Fleetville Junior School’s First RE Day
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School No 046
Hertfordshire Development CentrePage 1 of 2/Good Practice - Case Study
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Fleetville Junior School’s First RE Day
FleetvilleJuniorSchool’s First RE Day
Representatives from all six major religions participated in a whole school RE Day held at FleetvilleJuniorSchool in St Albans last month.
The RE Day consisted of each year group participating in activities and meeting visitors from the religions studied.
Year 3 who are studying Islam this year, met a Muslim man from the local community who spoke to them about how Islam affects his everyday life. Some local Muslim ladies also spent time talking about and demonstrating a variety of rituals connected with their faith. The year group also heard some Bengali songs sung by the mother of one of the children and made prayer mats.
Year 4 had a visit from a Sikh from the Watford Gurdwara, met a recently ordained Christian minister. They also made rangoli patterns – a traditional Sikh (and Hindu) activity.
Year 5 met a Rabbi from the local synagogue, made traditional Jewish bread called Challah, drew stained glass windows of a variety of candles and participated in a music workshop of Jewish music from around the world.
Year 6 who are studying Hinduism and Buddhism as well as Christianity, met a Buddhist, made origami lotus flowers (a symbol of Buddhism) and learnt Hindu dance moves in a workshop.
Each year group sang Christian Gospel songs and wrote a poem about God.
The afternoon started with each group listening to a religious story which was followed by a whole school assembly where each year group demonstrated what they had learnt or participated in on the day. The highlight by far was when all 90 year 6 children performed the Hindu dance they had learnt that morning!
The usual timetable was abandoned for that day and staff who had a specific knowledge of a religion where deployed where they were most useful.
The school was a buzz of activity and despite a minor setback of having to complete with the noise of drills from a major refurbishment programme within the school, the children had a great time.
“The day took a long time to organise,” said Nina Leigh, RE Coordinator for Fleetville, “but it was worth it in the end. It was an ideal opportunity for the children to learn about their designated religion in greater detail, and served a good platform for the rest of the school to reinforce the work they have studied in past years.”
Most of the visitors came in for free and the rest were funded by the RE budget and contributions from the children.
RE daywas summed up by a quote from a child: “It was great fun, I especially enjoyed participating in the Hindu Dancing.”
Hertfordshire Development CentrePage 1 of 2/Good Practice - Case Study
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