Religious Education

At St Nicholas, we aim for every child to: -

• Have a widened understanding of Christianity as a living world faith.
• Be able to hold balanced and well-informed conversations about religion and belief.
• Appreciate their own and others’ beliefs and cultures, helping them to develop a clear understanding of the significance of religion in their own area as well as in the world today.
• Have religious understanding and respect, and to challenge prejudice, discrimination and stereotyping.
• See how the truth of Christianity is relevant in today’s world and become active citizens in the community.
• Have a sense of self-worth, enabling them to reflect on their uniqueness as human beings, to share their feelings and emotions with others and to appreciate the importance of forming and maintaining positive relationships.

Teaching and Learning

We are a Church of England school and as such, Religious Education is a taught as a core subject.

At St Nicholas: -

• Religious Education is taught in accordance with the London Diocese Syllabus 
• The programme has been designed to keep children engaged, motivated and curious about what they are learning.
• Opportunities for meaningful discussions are planned in at every stage to develop critical thinking, thoughtful questions.
• Learning themes are designed to enable connections within and across religions and world views.
• Time is given for children to reflect, respond and express their own opinions and beliefs.
• Questioning provides challenge about the meaning and purpose of life, beliefs, the self, issues of right and wrong, and what it means to be human
• Children develop knowledge and understanding of Christianity, other principal religions, and religious traditions, fostering personal reflection and spiritual development
• Children explore their own beliefs (whether they are religious or non-religious), in the light of what they learn, as they examine issues of religious belief and faith and how these impact on personal, institutional and social ethics; and to express their responses. This also builds resilience to anti-democratic or extremist narratives.
• A sense of identity and belonging is built in to lessons, which helps children flourish within their communities and as citizens in a diverse society
• Visits and visitors to provide first-hand learning experiences to support learning.

Whole day ‘Pause Days’ planned into curriculum timetable termly, to allow children time to gain a deeper understanding and to allow reminders of key Christian calendar dates.

Learning about Christian beliefs, teachings, and values forms the majority of Religious Education in the EYFS, with links and comparisons made to other world faiths. In Years 1–6, Christianity continues to make up around two-thirds of the curriculum, while the remaining third focuses on the study of other major world religions.

The curriculum allows for an enquiry-based approach to the teaching of RE. Each unit taught explores a ‘Big Question’ about religion which is rooted in theological concepts. The curriculum offers sequential learning both in terms of knowledge and skills across the primary age range.