Religious Education is at the centre of everything we do as a Catholic school and permeates through every aspect of the curriculum and school life. We ensure that a minimum of 10% of Curriculum time is allocated for RE teaching across all key stages. To help children develop knowledge of their faith, we follow the ‘Come and See’ Catholic Primary Religious Education Programme to support our teaching. This is a special programme which allows the children to learn about the Catholic faith and to know Jesus more. Throughout the year, we also study and learn about other faiths. The requirements of the RE curriculum are met through the scheme ‘Come and See’ which in turn meets the requirements of the Religious Education Curriculum Directory set out by the Bishop’s Conference of England Wales. All requirements at St. Hedda’s Primary are met at a standard that equals or is better than those of Literacy at all key stages and Foundation stage. This programme is delivered throughout school from Nursery through to Year 6. The programme provides:

• opportunities for celebration, prayer and reflection in implicit and explicit ways.
• equips children with the language of religious experience – a ‘literacy’ in religious activities, places, stories, symbols and rituals, people and objects.
• a ‘systematic presentation of Christian event, message and way of life’ in ways appropriate to the age and stage of development of each child.
• appropriate materials about other faiths.
• academic respectability as in other curricular areas

The programme explores the religious dimensions of questions about life, dignity and purpose within the Catholic tradition. Links are made with the children’s own experience and with the universal ‘human experience.’ It raises questions and provides material for reflection by the children on their own experiences and enables them to explore the beliefs, values and way of life of the Catholic tradition and where appropriate other faith traditions.

Each phase uses the RE Age-Related descriptors from the Bishops’ conference to assess the attainment of the children and their progress is tracked on a termly basis throughout a topic by dating evidence of attainment strands. Teachers assess performance across topics and over time. This enables both class teachers and the subject leader to monitor coverage and identify progress made throughout the pupils’ time with us.

The process for delivering the topics in ‘Come and See’ has three stages – Explore, Reveal and Respond which enable the pupils with the development of knowledge, understanding, skills and the fostering of attitudes. 10% of teaching time is dedicated to the teaching of RE.

The Process:
Explore (1 week) This is the introduction to the topic where the children’s life experience is explored, the questions it raises are wondered at, shared, investigated and their significance reflected on. These sessions may include:

•  Exploring experiences through music, story, drama, dance or art
• Investigation and story telling
• Consideration of the Big Question
• Discussion
• Reflection

Reveal (usually 2 weeks) This is the heart of the programme where knowledge and understanding of the Catholic faith is revealed through the Word, in Scripture, Tradition, doctrine, prayers, rites and Christian living. The process of this delivery will include:

• Meeting new knowledge of Religious Education
• Reflecting on the wonder of the mystery
• Research, collating information
• Asking searching questions
• Discussion
• Making links between Cristian understanding and the shared life experiences
• Acknowledging and respecting differences
• Being open to new perspectives.

Respond (1 week) This is where the learning is assimilated, celebrated and responded to in daily life. This may be carried out through:

• Creating a quiet, prayerful atmosphere for reflection
• Reviewing work carried out throughout the topic
• Sharing thoughts and feelings