Experiential RE supdocs.indd - SfE

Lesson Two: What is Religious Experience? Can it be verified and how far is it a proof of
God? An active literacy lesson.
This lesson follows a period of learning about religious experience using a variety of methods.
The learning has culminated in an experiential re-enactment of Orthodox worship. Pupils have
also had, as part of the term’s work, an experiential lesson on Prayer, the Eucharist and a reenactment
of various forms of baptism, including Orthodox Baptism and Chrismation (the lesson
recipes for these can be found in Teaching Christianity with the Theatre of Learning).
Pupils have studied the arguments for the existence of God and examples of religious experience
using active and experiential methods (see Teaching Philosophical and Abstract Concepts
with the Theatre of Learning). They have written very little. The learning shown in this film is the
product of activity and oral work rather than reading and writing in class.
In this lesson they will prepare for writing an essay at home using the Caterpillar technique
developed by my colleague in the RE department, Julie Woodward. She is our school literacy
coach and this technique is now being used by many departments in the school to raise
achievement in examinations.
Aims:
• To prepare an essay on religious experience
• To reinforce learning about religious experience through:
1. Revising key words
2. Introducing the idea of verification
3. Using academic quotation
4. Using a traffic light written exercise
5. Creating a Caterpillar essay to be completed for homework and used for revision
6. Summing up the learning through a traffic light discussion essay.
Outcome:
A twenty mark essay written from a Caterpillar framework; the Caterpillar will provide a useful
revision tool as it is quick and easy to read and retain unlike an essay. The structure will be used
on the exam day to provide a quick planning tool.
Starter: Balloon activity
This activity reinforces knowledge of key words and develops thinking skills and critical faculties.
1. Have enough balloons for each pupil
2. Put vocabulary on card (easier to insert than paper!) in one half of the balloons and
definitions in the other
3. Pupils blow them up and burst them on a signal and find their partners and sit with them
4. Share keywords and their meanings in a circle
5. Draw out deeper knowledge with questioning during the sharing.
Activity One: Caterpillar exercise
1. Pupils collect a sheet of coloured A3 and a felt tip and draw four large circles to represent
the topic for and against and the conclusion
2. Caterpillars are explained
3. The pupils learn to describe the topic in a way to gain maximum marks
16 Experiential RE: Supporting documents