As part of our assembly theme of Friendship, we invited Reverend Anne from the Methodist Church in to talk to the Year 1 and Year 2 children. She told the story of The Good Samaritan and talked to the children about being a kind friend. She also talked about how important it is to be nice to others, even if you do not know them or they are different to you. The children really enjoyed this assembly, and could give many reasons as to how to be a good friend.
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!
Reception
This term in Reception the children have been exploring ‘The Lion StoryTeller Bible’. Everyone enjoyed looking at the beautiful illustrations in this Bible, and have listened to several of the Christian stories. A favourite was ‘A Special Promise’ that tells the story of Noah, his ark and an exciting rainbow. The children really enjoyed talking about the different stories and retelling them with their friends.
Year 1
This term in Year One, the children have been looking at a variety of different religious stories. We have retold the story of The Good Samaritan and made sure to order it correctly. We then looked at the story of Passover and Moses and the children were able to make puppets to re-enact the story. We also listened to the story of Rama and Sita and the children found out about the Diwali Festival.
Year 2
In Year 2, the children have been learning about Islam. They looked at pictures of mosques and prayer rituals. They talked about who is part of their own community, and wrote their own rules that they thought would make the world a better place.
The children have also looked at a variety if religions as part of a philosophy focus, listening to videos from Ian Gardner and Marsha Parker about why people have different ideas of God. The children thought about morals, and if different scenarios were right or wrong, and sorted similarities and differences between religions. They ended their RE learning this year by drawing their own Rangoli patterns on the playground!
