Our RE Curriculum - To know You more clearly

Reception: God is Love

In Reception, children are introduced to the foundational belief that God loves each person and all of creation. Through stories, celebration and lived experience, pupils begin to understand God as Creator and loving Father.

• Creation and Covenant: God made the world and God made me; introduction to God as Creator (Genesis 1).

• Prophecy and Promise: The Annunciation and Nativity; learning about Mary, the shepherds and the crib.

• Galilee to Jerusalem: Jesus welcomes and blesses children; Feeding of the Five Thousand; learning to love God and others.

• Desert to Garden: Lent as a time to care for others; the Easter story.

• To the Ends of the Earth: Ascension and Pentecost; early Christian community; parish church and friends of Jesus (St Peter and St Paul).

• Dialogue and Encounter: Exploring how different faiths and cultures celebrate key festivals including Diwali, Hanukkah, Lunar New Year and Eid.

Children are introduced to simple prayers and symbols, including the Sign of the Cross, and begin to recognise church as a special place.

Year 1: Revelation - How do people know about God?

In Year 1, pupils explore how God reveals himself through creation, Scripture and Jesus. Learning focuses on understanding God as a loving Father and recognising how people come to know God through prayer, the Bible and the life of Jesus.

• Creation and Covenant: God as Creator and Father; the Creation story; caring for God’s world as a response to God’s love.

• Prophecy and Promise: The Christmas story; Mary as the mother of Jesus; Jesus as God made visible and the fulfilment of God’s promise.

• Galilee to Jerusalem: Jesus’ life and mission; calling the disciples; Jesus’ love for all, especially children and those on the margins.

• Desert to Garden: Lent and the Easter story; Jesus’ death and resurrection; understanding new life and hope.

• To the Ends of the Earth: The Ascension and Pentecost; the Holy Spirit; the Church as a community of believers.

• Dialogue and Encounter: Introduction to Judaism; learning about Jewish life, beliefs and practices.

Through this learning, pupils grow in understanding of who God is, how Christians come to know Him, and how faith is lived out through prayer, belonging and care for others.

Year 2: Baptism - Belonging to the Christian community

In Year 2, pupils explore how Baptism welcomes people into the Church and calls them to live a new life in Christ. Learning focuses on covenant, forgiveness and how faith shapes belonging and behaviour.

• Creation and Covenant: God’s covenant with Noah; understanding right and wrong; recognising sin as turning away from God and the call to forgiveness.

• Prophecy and Promise: Advent and Christmas; the Annunciation and birth of John the Baptist and Jesus; God’s promises being fulfilled.

• Galilee to Jerusalem: Jesus’ teaching through parables and miracles; learning how Jesus shows love, compassion and healing.

• Desert to Garden: Lent and Holy Week; reconciliation and forgiveness; understanding God’s mercy.

• To the Ends of the Earth: The Ascension and Pentecost; the Holy Spirit; how people are changed by God’s Spirit.

• Dialogue and Encounter: Judaism; Shabbat, the synagogue and Sabbath; understanding Jewish belief and practice.

Through this learning, pupils deepen their understanding of Baptism, forgiveness and belonging, recognising how faith shapes life within the Church and the wider community.

Year 3: Celebrating the Eucharist

In Year 3, pupils explore the Eucharist as the central act of worship in the Catholic Church and a source of strength for Christian living. Learning focuses on understanding Mass, Jesus’ actions and words, and how worship shapes faith and mission.

• Creation and Covenant: Re-visiting the Creation story; using symbolism to explore the relationship between God, humanity and the world; understanding holy days.

• Prophecy and Promise: The Nativity and Gospel of Matthew; Epiphany and the visit of the Magi.

• Galilee to Jerusalem: Miracles and parables of Jesus; the miracle of the loaves and fishes; the Last Supper.

• Desert to Garden: The Eucharist; extracts from the Eucharistic Prayer; the Road to Emmaus.

• To the Ends of the Earth: Mission of the apostles; the early Church; the life and mission of St Paul, including the Road to Damascus and his letters.

• Dialogue and Encounter: Jewish Passover; introduction to Islam and the Five Pillars of Islam.

Through this learning, pupils deepen their understanding of Mass, the Holy Trinity and the liturgical life of the Church, recognising how faith is lived out through worship and mission.

Year 4: People whose lives have been transformed by faith and hope in God

In Year 4, pupils explore how faith and trust in God transform individuals and communities. Learning focuses on key figures from Scripture and Church tradition, helping pupils understand how belief leads to action, service and mission.

• Creation and Covenant: God’s covenant with Abraham; faith, trust and obedience; how God’s promises shape people’s lives.

• Prophecy and Promise: The role of prophets, including Elijah, Isaiah and John the Baptist; understanding prophecy and God’s promises being fulfilled.

• Galilee to Jerusalem: Jesus’ identity and mission; miracles and teachings that reveal Jesus as the Messiah and Son of God.

• Desert to Garden: Lent and Holy Week; forgiveness, mercy and reconciliation; how God’s love brings transformation.

• To the Ends of the Earth: The early Church; Peter’s leadership; the Apostles’ Creed; belonging to the Church as one, holy, catholic and apostolic.

• Dialogue and Encounter: St Paul’s conversion and mission; worship, liturgy and service; living faith through action.

Through this learning, pupils develop a deeper understanding of how faith shapes identity and guides Christian living, preparing them for further theological study in Upper Key Stage 2.

Year 5: Living as disciples of Jesus - faith in action

In Year 5, pupils deepen their understanding of how God’s law, Jesus’ teaching and the work of the Holy Spirit guide Christians to live lives of love, service and discipleship. Learning focuses on moral choices, prayer and living out faith in the world today.

• Creation and Covenant: God’s covenant through Moses; the Ten Commandments; making choices and living a virtuous life rooted in God’s law.

• Prophecy and Promise: King David and God’s promises; David as shepherd and servant leader; links between David and Jesus, the Good Shepherd.

• Galilee to Jerusalem: Jesus’ teaching on love and the New Law; the Beatitudes and the Good Samaritan; what it means to live the Christian life.

• Desert to Garden: Lent as a time of repentance and reflection; sin, conscience and forgiveness; the Resurrection and hope of eternal life.

• To the Ends of the Earth: Pentecost and the work of the Holy Spirit; Confirmation; discipleship today and responding to God’s call through service and mission.

• Dialogue and Encounter: Understanding the Bible as the Word of God; interpreting Scripture; using the Bible as a tool for prayer.

Through this learning, pupils grow in confidence as young disciples, understanding how faith, prayer and the guidance of the Holy Spirit shape moral choices and inspire action.

Year 6: Created, called and sent - faith, dignity and belief

In Year 6, pupils deepen their understanding of Catholic belief and identity as they prepare for the next stage of their education. Learning focuses on creation, vocation and sacramental life, encouraging thoughtful reflection on faith, responsibility and belonging.

• Creation and Covenant: Creation in Scripture and tradition; human dignity; sin and salvation; God’s covenant fulfilled in Jesus Christ.

• Prophecy and Promise: Women in salvation history; Mary as Mother of God; vocation, faith and responding to God’s call.

• Galilee to Jerusalem: The sacramental life of the Church; the Gospel of John; signs and miracles; Jesus as the Bread of Life.

• Desert to Garden: The Passion, Death and Resurrection of Jesus; repentance, forgiveness and the hope of new life.

• To the Ends of the Earth: The mission of the Church; the work of the Holy Spirit; living as witnesses to the Gospel in the world today.

• Dialogue and Encounter: Respectful dialogue with people of other faiths and beliefs; recognising the dignity of every person.

Through this learning, pupils develop a secure and mature understanding of Catholic belief, Scripture and the sacraments, and are encouraged to reflect on how faith shapes values, choices and action as they move into secondary school.