RE curriculum 2025-26

The RE department at De La Salle School is committed to recognizing, valuing and educating every individual in their care as special and unique, created in God’s own image and likeness. RE is at the heart of our Lasallian school, and provides a safe environment and the sacred space in which students can explore questions of ultimate meaning.

The RE department at De La Salle School aims to provide outstanding teaching and learning which is academically rigorous across all key stages whilst being consistent in its response to the needs of our students and staff. The RE department delivers and fosters positive relationships rooted in Gospel values and strives for each student in its care to leave the school with an extensive knowledge of the Bible and the teachings of the Church, with a firm understanding that they are all intrinsically good, a loved child of God, and to help them discern their place in the world.

One of De La Salle’s greatest message to his teachers was to perform miracles by touching the hearts of those entrusted to your care. To that end, the RE department is called to be transformative whilst bringing meaning and hope into the lives of our young people where they are prepared to take risks in relation to their own learning and have the ability to be reflective and make informed decisions.

Rationale

Our curriculum intent for KS3 Religious Education at De la Salle is to provide a transformative learning experience through the six branches and four lenses of the Religious Education Directory 2023.

Through the lenses of the Word, Belief, Celebration, and Life, we guide students to engage with the Word of God, develop a strong foundation in core beliefs, appreciate the richness of Catholic celebrations including sacraments, and apply their faith to daily life.  

We aim to deepen students' understanding of the Catholic faith at KS3 by exploring the branches of:

• Creation and Covenant
• Prophecy and Promise
• Galilee to Jerusalem
• Dessert to Garden
• To the ends of the Earth
• Dialogue and Encounter.

By incorporating these branches and lenses progressively into our curriculum from Year 7 to Year 9, we seek to foster a comprehensive and meaningful religious education that empowers students to embrace their faith, live as disciples of Christ and make a positive impact in the world.

 

At KS4 at De La Salle, Religious Education is about the development of an open-ended, ‘thinking’ approach to the Catholic tradition, rooted in the core values of our Lasallian heritage.

Religious Education aims to develop students’ abilities in describing, explaining, analyzing and evaluating whilst exploring the key principles of inclusion, faith and challenge.

Religious Education also helps to enable students to develop respect for others and offers opportunities for personal reflection and spiritual development

All students are required to study the Edexcel A specification, with Roman Catholic Christianity as the main religion and Judaism as the second religion:

 

• Area of Study 1 – Roman Catholic Christianity Content overview: • Beliefs and Teachings • Practices • Sources of Wisdom and Authority • Forms of Expression and Ways of Life
• Area of Study 2 – Judaism Content overview: • Beliefs and Teachings • Practices
• Area of Study 3 – Philosophy and Ethics Roman Catholic Content overview: • Arguments for the Existence of God • Religious Teachings on Relationships.