Trotts Hill Primary School and Nursery
At Trotts Hill Primary School, the intent of our Religion and Worldviews teaching is to:
Our high-quality Religion and Worldviews curriculum is integral to our school vision; “…where each individual is cared for deeply, valued and respected; where everyone in the school community has the opportunity to learn in an environment full of excitement and fun, so they can grow up to be lifelong learners and assets in the community, society and world they live in.”
Religion and Worldviews is taught in all year groups across the school. It may be blocked into subject days/afternoons or taught as one hour weekly lessons. Our R&WV learning is recorded in whole class ‘big books’, which enable us to focus our teaching on high quality discussion, hands on experiences and enquiry-based learning rather than an onerous focus on individual recording.
We follow the Herts Agreed Syllabus 2023-2028 with the overall approach based upon respect, understanding and engaging with diversity.
To enhance children’s learning, we draw upon the children’s own experiences of Religion and Worldviews. All religions and their communities are treated with respect and sensitivity and we value the links, which are, and can be made between home, school, and a faith community. We acknowledge that each religion studied can contribute to the education of all our pupils.
We ensure that all children are appropriately challenged, whilst collaborative learning techniques are utilised and questioning is not only teacher-led but also child-led. The "Ultimate Questions" from the Hertfordshire Agreed Syllabus support the use of big questions and open discussions.
Where possible, we provide children with the opportunity to visit local places of worship and all staff have access to a database of contact details for local places of worship/visitors from faiths.
Throughout their time at Trotts Hill, children will follow a coherent and systematic study of the principal religion of Christianity as well as five other principal religions represented in Great Britain. Judaism and Islam will be the predominant additional principal faiths in KS1. Islam and Sanatana Dharma (formerly referred to as Hinduism) will be the focus for lower KS2. Buddhism, and Sikhi will be covered in upper KS2. Children may also learn from other Religions and Worldviews (such as Humanism) in thematic units.
All six principal religions will have been introduced and revisited by the end of the Key Stage 2. It is our aim that all children will leave Trotts Hill being able to recall the top five faith facts of all six principal religions studied.
There are no presumptions made as to the religious backgrounds and beliefs and values of the children and the staff. We value the religious background of all members of the school community and hope that this will encourage individuals to share their own experiences with others freely.
The children at Trotts Hill Primary School enjoy learning about Religion and Worldviews and why people choose, or choose not to follow a religion or to follow elements of religions.
As young citizens, of not just Hertfordshire, but also of the United Kingdom and the world, the impact of their R&WV learning will help them understand that they can contribute positively to inclusive and safe communities in which everyone is valued, kept safe and which embrace and celebrate diversity.
Trotts Hill sees that Religion and Worldviews are invaluable in an ever-changing world.
In R&WV we follow the Herts agreed syllabus, which reflects the fact that the religious traditions in Great Britain are in the main Christian whilst taking account of the teaching and practises of five other principle religions represented in Great Britain.
We teach different religions in different year groups, as shown on our curriculum map. During each key stage, children will develop religious, theological and philosophical literacy by following eight key areas of learning, which are:
Beliefs and practices
Sources of wisdom
Symbols and Actions
Prayer, Worship and Refection
Identity and Belonging
Ultimate Questions
Human Responsibility and Values
Justice and Fairness
*”A worldview is a person’s way of understanding, experiencing and responding to the world. It can be described as a philosophy of life or an approach to life…A person’s worldview is likely to influence and be influenced by their beliefs, values, behaviours, experiences, identities and commitments.” (Religion and Worldviews: The Way Forward p4)
Introducing our new Owl Agents.
The Owl agents confidently delivered a whole school assembly talking about the current religions studied at Trotts Hill and the minor beliefs we will be studying before half term.
See the assembly slides attached.
In RE, the children listened to a Bible story where Jesus healed a paralysed man. They decided whether a miracle had been performed. The children then used their oracy skills to create a Newsround style news report of the event.
Year 2 Christmas Journey
Our Year 2 children enjoyed a magical trip to The Christmas Journey at St Nicholas Church in Stevenage. The visit brought the Nativity story to life through interactive storytelling, engaging activities, and beautifully presented scenes. Children were able to explore the events of the first Christmas in a warm, reflective atmosphere, helping them deepen their understanding of this special time of year. It was a wonderful experience that enriched their learning and filled everyone with festive excitement. We were particularly impressed with the thoughtful questions that Year 2 asked the shepherds and the wise men as we were exploring the different scenes.
Gemma from Bridge Builder's Trust spoke to the children about Christian traditions and celebrations which are important to her and her family. The children came up with questions they wanted to ask Gemma to help further their understanding of Christian celebrations.
Today, David joined us from St Nicholas Church to tell about the importance of names at Christmas. He explained that Jesus wasn't named by Mary or Joseph, but by God before he was born. His name means saviour. We were so fortunate today as David brought in his guitar and we sang a song about Jesus with the tune Jingle Bells. Thank you for visiting us, David and telling us about your Christian Worldview. Our Owl Agents then interviewed David about his faith.
Grace | Can you read any Hebrew, the original language of the bible? |
| Not yet. I am currently learning Greek so I can read the New Testament which is written in Greek. I will then attempt to learn Hebrew which the Old Testament is written in . |
Grace | Do you participate in midnight mass? |
| I haven’t been to a midnight mass. My old church didn’t hold one. |
Noah | What is the most important part of Christmas to you, as a Christian? |
| From my assembly you can probably tell that it’s Jesus. Christmas helps me to remember how he was sent to save us. God is the creator of everything and He sent us Jesus as a gift at Christmas to save us. |
Aairah | Were you brought up as a Christian? When were you baptised? |
| I was brought up as a Baptist and when I was 17 years old I was baptised. I made the decision for myself when I felt I was old enough. |
Jaylah | What did you want to be when you were in primary school? |
| Not a minister! My mum would say I wanted to be a guitarist or a teacher (my Dad is both). I also wanted to be an engineer but I eventually decided that the Ministry is for me and actually it involves both music and teaching! |
The children were given objects associated with Christmas. They used their oracy skills to discuss what these objects represent and mean for Christians.
Year 4 looked at the different symbols within the Nativity story and thought about their importance to Christians. At the end of the unit, we made our own 3D Christmas decorations, using symbols that showed how we celebrate this time of year in our different ways.
Year 3 explored how Sanatanis use prayer and meditation to feel close to God and to lead a good life. They explored the different elements of the Puja tray.
In this unit, the children are considering the question ' How do Christians show their commitment to God?' They ordered the 10 commandments from most to least important for Christians and justified their choices.
LI: To explore how Jewish children celebrate Shabbat in the home and at a synagogue.
Year 2 is very grateful for Mrs Paice coming in and explaining how Shabbat is celebrated both at home and the synagogue. She helped us to understand that not all Jewish people celebrate it in the same way and to the same extent. Thank you so much for coming in to visit us. Real lived experiences are so important in learning about worldviews.
Reception have been reading The Scarecrows Wedding and have been learning about weddings in different cultures. We looked at Christian, Muslim, Jewish, Hindu, Buddhist and Sikh weddings. We role played weddings and designed our own costumes.
LI: To understand the creation story and how it relates to Shabbat.
Year 2 listened to the Jewish creation story and then made artistic interpretations of the different days, understanding that God rested on the final day, which is now the Jewish Shabbat.
We are very proud at Trotts Hill of our work in R&WV and the floorbooks we populate over the course of the year in every class. They are creative, colourful and demonstrate all the wonderful learning and personal reflection that takes place.
The Owl agents became roving reporters during this busy time of year, which is dominated by special events for two of our Worldviews; Easter and Ramadan/Eid.
Fawaz in year 6 interviewed Zohaib on his life as a Muslim.
Zohaib said that the importance of Eid to him is personal growth and spirituality. He celebrated it by spending time with his family. They went to the park.
Fawaz was interviewed by Jerome (year 6) and said that during Ramadan they thank Allah for all of their blessings. He celebrated Eid by watching fireworks and spending time with friends.
Fawaz interviewed Jerome, who is a practising Christian. He explained that at Easter they fast in the morning and then go to church to thank God for washing our sins away on the rugged cross. Then we have a ceremony about Easter and finally, we eat sweets and break our fast.
Radhvi in Year 2 interviewed Leona also in Year 2. She said that finding Easter eggs remind her of new life.
Jesna will be making crosses to remember Jesus and Scarlett will be praying.
Karolina in year 6 is going to church and participating in a gathering.
Mrs. Dogar, Salaar’s mother, visited Year 2 to share how her family celebrates Eid. She explained that during Ramadan, her family breaks their fast at sunset by eating dates, as Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) used to do. Mrs. Dogar also shared that she does not eat or drink from sunrise to sunset throughout the holy month of Ramadan. We had the opportunity to try dates ourselves.
Alayna demonstrated how she prays when she goes to the mosque and Mrs Dogar kindly left some prayer mats for the class to explore. Everyone then made a paper chain, with each link representing something we could do to make the world a better place or something we could give up.
Rev Keene from St Nicholas Church visited Trotts Hill today to deliver an Easter Assembly. Although most year groups are currently studying Easter in Religion and Worldview lessons, we all still learnt something new! The children were engaged and asked such thoughtful and deep questions! Thank you to our visitor and we look forward to seeing you again soon.
Year 1 have been learning about the Easter story this term. We acted out different parts and then worked in pairs to sequence the story.
We wrote a script about how Jesus was resurrected and filmed a stop-go animation in Lego. It was lots of fun, but also helped with our recall of the story.
This term, Year 4 were looking at the Easter story and discussing the idea of forgiveness. At the end of our unit of work, we made cards, posters or bookmarks. Year 4 feel that you can often feel lighter when you forgive someone rather than carrying resentment.
The children have been exploring what a miracle is and using this knowledge to try and answer our big question. Year 3 listened to the story of Jesus healing a leper and tried to decide why Christians might believe that Jesus was able to do this.
Rev Keene from St Nicholas Church delivered a Christmas Assembly today. The children enjoyed listening to the history of the story and how Mary and Joseph came to be in Bethlehem. The assembly concluded with a whole school rendition of 'While Shepherds Watched their Flocks'. Thank you to Rev Keene for joining us!
Year 6 - BIG QUESTION: Should only Christians be allowed to celebrate Christmas?
This term Year 6 have been discussing, 'Should only Christians celebrate Christmas?' The children have shared their own personal views and then Gemma from Bridge Builders came into share her views too.
Today the children visited St Nicholas church to experience the Christmas Journey. The children met the shepherds, the Maggi, Simeon and Anna and of course Jesus, Mary and Joseph. They all made a crown and filled in a booklet about the Nativity. Huge thanks to the volunteers at the church and Bridge Builders for an excellent educational trip.
The children were given pictures of the Christmas story to order. As a class, we looked at the correct order and retold the Christmas story. We then heard from three Christians about what Christmas means to them and how they celebrate. We identified the similarities and differences between the three Christians. Finally, we explored why kindness is important to Christians at Christmas.
Year 4 looked at the symbolism of Christmas for Christians during this unit. In our final lesson, we thought about which images symbolise Christmas for us. Some people don't celebrate Christmas, but like the family time that being off school gives us; others thought of snowmen and presents; whilst others focused on a mixture of the religious and secular ideas around Christmas. We created 3D baubles with the images and messages important to us.
Today the whole school enjoyed a House morning, run by our eight House Captains. They introduced the morning and explained that we would be looking at Religion and Worldviews to celebrate the introduction of our new R&WV curriculum.
We have a range of Worldviews represented in Trotts Hill. Our percentages are similar to both Stevenage and the UK as a whole. They explained that we all have a worldview, even if we are not religious. Our worldview can change through our lifetime and even if you/we are not religious, we all still have a worldview as we are influenced by everyone and everything around us. ​
We split into our houses which incorporated children from Reception to Year 6 and learnt songs, read stories, wrote poems and created a piece of collective artwork.
It was a lovely, calm and peaceful morning with the children showing real kindness and empathy throughout. Well done everyone. Everyone belongs at Trotts Hill!
Rev Keene visited the school to deliver an assembly on Harvest Festival. He read from the Psalms and the children needed to try and remember all the animals and food mentioned in the passage. The children were impeccably behaved and answered the Reverend's questions sensibly. We then sang Harvest Samba.
LI: To tell you how I could be kind to others even if it is difficult.
Today we introduced the new enquiry by talking about what kindness is; how we show it and how it is shown to us. The children identified that friends, siblings and relatives can be kind and they can show kindness by being a good friend, helping, sharing and caring. We then went on to explore how sometimes how hard showing kindness can be in certain situations BUT how it is still possible. The class put freeze frames together.
