Ivington CofE Primary and Pre-school
Reaching together... stand firm in your faith, be courageous and strong - 1 Corinthians 16:13
Respect
Peace
Trust
Forgiveness
Patience
Courage
Fairness
Friendship
Spiritual Thinking
Spiritual Development
at Ivington CE Primary and Pre-school
At Ivington CE Primary and Pre-school we strongly believe that children are more likely to reach their potential if they are happy, have fun, feel nurtured and grow from a foundation of strong Christian values. Our aim is to equip children for life. As children develop their understanding of spirituality and values, they become more secure and happy with who they are and what they believe, confident enough to make mistakes and learn from them, moving on in their spiritual learning and academic growth. We are a highly inclusive school and welcome children from all faiths, cultures and any background.
Our children, governors and staff have been involved in writing our definition of spirituality.
Spirituality is awareness that there is something greater than we are. It is a connection with the wonder and energy of life, affecting the human spirit or soul. It is how we understand ourselves and our place in the world, living with meaning and purpose. Spirituality is evident in all that we do at Ivington and the natural instinct to explore and find meaning is nurtured, underpinned by our Christian values, to think theologically and explore ultimate questions.
We believe that there are four main elements: self; others; transcendence and beauty.
SELF
Awareness of feelings; ability to reflect and express
Awareness of our uniqueness; happiness with who we are
Gratitude for the things we have and the person we are
Exploration of personal faith
Development of imagination and creativity
OTHERS
Empathy and understanding; respect, tolerance
To love and be loved (loving your neighbour)
Making a difference; duty
TRANSCENDENCE (Beyond)
Encountering/experiencing God (having a sense of what lies beyond the material\physical)
Ability to formulate and discuss the ‘Big Questions’ (e.g. about life, death, suffering, nature of God)
Opportunities for prayer, connecting with God
Making sense of the world
BEAUTY
Developing a sense of awe and wonder
Enjoying the miracles of everyday life
Taking time for what really matters
Appreciating beauty in art, music, nature
An appreciation of differences, different cultures and religions
Spirituality runs through our daily lives at Ivington C.E. Primary School | |
A sense of self-worth and the worth of others |
Shared celebration CW, display boards, high expectations, self/peer marking, celebrating birthdays, Christian values of tolerance, love and respect, encourage children to accept when things go wrong and make a mends. |
A sense of others as feeling, thinking people |
Relationships, resolving conflicts, mutual respect, caring for each other – ‘Buddies’, circle time, worship, Christian values, staff modelling, global links, understanding of different cultures and religion ( Links with Tanzania) |
A sense of choice, decision making and personal responsibility |
Group work, School Council, buddy system, prefects, sports captains, digital leaders, self- evaluation |
A sense of life’s joys and achievements |
Weekly celebration, squash and biscuits with the head teacher, star of the week board, newsletter, golden tickets, sticker books, class reward systems, golden time, collective worship |
A sense of there being more to life than meets the eye |
Reflections, stories during CW, Christian symbols, breaking the bread, RE lessons, relationships |
A sense of the mystery of life |
Curriculum, RE, reflection corners, nature area, prayer space, visits to sacred places, multicultural visits |
A sense of enquiry and open mindedness |
RE lessons, circle times, show and tell, Christian values of tolerance and respect, British values, themed days/weeks |
A sense of disappointment and failure, suffering and pain |
Understanding of communion, Holy week and the life of Jesus, loss of family members/pets, National and international news, lives of significant figures explored during collective worship, such as, Martin Luther King, circle time, awareness of and support of charities, visiting local care homes, supporting charities, disasters in the news |
A sense of silence and reflection |
CW, Quiet areas, reflection spaces, prayer spaces, weekly prayer meetings, remembrance service led by the older children, observation of 2 minutes silence for whole school, professional development time for staff to reflect on practice – support from behaviour support team, emotion coaching |
A sense of love for the outdoors |
Adventure playground, offsite visits, residential trips – Pembrokeshire, York, London, mile a day, Y6 camping, nature area, cross country club, three counties show, seasonal visits to local farm, forest school club |
A sense of awe and wonder |
After school clubs, holiday club, singing, residential and field trips, school fayres, fetes, collective worship, visits to sacred places, Zoolab, Global links, |
A sense of pattern, sequence and order |
Maths, science, music, dance, the arts, Christian year collective worship, school routines, creative curriculum, a school week-timetables, behaviour policy |