At The Solent Schools we follow the Hampshire Syllabus for RE called “Living Difference IV.” The purpose of Religious Education is to give children an ongoing understanding of widely held beliefs and practices and it should also encourage children to consider their own spirituality and beliefs.

Our School community has a range of different cultures and faiths and we welcome opportunities to learn about these from the children. As a school we aim to respond to the needs of different faiths from within our school community and where children of different faiths attend our school. We love to find out about and compare faiths. While studying Religious Education, children may identify some aspects that correspond either with their own tradition or that of their wider family. They will also come to learn that other people may have different beliefs to their own or practice their faith in a different way and they will treat these differences respectfully.

At Solent Junior School we teach the beliefs and practices of Christianity and Islam and an in depth study of Hindu and Sikh traditions . We do this so children will understand how these religions shape the lives and behaviours of their adherents and the effect they have on life in 21st century Britain more generally.

At The Solent Schools we follow the Living Difference IV curriculum and use the cycle of enquiry contained therein. This means that each R.E. unit consists of the following five parts:

1) Communicate,
2) Apply,
3) Enquire,
4) Contextualise,
5) Evaluate.

Living Difference IV also identifies four conceptual words that will thread through the whole curriculum to enable continuity across the key stages:

• Community
• Belonging
• Special
• Love

Golden thread concept words must be studied at least once in each key stage. In addition to the golden thread concepts/words, children will have the opportunities to study other conceptual words (e.g. thanking, new life, welcoming, remembering, celebration) and other peoples’ experiences of these including those living in religious traditions.

At The Solent Schools we promote an inclusive, respectful and collaborative ethos in classrooms and throughout our school environment. We believe that RE creates a safe place for children to share their thoughts and ideas and as such it is always taught by the class teacher and supports inclusivity and achieving our duty towards the Prevent Strategy.

In KS2, children are required to engage with and study further aspects of what it means to live life in the Christian traditions as well as depth studies of two additional religious traditions; one across Year 3 and Year 4 and another across Year 5 and Year 6.

At the end of year 6, R.E. will have made a significant contribution to each child’s spiritual, moral, social and cultural education. They will have learned tolerance and mutual respect, enabling them to work, socialise and live alongside people who may differ from themselves. They will
have learned some key stories associated with Judaism and Christianity and understand some beliefs and practices. They will also have thought more deeply about their own beliefs and how that should affect the way that they live.