Autumn term
Reception
The Reception children have been learning about the celebration of Diwali; the Hindu Festival of Light. They have designed their own Mehndis, rangoli patterns and Diva lamps. They took part in a dance workshop with Miss Helen; she taught them some dance moves and they listened to the story of Diwali. The children learnt all about Rama and Sita, Ravana the ten headed demon and Hanuman the Monkey King! They all enjoyed wearing Bindis, saris and sashes whilst dancing. They have looked at Diwali information books, read stories and watched videos to find out about the celebration too.
Year 1
This term, the year 1 children focused their learning on Christianity, Judaism and Hinduism. The children linked their RE learning to their senses which was what they had learnt about as part of their science topic during the autumn term.
The children used their sense of smell to learn about incense. They learnt about how the use of incense is a religious ritual for many includes Christian, Jewish and Hindu people.
To use their sense of hearing, the children listened to and learnt to sing some Jewish and Christian songs; they also listened to Hindu meditation music. The children also enjoyed tasting some different foods associated with different religions; a lot of children’s favourite was the Jewish Bagel.
For their sense of touch, the children felt some different religious artefacts and tried to guess what they were, linking to what they had previously learnt about. They also used their eyes to then see these different artefacts and compare them to what they thought they could be. The children had the opportunity to make and decorate, using their own patterns and colours, their own Christian cross.
The children also learnt about Puja, a worship ritual performed by Hindus that involves the use of their 5 senses. The children thought about and discussed what they would have on their own Puja tray involving all of their senses.
Year 2
This term, the children in Year 2 have been thinking about why light is an important symbol for Christians, Jews and Hindus. The children talked about some of the different light sources and why they are important, and looked at the significance of Christingle. They made their own Christingle thinking carefully about what each part of it signifies.
The children learnt about the celebration of Hannukah and made their own dreidel. They were really excited to learn some of the Hebrew alphabet. Lastly, the children looked at the story of Rama and Sita and thought about why light was important in this story. They designed their own Rangoli patterns which were beautiful!
