Does the Community of the Gurdwara Help Sikhs Lead Better Lives?

RE SCHEME OF WORK
KEY STAGE 2
Mid-term planning
Year 5: Unit 3 / Term: Spring 2 / Year:
Does the community of the Gurdwara help Sikhs lead better lives?
Key Concepts: Gurdwara; Community / Learning Objective: to explore how the Gurdwara influences the life and belief of Sikhs
Brief Background for teachers
The Gurdwara is, for most Sikhs living outside India, the main community centre. Meaning “doorway to the guru”, the Gurdwara is the place where the Sikh Scripture – the Guru Granth Sahib or Adi Granth – is kept. Since the end of the 19th/beginning of 20th century the sacred text is shown during the day under a canopy (like Indian royalty), attended by a member of the sangat (congregation) and fanned with a Chauri (a feather or horse/yak hair fan). In the morning the book is ceremoniously taken from its nightly resting place (Sach-khand) and carried to the canopy or Takht where it is installed under decorated covers. A similar ceremony accompanies its return to the sach-khand each evening. The raising up of the scripture, ensures that the congregation sitting on the floor are lower than the text. This platform and canopy form the central part of the worship hall in the Gurdwara; on entering worshippers bow with their heads to the floor and often make a donation of food or money, which can then be used in the Langar or kitchen where meals are prepared daily and offered free at anyone attending or visiting the Gurdwara. The kitchen is staffed by volunteers from the community and in many Gurdwaras there is a rota to ensure that everyone has an opportunity to serve (sewa or service is a key tenet of Sikh practice). While Sikh beliefs stress the equality of all people, in most Gurdwaras the custom of sitting men and women on different sides of the central aisle is observed with the intention of not offending visitors of a Hindu or Muslim background, and therefore in keeping with the practice in India and other parts of Asia. Weddings will take place in the presence of the Guru Granth Sahib, as will the naming ceremony for a child. Most Gurdwaras will also have facilities for the community, such as library or teaching room and is the focus for community events as well as religious ceremonies. Meeting together for worship and for reading the scriptures is clearly a central focus for the Gurdwara and in most western societies Gurdwaras have adapted their schedule to fit with the local environment; therefore, most weddings take place at the weekend and the main worship service of the week is usually on a Sunday. Often the words of the Ardas (prayers) and Kirtan (worship songs from the Guru Granth) are projected onto screens and translated in to the local language to enable all who attend to understand what is being said or sung. Most Gurdwaras are run by an elected committee rather than by trained clerics or religious leaders. Much of what happens in the Gurdwara is designed to reinforce Sikh identity and make the distinction between Sikhs and Hindus (particularly in India) though some of the traditions, like not pointing feet at the Guru Granth owe more to culture than to Sikh teaching. The 4 key tenets of Sikh belief can be seen in the Gurdwara: – Sewa, (Service) Vand Chhakna, (Sharing with those in need), Kirat Karna (Earning an honest living) and Nam Japna (Meditation). The Gurdwara is one of the places where the daily reading from the Golden Temple in Amritsar is displayed, which Sikhs use as their guidance for that day, so that Sikhs all over the world have the opportunity to meditate on the same passage. The Golden temple is the main Gurdwara and pictures of it are found in Gurdwaras around the world.
Expected Learning
Pupils will know the features that are common to Gurdwaras, particularly those in the UK and be able to identify similarities and differences between them and the Golden Temple in Amritsar. They will know how the Gurdwara is used and how this links to some of the key beliefs of the Sikh faith. They will understand how the community offers support and welcome and how Sikh traditions are kept alive by the Gurdwara. They will be able to compare the Gurdwara to other places of worship and evaluate the contribution of each to the lives of believers.
Developing:
Pupils will know some of the key features of the Gurdwara and be able to compare a Gurdwara in the UK with the Golden Temple in Amritsar. They will be able to identify the features that a Sikh might consider to be most important for building community / Excelling:
Pupils will have a really clear understanding of the way that the Gurdwara supports the key Sikh tenets and the role that this plays in the Sikh community. They will be able to evaluate the contribution of the Gurdwara to community cohesion and the elements that make the greatest difference to Sikhs.
Engage:
·  Explore the concept of community using a mind map – what would an ideal community look like?
·  Pupils could design their own ideal community – what rules would there be? What would people have to do? What would the aim of the community be? Would the community need a special place to meet? What would that place be like? Is it possible to be part of a community if there is no central place to meet?
Enquire & Explore: (AT1)
·  Visit a Gurdwara to see the life of the community in action, paying particular attention to Sikh teaching about the four main principles – Sewa, (Service) Vand Chhakna, (Sharing with those in need), Kirat Karna (Earning an honest living) and Nam Japna (Meditation) and how these might help Sikhs lead better lives. Look at passages from the Guru Granth Sahib to see if they encourage these principles.
·  Look at and watch video clips of the life of the Gurdwara in action, focusing on the Langar and the aspect of service.
·  Explore the Golden Temple at Amritsar and how that provides a central focus for Sikhs across the world. Explore the symbolism of the Golden Temple – the four entrances, etc. Discuss how that might help Sikhs to lead better lives.
·  Watch worship in the Gurdwara, and suggest how this might help Sikhs to live good lives.
Evaluate: (AT2 Impersonal)
·  Compare the Gurdwara with the synagogue, the mandir and the church. Which one promotes community more effectively? Describe the ideal community with reference to Sikh teaching. Write an advert or a leaflet about the life in the Gurdwara showing all the community features. What is it that makes the Gurdwara a community?
·  Does the community of the Gurdwara help people to live better lives? Does the community they live in help them to live better lives?
Reflect & Communicate: (AT2 Personal)
·  How does community affect their lives? What would they do to make their community better? Are they influenced by the community they live in? Are there things they have learned from the Gurdwara that make them want to change their community? What would those things be? Make some suggestions about the sorts of things they might do to make the school more of a community?
Evaluation:
·  What went well? / ·  Even better if:
Some suggested resources:
·  Visit to a Gurdwara
·  Videos of the worship using Ragis and other prayers
·  Information about the four principles – Sewa, Kirat Karna, Nam Japna and Vand Chhakna
·  Pictures of Golden Temple at Amritsar
·  www.reonline.org.uk
·  RE Today publications
·  BBC clips online
·  Guru Granth Sahib online
RE SCHEME OF WORK
CLASS RECORD SHEET
Assessment opportunities & activities
Year 5: Unit 3 / Term: Spring 1 / Year:
Does the community of the Gurdwara help Sikhs lead better lives?
Some pupils will have made more progress and will use a developing religious vocabulary to:
·  Describe the way the Gurdwara encourages Sikhs to live out the four principles of Sewa, Kirat Karna, Vand Chakkna and Nam Japna
·  Design a Gurdwara, linking the symbolism used to Sikh beliefs
·  Devise four good questions to ask a Sikh at the Gurdwara about their understanding of the links between the building and Sikh beliefs
·  Suggest the answers that a Sikh might give about the importance of the Gurdwara to the Sikh community
·  Write a letter to the leader of a community they are part of, suggesting improvements that would give the community more cohesion
Most pupils will be able to use an increasing religious vocabulary to:
·  Describe three things that Sikhs believe and how these beliefs are shown in the Gurdwara - linking pictures to texts perhaps
·  Make a link between the Gurdwara/Golden Temple and the way that Sikhs behave towards each other – annotating a picture for example
·  List four ways in which Sikhs show respect for the Gurdwara and the community
·  Describe a community they are part of, indicating how the group influences them
·  Plan some good questions to ask at the Gurdwara about the issues of community and behaviour
·  Design an ideal community, making links to Sikh teaching
Some pupils will have made less progress and be able to use religious words and phrases to:
·  Label a Gurdwara, identifying the features a Sikh would value the most
·  Compare two Gurdwaras, looking for similarities and differences
·  Choose the most important feature of a Gurdwara, suggesting a meaning that feature would have for a Sikh
·  Plan questions to ask at the Gurdwara about how Sikhs use the place and how it makes them feel
·  Suggest some features that a community should have to make it effective
·  Suggest some improvements that could be made to a community they are part of and what effect these changes would have on them and others