Learning about the Catholic Faith
At St Mary’s we value the importance of prayer to enable the children to develop their growing and maturing relationship with God. We take part in Collective Worship, whether this be in groups, classes, whole school or Parish; we aim to provide an opportunity for all our children to grow spiritually in Jesus’s love. The Catholic Faith is witnessed in the life of the school and in everything we do. Prayer is developed all around school, as well as through our daily acts of worship, each half term focusing on a different Gospel value. We value the importance of staff and children having time to reflect on their daily lives as well as growing in their faith and spiritual maturity.
These are interpreted by the children as Talk and Pray.
We talk together as a word of God’s community.
We pray together as a worship community.
We learn about the word of God during our Religious Education (RE) lessons and during Prayer and Worship sessions. We do this through the study of scripture and developing pupils understanding of God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit. At St Mary's our approach is very creative, we use drama, art and music to learn about the Catholic faith and develop our relationship with God. We also place a strong emphasis on developing socially, morally and emotionally. We reflect on what we have learnt and consider what this means to us in our daily lives and how we behave as a result of our beliefs - this is called Learning from Religion.
The Catholic Faith at St Mary's permeates every aspect of school life. We have excellent relationships with our families and across the wider community. The Gospel values and SMSC (Spiritual, Moral, Social, Cultural) development at the core of our curriculum, vision and mission statement.
What is SMSC?
Spiritual, Moral, Social and Cultural Education is about educating and developing pupils understanding of who they are as individuals, their purpose in life and their role in the community both now and in the future.
Spiritual Development
This focuses on what pupils believe and what Christians believe. It encourages them to discuss the meaning and purpose of life and engage in 'Big Questions'.
Moral Development
Based on what pupils believe they are asked to consider the difference between making right and wrong choices. They are encouraged to discuss issues and develop their understanding of the principles society live by. They are also asked to consider - 'What would Jesus do?'
Social Development
Considering their spirituality and morality pupils consider their relationships with others and reflect on their own behaviors. Pupils learn about community and develop their sense of belonging.
Cultural Development
We look at the the traditions of the Catholic faith and the local community. Pupils learn about the customs and practices of the Catholic Church as well as those in their local community. They look at the history of how cultural develops and influences their own and others' lives. Pupils learn that it is our culture that gives expression to a community's spirituality, morality and social values.
Some of the beautiful RE and Worship we have done so far this year, can be seen in the RE & Worship at St Mary's file below.
