Religious Education

Our Vision

In our modern, diverse society we recognise the importance for our pupils to develop into inclusive, respectful adults, who are tolerant of the beliefs of others.  It is vital that pupils develop an understanding of religions around the world and have an awareness of how harmful stereotypes can be. Pupils need the knowledge to develop their own thoughts and opinions on the significant human questions which may be posed in life. Our engaging RE curriculum enables us to provide our pupils with the knowledge to respectfully understand religions different to their own, as well as the ability to reflect on their own faith and spirituality. Through RE, we provide our pupils with the skills to become well rounded individuals, who are able to tackle current social and emotional issues, relevant to our society. We strive to instil a ‘oneness’ ideology amongst our pupils, allowing them to understand that we are all humans regardless of individual beliefs.

Our Aims

At VPA, we deliver an RE curriculum that creates children who:

• have a broad understanding of different religions
• develop specific in-depth knowledge of religions
• are empathetic and tolerant of other religions
• develop their own understanding and ideas of faith and spirituality
• are curious and ask questions to develop knowledge of others

How it is Taught

We teach RE in a blocked session of afternoons, once a term. This is to allow children the opportunity for an in-depth investigation across the week. Children have the opportunity to build their understanding, beginning with themselves and their pre-existing knowledge and progressing to that beyond what they already know. There is always a clear balance between the pupils’ own needs and interests and the needs and interests of others. RE is guided by a key question, which directs the learning and facilitates the discussion within the lessons. There is also the opportunity to generate discussion, through misconceptions that children may have, with openness, honesty and understanding. This develops tolerance of all religions. At the end of the blocked sessions, pupils are provided with the opportunity for reflection on the learning, further enhancing their capacity to develop their understanding of the world around them.