Religion Education and Worldviews Curriculum Statement
At Breckon Hill Primary School we value, respect and celebrate the diversity of religions and worldviews that we experience locally, nationally and globally. Our RE lessons help us achieve this by providing our children with the knowledge, vocabulary and skills necessary to understand their own beliefs and those of others.
The principal aim of RE is to engage pupils in systematic enquiry into significant human questions which religion and worldviews address, so that they can develop the understanding and skills needed to appreciate and evaluate varied responses to these questions, as well as develop reasons of their own.
Our RE Curriculum aims to:
- Explore the beliefs and practices of religions and other worldviews through questioning and discussion
- Understand how religions and worldviews influence morality, identity and diversity
- Compare and contrast different religions, identifying similarities and differences
- Develop pupils’ social, moral, spiritual and cultural understanding
- Promote acceptance of and engagement with Fundamental British Values
Intent
The intent of our RE curriculum is to inspire pupils to become curious, reflective and open-minded thinkers. We aim to support pupils to develop the confidence to ask meaningful questions, explore a range of beliefs and worldviews and reflect on their own values and those of others.
Our RE curriculum (based on the Middlesbrough SACRE Advised Syllabus for Religious Education) is built using the following components: substantive knowledge, ways of knowing and personal knowledge. This gives children the chance to engage with the big questions that religions address and develop their own sense of wonder.
As they move through school, children will study Christianity, Islam, Judaism, Sikhism and Hindu Dharma, as well as looking at key beliefs, festivals and practices.
The Kapow Primary’s RE scheme aims to raise awareness of how religion and worldviews influence individual lives, communities and cultures over time. Our goal is to encourage pupils to become respectful and thoughtful citizens who can engage with diversity and contribute positively to a culturally diverse society.
The scheme supports teachers in developing their subject knowledge and confidence, enabling them to deliver engaging and inclusive lessons. The curriculum is designed to be both accessible and ambitious, ensuring that all pupils participate fully and achieve their potential.
Implementation
Our Religious Education curriculum is implemented using the Kapow Primary Religion and Worldviews Programme of Study, which is taught from Reception through to Year 6. This programme provides a progressive and coherent structure, ensuring that pupils build on their knowledge and understanding as they move through the school. Each unit of work is organised around a key question, encouraging enquiry, discussion and critical thinking and enabling pupils to explore religious and non-religious worldviews in depth.
Lessons are carefully sequenced to develop pupils’ understanding of beliefs, practices and values, while promoting respect and curiosity about different faiths and worldviews.
Due to the diverse nature of our school community, children may encounter additional religions and worldviews beyond those explicitly covered in the scheme of work. These experiences are embraced and used to enrich learning, ensuring that teaching remains responsive, inclusive and reflective of pupils’ lived experiences.
Each weekly RE lesson will start with a ‘Recap and Recall’ to revisit prior learning and reinforce key knowledge. This is followed by an ‘Attention Grabber’ which a short engaging activity to hook pupils into the new learning. The ‘Main event’ is the core part of the lesson, where pupils engage in activities that develop their understanding of the learning objective. This includes a mixture of teacher modelling, guided practice and independent or collaborative tasks tailored to support all learners. The lesson ends with a ‘Wrapping Up’ which allows pupils a have a final reflection that consolidates their new learning.
Breckon Hill uses a spiral curriculum model, ensuring that children revisit and develop their understanding of key themes and concepts as they progress through the curriculum.
This approach allows them to make meaningful connections, reinforce their learning and achieve mastery over time.
- Revisiting key concepts – pupils encounter the same ideas multiple times throughout their education, with each revisit adding more complexity.
- Progressive depth – concepts are not just repeated but expanded upon, helping pupils to make connections and develop a richer understanding over time.
- Knowledge retention – regular exposure to key ideas strengthens memory and prevents knowledge from being forgotten.
- Skill development – pupils refine and apply their skills in different contexts, improving their ability to think critically and solve problems.
- Adaptive learning – by building on prior knowledge, the curriculum meets pupils at their current level and supports all learners, including those who need extra reinforcement and those who are ready for greater challenges.
Impact
Through our RE curriculum, pupils at Breckon Hill Primary School develop a deep and growing understanding of a range of religions and worldviews. They acquire the knowledge, vocabulary and skills to explore big questions, reflect on their own beliefs and understand the perspectives of others. Pupils become confident, curious and thoughtful learners who engage respectfully with diversity and show empathy towards people of different faiths and worldviews.
Half termly ‘Assessment quiz and Knowledge Catcher’ will show teachers their pupil’s understanding at key points and will help gauge how well pupils have retained key knowledge and skills over time.
Pupil voice will also be used to capture pupil’s understanding through questioning and recorded responses, supporting a broader view of progress beyond written work.
As a result, pupils leave Breckon Hill prepared to contribute positively to a diverse society, demonstrating respect, open-mindedness, critical thinking and the skills to engage meaningfully with different religions, worldviews and cultures.
