Why do we study Religious Education?

The Religious Education curriculum at St. Winefride’s aims to provide a solid foundation in the Catholic faith, encouraging students to deepen their understanding and communicate their beliefs with confidence. It promotes curiosity by inviting students to explore challenging questions while critically engaging with the Church’s moral and social teachings in relation to contemporary society. The curriculum fosters respect for other religious traditions, linking Religious Education with other subjects and allowing pupils the chance to study other faiths. It also develops students’ ability to apply their faith to daily life, encouraging them to think critically about their faith and big issues in our world. The curriculum also allows plenty of opportunities for personal reflection allowing pupils a personal response to their faith. With a commitment to inclusivity, the program ensures all students, including those with Special Educational Needs (SEND), have access to a supportive learning environment that allows them to flourish. Our Religious Education curriculum strives to ensure that all of our pupils are compassionate, spiritually enriched individuals ready to live out their faith in service to others and in harmony with the wider world

At St Winefride’s, we follow the Come and See programme which is a Catholic Education programme for Foundation and Key Stages 1 and 2. The programme of study, written by a group of experienced diocesan advisors was introduced in September 2012 and has been warmly received by staff and pupils. The child friendly material provided within Come and See allows children to explore the teachings of the Catholic church through the use of age appropriate resources and activities.

Each year group from Foundation 1 to Year 6 have their own list of focus topics to consider throughout the academic year. The topic will coincide with the church calendar however, the depth in which the topic is explored is dependent upon the respective age of the child. Come and See provides many opportunities for celebrating joyfully and prayerfully through music and in quiet times of reflection. This takes place in class, acts of worship and whole school celebrations. For all children, the programme raises questions ad provides materials for reflecting on their own experiences. It will help them to explore the beliefs, values and way of life of the Catholic tradition, as well as the traditions of other faiths.

At the heart of the programme is the mystery of God’s self-revelation of love through Jesus Christ. Come and See gives pupils the opportunity to explore the mystery of faith through Scripture and Tradition.

VISITORS

We had a visit from CAFOD to teach us about deforestation in the Amazon and about how to care for our world.

DISPLAYS

PLEASE READ OUR DIOCESAN CANONICAL INPECTION REPORT BELOW:

NRCDES DIOCESAN CANONICAL INSPECTION REPORT – ST WINEFRIDES SHEPSHED

Pupil Voice

At St Winefride’s Catholic Voluntary Academy, pupils’ opinions and ideas matter. We believe that pupils should have the opportunity to share their ideas. We do this in a number of ways:

• The School Council
• The Chaplaincy Team
• The Eco Club
• Pupils have the opportunity to take on leadership roles such as head girl and head boy; house captains; play leaders; as well as opportunities with each class
• Pupils have regular opportunities to discuss issues that may arise through activities such as circle time
• The curriculum offers opportunities for pupils to develop the skills, knowledge and understanding when using their pupil voice
• We also use questionnaires and pupil voice interviews linked to different areas
• Pupils having a great idea and sharing it with staff

Have a look at what we thought about our Distinctive Christian Character.

What pupils like best about Collective Worship:

• Stories from the Bible
• Saying prayers
• Preparing liturgies
• Being involved and the way things are done is very creative
• ‘I like sorry prayers because we can think about what we’ve done’
• Learning things from the Bible and how it reflects on our lives
• When Father comes in for Mass

What pupils like best about RE:

• Learning about Christian values
•  ‘I enjoy being able to write stories, diary entries and being able to have my own personal view of religion’
• ‘The best thing in RE for me is when we write about Bible stories’
• When we start a new topic
• Learning about other faiths
• Doing writing
• ‘The teacher’s help if you are stuck and they explain it so it’s easier for me’
•  ‘We get together to talk about problems and worries which helps us’