Celebrating cultural diversity how can this be done in the classroom?

Objectives Set high expectations which inspire, motivate and challenge pupils; Promote good progress and outcomes by pupils; Demonstrate good subject and curriculum knowledge ; Adapt teaching to respond to the strengths and needs of all pupils; Manage behaviour effectively to ensure a good and safe learning environment. Teachers’ Standards:

What is the purpose of RE? Religious education is about developing and supporting one’s own beliefs and values and enquiring into those of others In doing this we gain a greater understanding of ourselves and the world we live in As a result we make more rational choices and cone to recognise how and why others choose to live in ways different from our own Therefore the subject makes a significant contribution to negotiating our collective futures and dispelling ignorance Finally, therefore, democratic forms of education should value the subject as a way of critically reflecting on our own and others’ worldviews in relation to the development of mankind Erricker and Bellchambers (2011)

Creative activities, the decline of which concerned many witnesses to the Review, raise the quality and capacity of children’s thinking, perseverance and problem-solving abilities, as well as fuelling their imaginations. Children are very competent and capable learners – given the right linguistic and social environment. We are now better informed than ever as to what that environment should contain. Cambridge Primary Review (2009) To be able to achieve the above it can be argued that teachers need to be creative in their approach to teaching of RE

What Are We Aiming For? “High quality lessons that are appropriately challenging, achieve the main aims and purposes and are FUN!” What are we aiming for?

Active learning

An old Chinese proverb states: Tell me and I’ll forget. Show me and I may not remember. Involve me and I’ll understand. Some claim this is of native American origin.

Our society today needs young people who are flexible, creative, and proactive – young people who can solve problems, make decisions, think critically, communicate ideas effectively and work efficiently within teams and groups. The ‘knowing of knowledge’ is no longer enough to succeed in the increasingly complex, fluid, and rapidly evolving world in which we live. In order to optimise life-long learning and potential success it is now widely accepted that young people need to have opportunities to develop personal capabilities and effective thinking skills as part of their well-rounded education.

It is important to remember that with RE in particular that children will need to find out answers to their own questions themselves and you as a teacher will facilitate this. Some of those answers may only be through good subject knowledge as teachers and pupils.

What else needs to be considered? Differentiation;  By task  By outcome  By scaffolding and sequencing  By adult support  By recording  By modelling REMEMBER Differentiation is not just about lower ability children but also;  More able  EAL  Dyslexia  Dyspraxia

Name as many religious festivals and celebrations as you can?

The more well known celebrations are; Christmas Easter Lent Holi Diwali Ramadan Eid-ul-adha Hanukkah Passover Yom Kippur Nirvana Wesak Vaisakhi Birthday of Guru Nanak

Good subject knowledge is really important for children to handle complex issues in a meaningful way and to make it relevant to children. This can be very effective when learning about religions through celebrations; Religious events and cultural celebrations form an important part of societies throughout the world. They are key to social development and understanding, for celebrating diversity, as well as finding common ground. Davies (2014)

Festivals give; Sense of ownership Something to believe in and share Helps make sense of the world Lets us experience other cultures Broaden knowledge Learn to empathise and form relationships This is key to good SMCS and then relates to the British values and modern Britain agenda at present.

Remember That all lessons we plan for RE must be designed with the needs of our children in mind. Our lessons must be inclusive and reflect the diversity of the children we teach.

You are now going to plan some lessons to help celebrate different religious festivals. This is going to be done on a carousel basis so at the end of this session you will have 5 different lesson plans to feed back to the rest of the group. On each table you have a series of resources that will help in your lesson planning. Remember that all learning needs to be relevant. Remember SMSC Differentiation Engaging the learners

Table 1 – Nativity Nativity puppets Ideas book on Christmas Story book

Table 2 – Diwali Rama and Sita Diwali set Story book Information sheet

Table 3 – Hanukkah Story book Soft synagogue Hanukkah set Dreidel Game sheets Hanukkah fact sheet

Table 4 – Easter Soft puppet Jesus Story book Fact sheet

Table 5 – Vaisakhi Books 5 k’s box Work sheets

Table 6 – Hajj Books Worksheets Remember you Muslims do not draw Allah/God or the Holy people.

Essential Reading Webster, M. (2010) Creative Approaches to Teaching Primary R. London: Person Education Limited Chapters 5,9&10 Davies, A. (2014) Using Festivals to Inspire and Engage Young Children. Abingdon: Routledge Chapters; introduction and 13

Directed Tasks Choose one learning strategy and devise an activity to try out in the classroom. Upload your plan to your Blogfolio. Reflect on your learning and complete your Blogfolio