At Castle Primary School, we believe that through religion and world views, pupils should be given the opportunity and encouragement to become worldwide citizens through the development of the Christian values of; respect, responsibility, perseverance, integrity, tolerance and courage.
The principal aim of teaching religion and world views is to explore different beliefs and the impact they have on people’s lives, so that pupils can gain the knowledge, understanding and skills needed to consider questions raised by different religions and world views, reflecting on their own ideas and ways of living.
As our vision states, we offer an experiential curriculum that nurtures children’s innate curiosity, creativity, uniqueness and personal aspiration. We inspire courageous advocates and deep thinkers who celebrate the local while embracing the global, giving our pupils the skills and confidence to own their futures.
Our religion and world views syllabus is based upon ‘Understanding Christianity’ and the Somerset-agreed syllabus: Awareness, Mystery and Value. We follow a rolling program that ensures a balanced coverage of Christianity and other world views.
The focus in KS1 is largely centred around Christianity and Judaism, however as part of being a global citizen, we look at the world religion calendar and have days that focus on celebrations such as Diwali and Ramadan. Children in KS2 focus on Christianity, Judaism, Islam, Hinduism and Humanism.
Children have the opportunity to visit different places of worship, including our local parish church. We provide the children with opportunities to ask questions each lesson. During each unit of Christianity teaching, the local vicar is invited into school so the children can ask questions to further their learning and understanding.
They enjoy hands on experiences, such as making Christingles, baking Challah bread, celebrating the Chinese New Year and making Diwali lamps.
We aim for children at Castle Primary School to develop spiritually, academically, emotionally, morally and socially. This enables them to reflect upon their own beliefs and see how these fits with others and develop respect and empathy for those who have different views to themselves so they can be global citizens and cope with the opportunities, challenges and responsibilities of living in a rapidly changing, multicultural world.
Religion and world views, within EYFS sits firmly within the areas of personal, social and emotional development and understanding of themselves, and others. Children learn how to form positive and respectful relationships through encountering religious and non-religious world views through special people, books, places and objects and by visiting places of worship. The children will have the opportunity to listen to and talk about stories. They are introduced to subject-specific words and use all of their senses to explore beliefs, practices and forms of expression. In the Early Years, the children ask questions and reflect on their own feelings and experiences. They use their imaginations and curiosity to develop their appreciation of, and wonder at, the world in which they live.
