gives children opportunities to look at a range of sacred texts and its significance in religion
• recognises how learning about different religions can contribute to an informed, and reflective school and community whilst respecting an individual’s right to hold a different belief to their own.
• build a curriculum subject which ensures children recognise cultural diversity through class based lesson, assemblies, shared experiences of staff and visits to places of worships.
• provides an opportunity for every child to enjoy and celebrate a range of different cultural experiences.
• promotes tolerance of those of different faiths and beliefs tying in with our British Values.

Religious education plays a key role in teaching every child in becoming tolerant and having mutual respect for people with different beliefs. Our ultimate aim is for children to become more reflective so they can make better choices for themselves in the present moment and for the future.

When leaving Horbury Primary Academy, the children should:

• have a developed knowledge and understanding of Christianity and other principle religions.
• recognise significant religious figures and key events amongst different faiths and their impact.
• embrace different traditions, cultures and beliefs within the local and wider community.
• have high levels of engagement, enthusiasm and enjoyment about RE
• have an understanding of a range of celebrations amongst different faiths and at what time of the year they may happen.
• confidently be able to discuss their knowledge of world faiths.
• have an increased knowledge of other cultures and, in so doing, develop a respect and understanding of what it means to be a positive citizen in a multi-cultural country.
• have a greater ability to ask and answer their own questions.