1. My Catholic Community

Religious Education in Roman Catholic
Schools (RERC)
Early Level Primary 1

Religious Education in Roman Catholic Schools
‘For her part, the Church has the duty to educate “especially because she has the responsibility of announcing the way of salvation
to all men, of communicating the life of Christ to those who believe, and, in her unfailing solicitude, of assisting men to be able to come to the
fullness of this life. The Church is bound as a mother to give to these children of hers an education by which their whole life can be imbued with
the spirit of Christ.”’
The Identity of a Catholic School for a Culture of Dialogue, January 2022
‘Religious education in Catholic schools takes place within the context of the wider Catholic faith community, in partnership with
home and parish. It is an integral part of the Catholic school, which is itself a community of faith. It is designed to assist children and young
people to be increasingly able to make an informed and mature response to God in faith and to nurture that faith. It offers opportunities for
both evangelisation – proclaiming the Gospel message to all – and catechesis – the deepening of existing faith commitments among believers.’
RERC Principles and Practice, Education Scotland 2001
how to apply them in life;’
‘the provision of religious education programmes which will enable young people to develop their understanding of Gospel values and
Characteristic 5, Charter for Catholic Schools in Scotland

TIOF Early Level; Primary one
Throughout primary one the young person is introduced to all three elements of the eight
strands of faith;
• We believe.
• We learn from the Church.
• We understand.
Learning and teaching should be differentiated for the context of the school, and the child’s
capacity for learning and development.
The learning experiences are designed to be fun and interactive, to foster a positive
relationship between the young person, and religious education.
We acknowledge parents as primary educators and encourage collaboration with the family and
the parish where possible.
For many children, religious education in primary one will be the beginning of their faith journey.
SCES are here to support you in facilitating this beautiful encounter between the young person,
and Christ.

TIOF Early Level; Primary One
Children will begin to explore the world of religion in terms of special people, books, times, places,
objects, and visiting places of worship. Children listen to, and talk about, stories. They are introduced
to specialist words and use their senses in exploring religious beliefs, practices and forms of
expression. They reflect upon their own feelings and experiences. They use their imagination and
curiosity to develop their appreciation and wonder of the world in which they live.
It is important for young children to approach early experiences related to religious education with
open attitudes and interest and to feel free to talk about the place of religious experience in their
own lives. In order that this can happen it is necessary to foster an environment within each setting
where children can appreciate that everyone is of equal importance and should be treated fairly and
equally.

TIOF Early Level; Primary One
Where cultural and religious diversity is regarded as positive, children can feel that they are
able to express their viewpoints and beliefs in safety. The resources and experiences that are
suggested are designed to promote faith development.
‘In all endeavors, the Church takes appropriate cognisance of both the subjective process of
coming to, growing and living in faith, and the objective content of the faith, expressed in Sacred
Scripture and Sacred Tradition as ‘a single sacred deposit of the Word of God’14 whose authentic
interpretation lies with the Magisterium (teaching authority) of the Church.’
This Is Our Faith

TIOF Early Level; Primary one
Curriculum
organiser
Signs of
God RERC 0-
08a*
I am aware of being part of a
community and have begun to
explore aspects of the local
Catholic community.
Broad Themes
Our sense of God’s presence in our lives.
Relationship with God (through Jesus).
Questions about our ultimate destiny.
Human freedom.
Early Level
I am part of a community.
We are part of the family of the Church.
Showing reverence.
See also EXA 0-12a, 0-15a, ENG 0-03a, 0-17a, HWB 0-48a, LIT 0-01c, 0-02a, 0-04a, 0-07a, 0-09a,b, 0-10a, 0-11b,
0-26a, SOC 0-07a, 0-17a.

Key to Symbols
Work together
Teacher led
Independent
learning
Brain break

Primary One; My Catholic Community
I belong, and I am learning to;
• recognise and identify God’s love.
• participate in prayer.
• understand my sense of God’s presence in my life.
• show respect for the bible.
• understand that Jesus is Son of God and Son of Mary, and that Mary is our Mother.
• develop my religious literacy by extending my vocabulary.

1. I can name my school and the patron Saint.
Children should explore what ‘We Believe’ about the saints of the Church, and what
makes our school special.
Our school building is one of the three places where we will learn about God, and
our faith.
We will learn at home; from our families and the people who look after us.
We will learn at Church; from our Parish Priest and from the other adults i.e.,
Children’s Liturgy leaders.
We will learn about God in school; we learn from each other by being kind and
showing love to others, even those who are not yet our friends.

1. My School’s Patron Saint
Our school has a special name.
It is special because it is the
name of a Saint; a special
person who takes messages to
God. This means that the Saint
will look after us on God’s
behalf; when we say our
prayers together, the saint will
let God know that we have been
good.

1. My School’s Patron Saint
Can you
think of any
Saints who
live in
heaven?
Who is our
patron
Saint?

1. My School’s Patron Saint
Colour the drawing of
our Patron Saint.
Glue this into your RE
learning journal. Add
the name of our school
as a heading.

Primary One; My Catholic Community
I belong, and I am learning to;
• recognise and identify God’s love.
• participate in prayer.
• understand my sense of God’s presence in my life.
• show respect for the bible.
• understand that Jesus is Son of God and Son of Mary, and that Mary is our Mother.
• develop my religious literacy by extending my vocabulary.

2. My School Prayers
Recap exercise:
What is the name of our school?
Why is the name of our school special?
Can you tell me who our patron saint is?
What does our patron saint do for God?

2. My School Prayers
We tell God that we are
ready to speak to Him by
making the Sign of the Cross.
We cross over our heart to
remind us that God loves us.

2. My School Prayers
Father in heaven, you love
me, You’re with me night
and day; I want to love you
always in all I do and say.
I’ll try to please you,
Father, bless me through
the day.
Amen.

2. My School Prayers
Bless us O God as we
sit together, bless the
food we eat today,
bless the hands that
make the food, bless us
O God. Amen.
Thank you, God, for the
food we have eaten. Thank
you, God, for all our
friends. Thank you, God,
for everything. Thank you,
God.

2. My School Prayers
God my Father, I come to
say thank you for your love
today. Thank you for my
family and all the friends you
give to me. Guard me in the
dark of night and in the
morning send your light.
Amen.

Primary One; My Catholic Community
I belong, and I am learning to;
• recognise and identify God’s love.
• participate in prayer.
• understand my sense of God’s presence in my life.
• show respect for the bible.
• understand that Jesus is Son of God and Son of Mary, and that Mary is our Mother.
• develop my religious literacy by extending my vocabulary.

3. God's presence in my life
Recap exercise:
Invite the learners to listen as you, or a helper from upper school, prays
each of the prayers that we have been learning.
Learners should listen carefully for clues. Pause after each prayer to ask
the following:
• When do we say this prayer? Do you remember what time this is?
• Who are we speaking to in this prayer?
• What are we asking them for?

3. God’s presence in my life.

3. God's presence in my life
We can pray in lots of different ways, we can use rhyming words, sing
songs, and even dance!
But where is God and how does He speak to us?

Primary One; My Catholic Community
I belong, and I am learning to;
• recognise and identify God’s love.
• participate in prayer.
• understand my sense of God’s presence in my life.
• show respect for the bible.
• understand that Jesus is Son of God and Son of Mary, and that Mary is our
Mother.
• develop my religious literacy by extending my vocabulary.

Recap exercise:
4. The Holy Family

4. The Holy Family

I have listened to
the story of the
Nativity (Luke
2:1-20), and I
know that Jesus
is Son of God and
Son of Mary.
4. The Holy Family

• Read the bible story again, this time from
the class bible.
• Invite the children to close their eyes and
visualise the scene.
• Learners then recreate the scene using the
available resources.
• Invite learners to share their stories using
some of the key words learned.
4. The Holy Family

Primary One; My Catholic Community
I belong, and I am learning to;
• recognise and identify God’s love.
• participate in prayer.
• understand my sense of God’s presence in my life.
• show respect for the bible.
• understand that Jesus is Son of God and Son of Mary, and that Mary is our
Mother.
• develop my religious literacy by extending my vocabulary.

TIOF Early Level; Primary one
Curriculum
organiser
Signs of
God RERC 0-
08a*
I am aware of being part of a
community and have begun to
explore aspects of the local
Catholic community.
Broad Themes
Our sense of God’s presence in our lives.
Relationship with God (through Jesus).
Questions about our ultimate destiny.
Human freedom.
Early Level
I am part of a community.
We are part of the family of the Church.
Showing reverence.
See also EXA 0-12a, 0-15a, ENG 0-03a, 0-17a, HWB 0-48a, LIT 0-01c, 0-02a, 0-04a, 0-07a, 0-09a,b, 0-10a, 0-11b,
0-26a, SOC 0-07a, 0-17a.

Extension Activities