Sprituality

Sprituality

Spirituality at Nyewood CE Junior school

The Church of England's Vision for Education states that children will experience ‘life in all its fullness’ (John 10:10). At Nyewood, we believe that we need to give all our children the chance to allow them to grow in God’s love.

We believe that each of us is unique and has the potential for a journey towards a relationship with God, a living God who loves and cares for us both as individuals and as a community.

Knowing that we are loved by God gives us confidence in who we are in him and hope for the future; it empowers us to reach out to others and make a difference in the world.

“I know the plans I have for you,” says the Lord, “plans to give you hope and a future.” (Jeremiah 29:11)

Spirituality enables our children to be happy, flourish, succeed and live life in all its fullness.

The four elements of Spirituality

We believe that spirituality explores our relationships and connections. These are relationships with:

·      Ourselves
·      Others
·      The World
·      Beyond

Nurturing and developing Spirituality
Our children encounter a range of opportunities to develop their own spiritual journey. These opportunities are raised throughout the curriculum in order to educate the whole child. We aim to teach the children to reflect on and consider their own actions in a number of different ways:

Look Up (Head)
Look up with expressions of praise and thanksgiving, to the one who created you.

Reflect on our place in the world and acknowledge that we were all created to be special.

Windows: giving children opportunities to become aware of the world in new ways; to wonder about life’s ‘WOWs’ (things that are amazing) and ‘OWs’ (things that bring us up short).

Look In (Heart)
Look in to reflect on our own feelings, learning and experiences.

Learn from our mistakes and be proud of what we have achieved.

Mirrors: giving children opportunities to reflect on their experiences; to meditate on life’s big questions and to consider some possible answers.

In this, children are learning from life by exploring their own insights and perspectives, and those of others.

Look Out (Hands)
Look out to the world around you in new ways.

Respond to the feelings and situations of others and put our school values into action.

Open doors: giving children opportunities to make choices; to do something creative as a means of expressing, applying and further developing their thoughts and convictions.

In this, children are learning to live by putting into action what they are coming to believe and value.

Spirituality in Collective Worship

Collective Worship is at the heart of Nyewood CE Junior School. It provides the opportunity for our school community to share experiences, ideas and understanding. It is the context in which the language of spirituality, which we use as a school, is regularly and explicitly shared.

Spirituality in Religious Education

The Church of England’s Statement of Entitlement outlines the aims and expectations for Religious Education in Church of England Schools and guides this school’s approach to RE and spirituality.

Learning activities in RE provide for the needs of all pupils, offering a safe space to explore their own religious, spiritual and/or philosophical ways of seeing, living and thinking, believing and belonging. They provide opportunities to engage in meaningful and informed dialogue with those of all religions and worldviews.

Spirituality within the Curriculum

Subject	Opportunities
PE	By delighting in movement, particularly when pupils are able to show spontaneity. By taking part in activities such as dance, games and gymnastics which help pupils to become more focused, connected and creative. By being aware of one’s own strengths and limitations.
Computing	By wondering at the power of the digital age e.g. use of the internet and social media. By understanding the advantages and limitations of ICT. By using the internet as a gateway to big life issues.
Design and Technology	By enjoying and celebrating personal creativity. By reviewing and evaluating created things.
Music	By allowing pupils to show their delight and curiosity in creating their own sounds. By making links between their learning in literacy (or other curriculum area) with music being played as background. By considering how music makes one feel and can ‘move us’ deeply.
Art and Design	By providing plenty of rich opportunities for pupils to explore both the spiritual dimension and natural phenomena e.g. Northern Lights.

	By exploring different artists’ interpretations of a key figure or event and asking what the artist was trying to convey. By allowing pupils to show what they know through their own expression of big ideas about life e.g. morality; ethical issues. By promoting the process of ‘reviewing and evaluating.
PSHE/RSHE	By developing awareness of and responding to others’ needs and wants. By exploring meaning and purpose for individuals and society. By developing resilience and inner strength. By valuing self as unique in the image of God. By cherishing relationships.
RE	By experiencing wonder and joy through learning about and from stories, celebrations, rituals and different expressions of religion and worldviews. By asking and responding to questions of meaning and purpose. By considering questions about God and evaluating truth claims. By exploring spiritual practices such as worship and prayer, and considering the impact of these on believers as well as any relevance to their own life.
Geography	By using Google maps and asking pupils to imagine what it might be like to live in different parts of the world. By making links with history when exploring the environment and speculating on why the landscape is as it is. By comparing their lives with pupils living in other countries or other parts of the UK such as Year 3 comparing Bognor and Chichester.
History	By considering how things would be different if the course of events had been different and witnessing first hand, the places where history occurred e.g. Year 4 visit to Battle Abbey. By looking at local history and investigating the reasons why there is a landmark, building or museum. By speculating about how we mark important events from history and the people who shaped them.
MFL	By exploring the beauty of languages from around the world. By exploring the way language is constructed.
Science	By demonstrating openness to the fact that some answers cannot be provided by Science. By creating opportunities for pupils to ask questions about how living things rely on and contribute to their environment.

English

In responding to a poem, story or text; pupils can be asked ‘I wonder what you think happens next?’ ‘How would you feel if you were the person in the story?’ ‘Where have you met these ideas before?’

By appreciating the beauty of language.

In drama through allowing for insight, self-expression and the chance to walk in someone else’s shoes

Maths

By making connections between pupils’ numeracy skills and real life; for example, pie charts could compare how a child in Africa spends their day with how children in the UK spend their time.

By considering pattern, order, symmetry and scale both man made and in the natural world.

By appreciating the beauty of shape and space.

Spiritual development occurs in many ways. We aim to ensure that children:

Participate in daily reflection time.
Will be provided with many opportunities for creativity and imagination.
Will be provided with purposeful and regular opportunities for prayer. This can take many forms, but should include being thankful and allow the children an opportunity to open themselves up to God.
Will have regular opportunities to explore, express and share feelings.
Will see positive relationships modelled around school. The importance of relationships will be reaffirmed to them. This will include clear exploration of how we talk to and relate to each other.
Have opportunities to express awe and wonder, appreciate beauty in all its forms and appreciate connections and unity in the world.
Will be encouraged to reflect on mistakes and say sorry, where appropriate.
Will be encouraged to show resilience, respect and honesty and express these in practical ways.
Have opportunities to explore ‘Big Questions’, particularly through the RE curriculum.

Spirituality in daily school life

At Nyewood CE Junior School we view spiritual growth as becoming more and more aware of one’s natural, innate spirituality. These opportunities happen throughout each and every day as children deal with delight, disappointment and the chance to be present with themselves.

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