Religious Studies

“Differences were meant not to divide, but to enrich.” – J. H. Oldham

Our curriculum is designed to extend and deepen knowledge of a range of religious and secular beliefs, recognising their local, national and global context. It enables students to appreciate how beliefs influence the values and lives of individuals and groups, giving the opportunity to contemplate the nature of humanity.

Studying Religious Education (RE) will enable all students to explore how beliefs could have a significant impact on all aspects of life. This will be achieved through the development and use of core skills including interpretation, evaluation, and reasoning. Our curriculum provides opportunities for the development of personal viewpoints, encouraging students to articulate and respect a range of opinions and to analyse ethical issues. students will participate in balanced and meaningful discussions about morality.

The RE curriculum aims to broaden horizons and prepare students on their journey to become global citizens. The curriculum as a whole, is cohesive and builds students’ cultural capital, vocabulary, ability to question, their community spirit and sense of enquiry. Our curriculum is designed to be both diverse and inclusive.

RE Lessons engage, challenge and motivate. Students will develop a wide range of subject specific language and apply it confidently and flexibly. All lessons promote challenge and are based on high expectations of pupil outcomes. Students will Interpret religious text and apply it to religious belief and tradition.

Key Concepts

Religious Leadership	Rites of Passage	Faith in Action	The Sanctity of Life
Sacred Texts	Pilgrimages	Ethical Issues	Afterlife
Festivals	Worship	Diversity	Judgement
Religious Law	Places of Worship	Beliefs about God	Peace & Justice

Year 7

Year 7 focuses on the beliefs and practices of the major Abrahamic faiths including Islam, Chistianity and Judaism. We look at how faith is put into action and how belief guides believers through life. students will extend their understanding of beliefs and practices comparing them across these faiths over time and making links to prior learning. Students will also be given the opportunity to study ultimate questions and the arguments for and against as part of a thematic element featured in the year.

Units covered include (in order):

Judaism
Ultimate Questions
Christianity
Islam

Year 8

Year 8 focuses on the beliefs and practices of the major Vedic faiths including Sikhism, Buddhism and Hinduism. We look at how faith is put into action and how belief guides believers through life. Students will extend their understanding of beliefs and practices comparing them across these faiths over time and making links to prior learning. Students will also be given the opportunity to study rites of passage and the beliefs and rituals associated with these key life events.

Units covered include (in order):

Hinduism
Rites of Passage
Buddhism
Sikhism

Year 9

Year 9 adopts a thematic approach to the study of religion. It focuses on the diversity of belief, ethical issues and faith in action. The knowledge and skills of the religious beliefs and practices studied in Year 7 and 8 feature heavily in these thematic based topics.

Units covered include (in order):

Diversity of Belief
Ethical Thinking
Religious Leaders
Religion in Action

Key Stage 4 Overview

The KS4 curriculum provides students with opportunities to build on their learning experiences gained during Key Stage 3.

The GCSE RS course provides an exciting opportunity for students to engage deeply with the beliefs and practices of Christianity and Islam. They will focus on the major aspects of each faith and immerse themselves in the tenets which form the backbone of the two largest religions in the world. Students will study the religious practices connected with these beliefs, getting a true representation of faith in action.

Students will also engage in thematic study involving a variety of contemporary issues and the challenges associated with them. They will approach the issues with an open mind looking at multiple views and will be given the opportunity to express their own views.

Religion (Islam & Christianity):

Christianity: Beliefs & Practices
Islam: Beliefs & Practices

Students will focus on Islam and Christianty and study key beliefs and practices from each faith. The Christianity element of the course includes learning about the life and death of Christ, the concepts of salvation, judgement and atonement as well as key beliefs associated with the nature of God and life after death. The Islam element also looks at key beliefs including the nature of Allah, predetination and angels. This element also includes studying prophethood, authority and denominations in Islam.

Coupled with belief learners will study about Muslim and Chjristian practices including festivals, prayer, plrgimage, worship and the work of the religious community.

Theme (A, B, D & E):

Theme A: Relationships and Families
Theme B: Religion and Life
Theme D: Religion, Peace and Conflict
Theme E: Religion, Crime and Punishment

The Thematic aspect of the GCSE RS course will still focus on Muslim and Christian beliefs but deals with issues associated with ethics and life. Each theme encompasses various topics connected to them such as marriage, divorce and gender roles for Theme A. Theme B includes to study of religious creation stories and key life issues including abortion and euthanasia. Ethical and life issues continue through Theme D going into depth on issues such as war, non-violence, protest and terrorism. Additionally, Theme E offers the opportunity for the concise study of crime and punishment issues such as the treatment of criminals, aims of punishment and the death penalty.

Read like a Guru

Reading in RE is essential to being successful in this great subject area. It helps a reader gain an understanding of religious belief in action. It allows learners to immerse themselves in the written account of a person expressing their faith in and around varied cultures and traditions.

From actual factual sacred text to real deal first hand experiences the reader can develop an in depth experience of how adherents experience true faith.

Click here to view the suggested reads poster.
Please note: the images of the book covers are clickable hyperlinks to the book.

Home Learning

Learning beyond the classroom will involve homework activities and additional tasks, quizzes and competitions set on the Google Classroom platform.

Enrichment and other Extracurricular Activities

A wide range of RE related enrichment options are available. Pupils will be able to join and get involved in a range of activities in the RE at Sharples Club. We run a variety of school trips to places of worship and religious museums. We also invite guest speakers and religious leaders to give talks and seminars to pupils.

Contact

Mr Jenkins, Director of Religious Studies
o.jenkins@sharplesschool.co.uk

Subjects