Developing Spirituality in our school
Spiritual development is closely linked to our school vision and provides children with opportunities to grow and reflect, thinking about:
- Themselves (LOOKING IN)
- Their relationship with others (LOOKING OUT)
- God and Jesus’s teachings (LOOKING UP)
LOOKING IN at Bishop’s Primary means:
- Reflecting on our growth from seed to tree
- Awareness of their own feelings and being able to reflect
- Awareness of how unique they are and a happiness about who they are
- Being thankful for the things they have and the person they are
- Exploration of personal faith
LOOKING OUT at Bishop’s Primary means:
- Reflecting on how the tree supports the birds
- Showing empathy and understanding in relation to injustice and inequality
- To love and be loved
- To be more and make a difference
- To show inclusivity
LOOKING UP at Bishop’s Primary means:
- Reflecting on how God is part of the seed, tree and birds as well as our growth
- Encountering and experiencing God
- Opportunities for prayer and reflection
- Making sense of the world
- Being open to more
Why is spirituality important?
The Church of England’s Vision for Education states a core desire of ‘life in all its fullness’. At Bishop’s Primary School we think it is essential that we educate and develop the whole child ensuring social, moral, spiritual and cultural development. We explore Spirituality by providing our children with opportunities to be still and reflect. Spirituality enables children at Bishop’s Primary school to be happy, healthy and fulfilled.
Our children encounter a wide range of opportunities to develop their spirituality throughout their time with us. These include, but are not limited to:
- A daily act of Collective Worship
- Reflection tasks linked to Collective Worship
- Children leading in daily prayer
- Singing and a school choir
- Reflection areas throughout school to encourage children to quietly reflect and pray throughout the day
- Educational visits to places of worship
- Educational visits to the Christmas Journey and Easter Journey to help children reflect and think more deeply about these bible stories
- School values, rewards and recognition
- Displays around school are thought-provoking and encourage children to be reflective
- Our restorative behaviour policy allows opportunities for children to reflect on the choices they make, understand that sometimes we will make mistakes and that we can learn from these
- A range of interventions to support regulation and reflection
- We recognise that children learn better and are happier in school if their emotional needs are met so we employ a Lead Thrive Practitioner and ELSA
- Looking after our grounds and animals by being part of our garden gang or during time at Forest School
- Each year group participates in Forest School promoting holistic development by improving children’s physical, emotional, social and cognitive skills in a natural, child-led environment
- Annual participation in the NATRE Spirited Arts Competition
- Strong links with Beyond Youth who support with Collective Worship and Prayer Spaces where children experience various spiritual activities
- Strong links with the community and church, including the Parish Priest and Pioneer Minister regularly attending and leading Collective Worship
- Over their time at Bishop’s children will take part in regular, short acts of spirituality so they are able to understand what they find spiritual and develop their own personal spirituality e.g. nature walks, colouring, music, meditation, prayer
Spirituality in Our Curriculum
Our ambitious enquiry curriculum ensures that children are exposed to a wide variety of spiritual experiences and deep, meaningful questions. Children’s spiritual development is shown by their:
- Beliefs, religious or otherwise, which inform their perspective on life and the decisions they make
- The respect they show for different people’s values and feelings
- Sense of enjoyment and wonder in learning about themselves, others and the world around them
- Use of imagination and creativity in their learning
- Confidence to reflect on their experiences
Impact of Spirituality
In developing Spirituality our children realise how wonderful they are and realise their own potential. They are self-aware and show empathy towards others in school and in our community. Our children are curious, open-minded and can explore things in appropriate ways. They can express and understand feelings and have a strong moral sense of right and wrong. Although able to enjoy and embrace quiet and stillness, they possess an active imagination.
Spirituality helps our children to grow and thrive, just as the mustard seed grows into the tree, so they are able to support others just like the birds who come to perch in the tree’s branches.