Religious Education
The aim of Religious Education at Pensilva Primary School is to help pupils to engage confidently, constructively and reflectively with beliefs, values and lifestyles in a religiously diverse world. A Religiously Educated pupil in Cornwall must have the opportunity to:
- Acquire knowledge and understanding of religions in Cornwall in the present day.
- Acquire knowledge and understanding of how religious traditions have shaped the identity of Cornwall.
- An outstanding level of religious understanding and knowledge.
- A thorough engagement with a range of ultimate questions about the meaning and significance of existence.
- The ability to ask significant and highly reflective questions about religion and demonstrate an excellent understanding of issues related to the nature, truth and value of religion.
- A strong understanding of how the beliefs, values, practices and ways of life within any religion cohere together.
- Exceptional independence: the ability to think for themselves and take the initiative in, for example, asking questions, carrying out investigations, evaluating ideas and working constructively with others.
- Significant levels of originality, imagination or creativity, which are shown in their responses to their learning in RE.
- The ability to link the study of religion and belief to personal reflections on meaning and purpose.
- A wide knowledge and deep understanding across a wide range of religions and beliefs.
Here at Pensilva we follow the Cornwall Agreed Syllabus for RE and Understanding Christianity. It develops pupil’s knowledge and understanding of Christianity and four other world religions including Islam, Sikhism, Judaism and Hinduism.
We do not tell children what they should believe rather we teach them about the religions, giving them knowledge and understanding and we allow them to learn from religion to result in self-awareness and personal knowledge.
Through RE we aim to foster the qualities of; commitment, fairness, respect, self-understanding, enquiry and openness and the skills and processes of; investigation, interpretation, reflection, empathy, evaluation, analysis, synthesis, application, expression and collaboration.
At foundation stage RE is learning about celebrations and experiences of festivals (a minimum of two Cornish celebrations) taught through planned purposeful play and through a mix of adult-led and child-initiated activity. The children will cover human experiences within their own live and the lives of those around them.
At KS1 RE will include 60% Christianity and 40% Hinduism. They also cover the Curriculum Kernewek which includes Celtic crosses, special festivals, special people (such as St. Petroc and St. Piran), standing stones and local places of importance.
At KS2 RE will include 60% Christianity and 40% one other religion from Hinduism, Sikhism, Islam or Judaism. Plus, the Curriculum Kernewek which includes Cornwall as a place of spiritual inquiry and Cornwall as a place of Christianity. The latter encompasses, the Celtic church, prayer Book rebellion John Wesley, Catholic Emancipation and translation of the New Testament into Cornish.
In addition to the RE Curriculum the children attend daily assemblies and as part of these, enjoy and participate in ‘Open the Book’. This is a weekly assembly led by a dedicated group from the local church. They perform a series of plays that bring bible stories to life and enable pupils to think about some of the more challenging ideas. The school also has strong links with the local church and the local community. A Harvest Celebration is held each year in the church and at Christmas, the whole school welcomes families, friends and the local community to celebrate the Christmas Story.
Parents have the right to withdraw their children from Religious Education.