Hampton Wick Infant & Nursery School
RELIGIOUS EDUCATION
POLICY
This policy was adopted/updated: July 2014
This policy will be reviewed: September 2017
Statutory policy? : no
Source: School
HAMPTON WICK INFANT AND NURSERY SCHOOL
RELIGIOUS EDUCATION POLICY
Introduction
The 1996 Education Act required that Religious Education should be taught to all
pupils in full-time education, except those withdrawn at the request of their parents.
Religious education should be taught in accordance with the Richmond upon
Thames agreed syllabus.
Aims
Within the framework of the LEA agreed syllabus, we aim in the Religious Education
curriculum to:
 Promote the spiritual, cultural and social development of the children.
 Develop knowledge and understanding of religious beliefs, practices and
writings.
 Develop knowledge and understanding of Christian and other beliefs and
practices.
 Develop knowledge and understanding of the beliefs and practice of other
principle religions represented in Great Britain.
 Develop sensitivity to and respect for the beliefs and values of others
 Allow children to learn from religions; reflecting on their own beliefs, values
and those of others who take a differing view.
 Create an environment where children reflect on the awe and wonder of the
world.
 Allow children to begin to evaluate their learning experiences in Religious
Education.
Specifically for children in the Foundation Stage, we aim to:
 Enable children to talk about past and present events in their own lives and in
the lives of family members.
 Know about similarities and differences between themselves and others, and
among families, communities and traditions.
Objectives
The overall objectives within the teaching of Religious Education at our school are:
 To develop children’s growth of their own sense of self.
 To develop their understanding of their strengths and weaknesses.
 To reflect on and develop their unique potential and their will to achieve.
 To foster children’s feelings of awe, wonder, delight, joy and mystery and to
extend their natural curiosity.
 To develop children’s sense of belonging, for example, to the school
community and to society as a whole.
 To develop children’s ability to enter imaginatively into experiences, beliefs
and the desires of others.
 To develop children’s ability to be able to think about why they believe
something and how they want to behave as a result.

To enable children to show respect, care and concern towards themselves
and others.
Attainment Targets
We aim to ensure that all children achieve in their learning, and aim to provide
opportunities to develop initiative, independence and the children’s ability to carry out
their own investigations, as appropriate to their age. Learning activities should also
include opportunities for analysis, interpretation, evaluation and reflection.
Foundation Stage Attainment Target – Religious Education is included in the
specific area of learning headed ‘Understanding the World’ where children learn to
make sense of their physical world and their community through opportunities to
explore, observe and find out about people, places, technology and the environment.
Specifically they are learning the similarities and differences between themselves
and others and among families, communities and traditions.
Key Stage One Attainment Target 1- Children learn about religions by acquiring
and developing knowledge and understanding of Christianity, together with aspects
of Islam, Hinduism and Judaism.
Key Stage One Attainment Target 2- Children learn from religion by enhancing
their own spiritual and moral development. (see Richmond Agreed syllabus).
Teaching Strategies
Broad and rich teaching strategies ensure that children get a wide range of
opportunities to develop their skills. Those employed will be a mixture of the
following:
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Whole class/ small group teacher input
Whole class circle time (group circle time)
Whole school assemblies
Art and craft activities
Music activities
Dance and Drama experiences
Curriculum Overview
Autumn 1
Nursery
Autumn 2
Belonging &
class/ school
codes
Divali
What does it
mean to
belong? B/D
Why is light
important to
us? A/E
Christmas
Reception
What makes
us special?
B/D
How do we
remember
things that
are important
to us? C/F
Year One
Who were
Jesus’
friends? A/D
Why is
Christmas
important for
Christians?
A/E
(remember
that many of
Jesus’
friends were
rejected by
the society)
Year Two
Why is the
Bible a
special book
for
Christians?
C/E
What are
your big
questions
about
Christmas?
C/E
(use
Christmas
symbols as a
starter)
Spring 1
Chinese New
Year
St Valentine’s
Day
Shrove
Tuesday
What is a
celebration?
B/D
Why are some
stories special
to us? A/F
What makes a
church
different from
other
buildings? C/F
How does a
church show
what
Christians
believe? B/E
Spring 2
Mothering
Sunday
Easter
Summer 1
Summer 2
Final day of
Passover
St George’s
Day
Fathers Day
How can we
show people
that they are
important to
us? C/F
What is a
good friend?
C/F
What makes
a good
leader? A/E
What makes
something
precious? B/E
What makes
our world
wonderful?
C/E
What makes a
place special?
A/D
Is the world a
fair place? A/F
Which was
the most
important
story Jesus
told do you
think?
What makes a
good Rabbi?
(principles of a
good leader)
B/E
What do eggs
have to do
with Easter?
How do we
remember
people who
die?
What does
what we wear
say about us?
C/D
Why is Easter
important for
Christians?
How can I
make a
difference in
the world?
B/F
How should
Christians
lead their
lives?
Do you need
to go to
church to be
a Christian?
B/D
Why do
Jewish
children
celebrate
Shabbat &
Hannukah?
Is there any
point to
fasting? A/F
Do you need
to go to the
mosque to be
a good
Muslim?
Resources
Artefacts and resources are used to enable children to understand the characteristic
use of non-verbal forms of expression in religions, through visual arts, symbols,
mime and rituals.
We have a wide range of resources at school to support the teaching and learning of
Religious Education. These include:
 Books (in the RE cupboard and in the Library)
 Photographs
 Artefacts
 Music
 Parents input
 Visits from faith leaders in the wider school community
 QCA documents
 Festival planners (forwarded to all staff and on display in the staff room)
 Resources forwarded by subject leader for particular festivals and
celebrations
Equal Opportunities
All children will have access to activities and resources linked to the programme of
study for each attainment target, relevant to their developmental needs and age.
Activities will be differentiated to enable all to achieve. All children will be
encouraged to fulfil their potential.
Special Needs
All children will have access to the Religious Education Curriculum. Children with
special needs will be offered a differentiated programme of study.
Cross Curricular Themes
Religious Education will be linked to seasons, festivals and topics where appropriate.
Involvement of Parent/Carers
Parent/Carers will be encouraged to attend class assemblies, attend Harvest
festivals, attend the Christmas production and other special celebrations. Parents
are invited to help with children’s learning in school through involvement during focus
weeks and celebrations, allowing children to experience authentic and hands-on
learning about religious festivals.
Assessment
Children are encouraged to self-assess during and at the end of RE learning
activities. This, as well as teacher assessments, will inform teachers in planning and
developing the curriculum to tailor it to ensure children are moved on in their
learning. A summative assessment of a child’s skills, knowledge and understanding
in Religious Education is included in children’s annual report to parents.
Monitoring
The Religious Education Leader monitors the standards of children’s work and
quality of teaching through work samples, learning walks and lesson observations.
Impact
The RE subject leader analyses end of year data from the EYFS assessments,
Foundation Stage Profile Points and attainment in RE through Key Stage 1 reports
and assessments. An increase in results in the data will show the positive effect RE
learning has had, and will suggest that the aims and objectives for this policy are
being achieved.
Date Written: September 2012
Review: September 2013