Category : Year 1/2

Year 1 finished their RE learning for this term by looking at promises.

First, we learned that a promise is an agreement to do or not do something.

We then shared talk about promises… Olivia said that you can make a ‘pinkie promise’, Harvey said that promises are something you should never break, Lilah said she always promises to tidy her room and Ocean said that she makes promises to always be good.

Then, we listened to the tale of Abraham and Sarah which is a story from the bible.      It tells of how God made Abraham a promise. He promised to give Sarah and Abraham a child and many descendants if they moved from where they were living to a new land. They did, and they had a son called Isaac.

God kept his promise to them, proving he was dependable and faithful.

Next, we spoke about how we feel when promises are broken … Malik said that you might feel angry and confused, Delilah said she would feel sad and Tommy said that you might feel disappointed. Some children also shared that if they break promises, there would be consequences, for example, time-out, no treats or tablet time.

Finally, the children made their own promise vouchers, promising to:-

• be kind
• tidy my bedroom
• tell a joke to make someone smile
• remember my manners

All the children thought carefully about their promises and understood the importance of keeping them. They were excited to take them home to share with their families.

Year 1 have been looking at rules and why we need them.

We discussed that rules keep us safe and make sure that everyone is treated fairly.

The children shared their family rules. Finn told us that in his house they’re not allowed food and drinks upstairs and Delilah told us that in her house her bedroom must be tidy before she gets treats. We realised that all families don’t always have the same rules.

Gracie told us that “we have golden rules at school” and we all agreed that these rules can also be used in family and a sports clubs.

Then we listened to the story of Moses and how God gave him the 10 Commandments.

The commandments were the rules for all people to follow and live a good life by.

When we looked at the 10 commandments, the children could understand their importance in life today, even though they were from the Bible that was written a long, long time ago.

Year 1 then designed a poster of a rule which was most important to them. We decided that ‘be kind’ and ‘always try your best’, were the most important rules to follow.

In RE this term, Year 1 have already learnt about some celebrations that are familiar to them  – they now know that Christian’s celebrate Jesus’ birth on Christmas Day, and that we also celebrate this day in different ways.

This week we looked at two different festivals from different faiths.

The Hindu festival of Holi –

•   Holi is a festival celebrated by Hindus and it takes place in March.
•   It marks the start of spring and is sometimes known as the Festival of Colour. It celebrates good winning over evil.
•   Everyone chases each other with dry powder paint and coloured water.
•   People sing, dance and have fun together, no matter who they are.
•   Bonfires remind people that the winter days are coming to an end and warmth and light are coming.

The Muslim festival of Eid –

•   Eid is a festival celebrated by Muslims and it takes place at the end of Ramadan.
•   During Ramadan grown-ups do not eat or drink anything while the sun shines.
•   People put on new clothes and share meals with family and friends.
•   Homes are decorated, their sacred text, the Quran, is read and they go to the mosque to pray.
•   Some women and girls decorate their hands with mehndi patterns.

The children enjoyed discussing and sharing their knowledge of these festivals.  We spoke about that although we may not belong to the same faiths, we are still able to respect each other.

In RE this term, Year 1 have been thinking about what the word belonging means.

First, we discussed things we might belong to like schools, families and groups, such and swimming, rugby or Rainbows.

We also looked at the different symbols that represent these…some of us belong to different clubs, but we all belong to Christopher Pickering Primary School.

Benjamin said “at school we all have the same badge to show we belong”.

We found out that belonging is “a feeling of safety, support, acceptance and inclusion at being a member of a group”.

All the children agreed that belonging to a group made them feel special and happy.

We talked about some of  the different faiths that people can belong to… Christian, Muslim and Sikh and we looked at the symbols that represent them. We found out that different faiths all have different places of worship and different Gods that they pray to.

We discussed the Christian church, Aurelius shared that he goes to church with his family on a Sunday and they “sing songs and pray for people who are sick and hurt”, Gracie knew that “Bethlehem and baby Jesus are in the Bible”.

Then we  looked at different places of worship, the children thought the Muslim mosque looked like a very fancy castle, some recognised a Christian Church, “I went to a wedding at a church like that”, Delilah told us, and we discovered that Sikhs worshiped at a Gurdwara. 

We spoke about praying, the children knew that Mrs. Marson said a prayer at the end of assembly. Together we made up our own class prayer, about keeping our families and loved ones safe. We closed our eyes and put our hands together, the children understood that this was respectful. 

Next, we looked at clothing that different faiths wear, learning that Sikh boys can cover their heads with a Romala and that Muslim girls can wear a Hijab.

We looked at the similarities and differences between different faiths. The children discovered that both Christian and Sikh children have places of worship where they can go to pray to their own God.

Finally, the children understood that although people may have different beliefs and Gods that they worship, they may wear different clothes and pray in different ways in different places, but that everyone is special.