At Park View Primary we believe it is essential that children enjoy learning about the beliefs and lives of others. Recognising the differences between diverse groups in out community and celebrating them as a strength of society. 

We want RE lessons to be a highlight in the term, where the principles of experience and wonder drive the children's gaining of knowledge about the beliefs and practices of others. We aim to create a safe space where children can ask questions and the class try to find answers,

We celebrate and welcome children of the focus religions sharing their expertise. 

Why we base our RE curriculum on  'Living Difference IV'

The Education Act 2002 states that:

• RE is a statutory subject to be taught in all schools except nursery schools
• RE in all community, foundation and voluntary controlled schools should be taught in accordance with the locally agreed syllabus
• parents have the right to withdraw their children from RE lessons  -see below for further information*
• each county/council must have a Standing Advisory Council for Religious Education (SACRE)
• the agreed syllabus for RE must reflect the fact that the religious traditions in Great Britain are in the main Christian, while taking account of the other principal religions represented in the country
• SACRE should review its agreed syllabus every five years.

As a Hampshire LA school, our local agreed syllabus is Living Difference IV.

Each Living Difference unit has a concept (theme). This provides the children with an opportunity to reflect on the learning within their own lives and experiences, even if they do not practise the focus religion.

At Park View, we have chosen five reoccurring concepts: special days, special stores, special place, key beliefs and shared ideas. Having repeated concepts allows our children to build a foundation for sorting their knowledge about the lives and beliefs of others, even when they have limited personal experiences. 

Living Difference IV RE units follow a cycle of enquiry: Communicate, Apply, Enquire, Contextualise and Evaluate.  Each unit begins at Communicate or Enquire. 

At Park View, we have adopted the spirituality model of windows (learning about the world and lives of others), mirrors (reflection) and doors (action including creative outputs).  We want children to be active and centre in their learning about the lives of others. They are able to better understand their role, point in the learning journey and the purpose of each activity when using windows, mirrors and doors.

The cycle of enquiry is still embedded in our learning journeys through the unit plans created by the subject lead. More time is given to learning about the religions (contextualise) than before and we now ensure the children have a chance to meaningfully respond to the learning through reflection and creativity. 

To see how our Windows, Mirrors and Doors approaches aligns with Hampshire's Living Difference, please click the document below.

 At Park View, we study units with a Christian context for approximately half of the units. The children will also learn about a comparative religion:

Years 1 and 2 - Judaism

Years 3 and 4 - Dharmic traditions (Hindu, Sikh and Buddhist)

Year 5 and 6 - Islam

In the Nursery and Reception years, we regularly share stories from world religions and topics throughout the year allow children to share ideas and experiences. This allows children to gain confidence in expressing their thoughts and being respectful toward the beliefs and ideas of others. 

*Withdrawal from RE

Parents have the right to withdraw their children from parts or all of the RE curriculum.  In the first instance, the Headteacher  would like to discuss with  parents their  particular concerns. This also provide an opportunity to drew up a clear agreement which parts of the RE curriculum a child is being withdrawn from.