Teaching Material
STUDY UNIT
/Special People
/Upper Key Stage 2
BUDDHISM
AT1 / Stories and beliefs about religious leaders.Learning
Objective 1 / The Going Forth (i.e. when he left the palace and set off on his search for the answers to the question of suffering) and his enlightenment after six years of searching of the Buddha are the key events which led to the development of Buddhism. The enlightenment resulted in the teachings of the Buddha, summarised in the Four Noble Truths. Pupils can discuss the Buddhist analysis of suffering and the answer it offers.
The Buddha is not a god but rather an enlightened being: that is, one who is awake and all-knowing. Some Buddhists, however, would believe that the Buddha can help and protect them. Others would say that the Buddha has gone and that his teaching (the Dhamma) and the Buddhist community ( the Sangha) remain to give inspiration and guidance.
You can focus on the Buddha’s teaching, including the Five Precepts for lay practitioners. Some of the best known stories are his meetings with Kisagotami and Angulimala. Angulimala’s story is in The Barefoot Book of Buddhist Tales and Kisagotami’s is in Buddhist Story and Symbol by Jenny Rose, both in the IEC library.
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/ Portrayals of religious leaders.Learning
Objective 2 / Buddharupas (images of the Buddha) are designed to reflect his wisdom and compassion. The expression and composure show his tranquillity and enlightenment. There is a great deal of symbolism: the long ears, representing the wealth he abandoned; the shape of the head, representing his great wisdom; the ‘eye’ representing his insight into the true nature of all things; the hand position (mudra); his pose in meditation; his seat on a lotus flower (representing enlightenment) etc.
Images are designed to help Buddhists focus on their own search for wisdom and tranquillity through their own practice of meditation and a moral life.
Theravadan images (from ‘southern Buddhism’ – Thailand, Burma etc) are often made from one material – gold, alabaster etc; portrayals from Mahayana Buddhism (Tibet, for example) are often brightly coloured with many attendants etc.
AT2a / Explore beliefs and responses.
Learning
Objective 3 / Pupils can be asked the question: ‘What did these great religious teachers give to the world?’ They can give their own responses to the key teachings and the events in the life of the Buddha. How far do pupils agree or disagree with what the Buddha said? Do they agree that wisdom and tranquillity are the main qualities to be nurtured?
STUDY UNIT
/Special People
/Upper Key Stage 2
CHRISTIANITY
AT1 / Stories and beliefs about religious leaders.Learning
Objective 1 / The Baptism of Jesus (Matthew, chapter 3, verses13-17, Mark, chapter 1, verses 9-11, Luke, chapter 3, verses 21-22) is the key event in setting Jesus on his work. Pupils can read the story in the original texts and compare them. One of the key differences they can note is that in Matthew God’s voice seems to be heard by everyone present whereas in Mark and Luke it seems to be Jesus who is told that he is God’s son. Talk with children about ‘the voice of God’. Is this something people hear within themselves? Are there other examples of people hearing the voice of God? Explore the symbolism of the dove. What do pupils understand by the Holy Spirit? Discuss the idea of sin and its meaning. Talk about repentance and forgiveness and the symbolism of the river/water. Christians believe that Jesus is the son of God who can bring about salvation for all who believe in him. What do pupils understand by this? Pupils can explore key events – preaching, a healing miracle, contacts with different people – in Jesus’ life. Mark’s Gospel provides a series of manageable cameos for pupils to study e.g. in Mark chapter 1, verses 21 – 45, there are five short events described which pupils could study in groups and then discuss. What does each of them say about Jesus?
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/ Portrayals of religious leaders.Learning
Objective 2 / There are hundreds of thousands of images of Jesus – partly because of the Christian belief in the incarnation. Jesus is believed to be both God and man – and portraits of him express this belief. In groups pupils can look at a wide range of images, including from different cultures. How do artists show his humanity/divinity? Use hymns and songs the children know to talk about Jesus – exploring their meaning and the beliefs they put forward.
The IEC library has a copy of ‘Jesus through art’, by Margaret Cooling, providing many images of Jesus and ideas for classroom practice.
AT2a / Explore beliefs and responses.
Learning
Objective 3 / Pupils can be asked the question: ‘What did these great religious teachers give to the world?’ They can give their own responses to the key teachings and the events in the life Jesus. What sort of person was he and how did he live? How do pupils respond to the Christian belief that he is the son of God? If possible, give pupils the opportunity to discuss beliefs and the reasons for beliefs with a practising Christian, such as the Christian Faith Tutor at the IEC.
STUDY UNIT
/Special People
/Upper Key Stage 2
HINDU DHARMA
AT1 / Stories and beliefs about religious leaders.Learning
Objective 1 / Krishna is an avatar – one of the incarnations of the God, Vishnu, who came to earth to conquer evil.
There is no one event which began Krishna’s work – his whole life is that of an avatar. Krishna was born to overcome the evil of Kansa. There are many stories about his childhood and his life as a cowherd with his friend Radha which children will enjoy. He is particularly associated with the festival of Holi. Another aspect of Krishna is his teachings which are contained in the Bhagavad Gita where he takes on the role of Arjuna's charioteer. Most of this is too difficult for children but there are comic book and video versions of the Gita which are more accessible.
See Stories from Hindu Dharma, published by the IEC, for a selection of stories about Krishna.
AT1
/ Portrayals of religious leaders.Learning
Objective 2 / There are many images of Krishna, as a child, as a cowherd and as the divine avatar. He is often portrayed with a flute and accompanied by Radha. Pupils can explore the portrayals, including their colour, jewellery, symbols, background, and the ways in which Krishna is shown to be special. A wide range of posters featuring Krishna is available from the IEC.
Bhajans – hymns praising Krishna – are very popular among Hindus. Recordings of them can be borrowed from the IEC.
AT2a / Explore beliefs and responses.
Learning
Objective 3 / Pupils can be asked the question: ‘What did these great religious teachers give to the world?’ They can give their own responses to the key teachings and the events in the life of Krishna, including surviving attempts to kill him as a child. Pupils can discuss the overcoming of evil by good – a theme found throughout religions (and a good deal of popular film and story).
STUDY UNIT
/Special People
/Upper Key Stage 2
ISLAM
AT1 / Stories and beliefs about religious leaders.Learning
Objective 1 / The key event in Prophet Muhammad’s life was the first revelation of the Qur’an to him by the Angel Jibril. He is the ‘seal of the prophets’, believed by Muslims to be the final prophet and messenger of Allah. He is believed by Muslims to have lived according to the tenets of the Qur’an and is a role model for all human’s religious, spiritual and moral life. The other prophets of Islam include Ibrahim, Musa and Isa – Abraham and Moses are Patriarchs in Judaism and Jesus is the Son of God in Christianity. All are believed by adherents of those faiths to reveal God to humankind.
Stories about the life of Prophet Muhammad can be found in Stories of the Prophets of Islam, volumes 8-10).
AT1
/ Portrayals of religious leaders.Learning
Objective 2 / Representations of the Prophet are discouraged in Islam. Some exist, but none has facial features. This is a mark of respect for the Prophet – as is the use of PBUH ‘Peace and blessings upon him’, after his name, or the names of the other prophets. There are many beautiful, intricate and clever representations of Muslim concepts and teachings through calligraphy. These can be shared with children (See the Study Unit box in the IEC library for examples.) Islam uses abstract representations to convey the sacred and divine – creating any image or figure is forbidden because it is seen as trying to replicate the creative power which Allah alone possesses. Muhammad also wanted to rid Makkah of idol worship and therefore any representation was banned. All of this reinforces the strong monotheism of Islam.
There are poems praising Prophet Mohammed PBUH (audio tapes can be borrowed from the IEC).
AT2a / Explore beliefs and responses.
Learning
Objective 3 / Pupils can be asked the question: ‘What did these great religious teachers give to the world?’ They can give their own responses to the key teachings and the events in the life of Muhammad. See the Study Unit box in the IEC library for a thinking skills exercise (fortune line) on the life of Muhammad.
STUDY UNIT
/Special People
/Upper Key Stage 2
JUDAISM
AT1 / Stories and beliefs about religious leaders.Learning
Objective 1 / The covenant – or promise – that God made with Abram is recorded in Genesis chapter 12. God told Abram that he would lead him to a country and that he would become the father of a great nation. God promised that he would bless Abram and Abram worshipped God. Abram is a patriarch – or father – of his people and the concept of ‘covenant’ is fundamental in Biblical teachings. A number of events in his life could be explored: his cowardly behaviour in pretending that Sarai was his sister (Genesis, chapter 12, verses 10-20); the story of Hagar and Sarai (Genesis 16, 1-16); God giving him a new name (Genesis 17, 1-27); the birth of Isaac (Genesis 21, 1-13) the ‘sacrifice of Isaac (Genesis 22, 1-18).
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/ Portrayals of religious leaders.Learning
Objective 2 / Use paintings and Bible illustrations to explore the artists’ representations of Abraham.
The story of the near sacrifice of Isaac has inspired many western artists, because it pre-figures the sacrifice of Jesus for Christians.
AT2a / Explore beliefs and responses.
Learning
Objective 3 / Pupils can be asked the question: ‘What did these great religious teachers give to the world?’ They can give their own responses to the key teachings and the events in the life of Abraham – and some of them are very controversial. Abram didn’t always behave well and yet his faith in God secured his place in the religious history of the Jews. The story of Isaac is worth exploring is depth – bearing in mind that Abraham lived at a time when human sacrifice was not uncommon. There are key concepts to explore here - covenant; divinely given land; revelation from God; new names; sacrifice etc. With some pupils it would be appropriate to explore the stories of the two sons, Isaac and Ishmael, and God’s promises about both of them. Consider with pupils how this related to the situation in the Middle East today.
STUDY UNIT
/Special People
/Upper Key Stage 2
SIKH DHARAM
AT1 / Stories and beliefs about religious leaders.Learning
Objective 1 / The key event in the life of Guru Nanak was his enlightenment experience. He disappeared in the river where he had been bathing and emerged three days later saying that he had been transported to the court of God. He said that God had revealed to him the words Sikhs know as the Mool Mantar – ‘There is one God, truth is his name…’ and declaring that there are no fundamental differences between groups of people – all are children of the one true God. There are issues to explore here about divine revelation and the existence of God, as well as Guru Nanak’s teaching that religion is a matter of the heart, not of labels and rituals.
‘Guru’ or teacher is the name given to the ten human Gurus and the sacred book of the Sikhs, the Guru Granth Sahib. All are believed to possess the same divine spark and are of equal importance to Sikhs.
There are many stories about Guru Nanak and his dealings with people. Many focus on strong moral and religious teachings and are worth discussing with pupils. See Sikh Stories published by the IEC; and Shared Stories Shared Values for ways to exploring stories and values through drama techniques.
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Objective 2 /
Pictures of the Gurus are readily available and to be found in Gurdwaras and Sikh homes. Guru Nanak images are particularly popular and pupils may well respond very positively to the ways in which artists represent him. He is shown as an old, white bearded man, wearing a turban, with prayer beads, often with his hand raised in blessing. It is important to remind pupils that Sikhism is strictly monotheistic and there is no worship of the Gurus or pictures of them. Sometimes there is an Ik Onkar sign on his foot (Panjabi for the first words of the Mool Mantar – there is one God) or another symbol to show that he is a divinely inspired being. There are some particularly effective paintings by Sobha Singh, a Sikh artist, reproduced in Guru Nanak by Eleanor Nesbit and Gopinder Kaur (available at the IEC). Discuss with pupils the artists’ own beliefs and attitudes towards Guru Nanak.
The stories of Guru Nanak’s life are found in the Janam Sakhis. English versions of these stories can be found in Bed Time Stories by the Sikh Missionary Society (in the IEC library).
AT2a / Explore beliefs and responses.
Learning
Objective 3 / Pupils can be asked the question: ‘What did these great religious teachers give to the world?’ They can give their own responses to the key teachings and the events in the life of Guru Nanak including his strong monotheism, his emphasis on spiritual and religious devotion, his teachings on equality and moral values.
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