A KS3 Religious Studies lesson, using an enquiry based approach to learning and based on Christianity as a way to explore belief in God. Following the 2018 Berkshire SACRE agreed syllabus with a focus on exploring the principles of ‘believing, belonging and behaving’ in a religious context and secular context. This is lesson 1 of the topic ‘What do I believe’ and asks students to differentiate between fact, opinion and belief and apply this to a discussion about theism, atheism and agnosticism. The key question for the lesson is; ‘Is it reasonable to believe in God in the 21st Century?’.

A Philosophy for Children lesson suitable for KS3, exploring the concept of philosophy and facilitating independent thinking about the origins of the universe. Key words: God, Looking for God, who is God, did God make the world, philosophy, what is philosophy, the universe, who created the universe, the nature of God, KS3, RE, beliefs and values,

A quiz about Hinduism with 5 rounds of 6 questions each, covering; history, religion, culture, worship and deities. A fantastic visual and competitive revision tool for all Key Stages covering the main aspects of the religion to engage and stimulate all learners. Can also be used as a refresher activity or an introduction to the topic. With KS3 this should take a full 60 minute lesson. With KS4 and KS5 plan for 20-30 minutes max.

A selection of 34 - tried and tested - colourful and captivating pictures that will engage your students and motivate them to engage in Religious Studies lessons. Covering all major faiths and philosophy, they are perfect as presentation backgrounds (think powerpoint) or as hooks on individual slides.

Information sheet on Islamic views of divorce which can be used by students to describe, explain, compare, analyse or evaluate Muslim beliefs on family life. Suitable for GCSE courses covering marriage and family life or studies of Islam.

NEW 2018 AQA Religious Studies Specification ‘A’ lesson on ‘Buddhist Beliefs and Teachings’ following the 1-9 grading criteria. The lesson includes differentiated tasks for every activity, designed to stretch and challenge all students. The initial task recounts the birth of the Buddha and students are asked to re-tell it in a creative way. Students then respond to 'sacred writing' from the Anguttara Nikaya, to highlight the luxurious upbringing the Buddha had. Students then consider the Four Sights and what impression these might have left on the Buddha and how they informed his decision to leave the palace. Students self-reflect on their learning through De-Bono's hats.

NEW 2018 AQA Religious Studies Specification ‘A’ lesson on ‘Buddhist Beliefs and Teachings’ following the 1-9 grading criteria. The lesson includes differentiated tasks for every activity, designed to stretch and challenge all students. Students are asked to interpret the meaning of sacred writing from Jataka vol. 1, p.71 and consider how the Buddha used meditation to reach enlightenment. They then explore the significance of the 'three watches' before applying their learning to a GCSE type exam question, with scaffolding provided, as well as a student friendly mark scheme, which can be used for self- or peer-assessment.

A lesson suitable for GCSE or A-level to introduce John Stuart Mill's development of Jeremy Bentham's concept of Utilitarianism. Introduces 'Rule Utilitarianism' as well as the notions of higher and lower pleasure and allows students to compare the 'Principle of Utility' with the 'Greatest Happiness Principle'.

A GCSE or A-level lesson investigating the benefits of palliative care and how it compares to euthanasia as an end of life decision. Three case studies allow students to apply palliative care and compare it effectively to euthanasia. The main task is an extended piece of writing, which is differentiated by both task and ability and is aimed at stretching students in their critical analysis.

NEW 2016 KS3 Religious Studies curriculum lesson on the topic of 'Belonging' using the 1-9 grading criteria. There is specific focus on Hindu Samskaras and in particular the Sacred Thread Ceremony. The first task allows students to gain a general understanding of the nature of Samskaras followed by an in-depth examination of the Sacred Thread Ceremony and how it links to Hindus starting a 'new' religious and spiritual life. There is analysis of a source of wisdom and authority through the Gayatri Mantra and students get an opportunity to write a diary entry from the perspective of someone who has just undergone the Sacred Thread Ceremony, with a specific emphasis on how it shows belonging. All tasks are differentiated and suitable for all abilities.

NEW 2018 AQA Religious Studies Specification ‘A’ lesson on ‘Buddhist Beliefs and Teachings’ following the 1-9 grading criteria. The lesson includes differentiated tasks for every activity, designed to stretch and challenge all students. The first task gets students to explore the definitions of the three marks of existence, before completing a specific task on each mark of existence; dukkha, anicca and anatta. For dukkha, students investigate different causes of suffering. For anicca, students consider ways in which humans change over time in different ways. This is extended during the anatta task, to include specific elements of a person and what makes someone who they are. Students then respond to 'sacred writing' through the story of Kisa Gotami and link it to all three marks of existence. As a plenary, students complete a 'why-tree' based on the key question: why does suffering happen?

NEW 2018 AQA Religious Studies Specification ‘A’ lesson on ‘Buddhist Beliefs and Teachings’ following the 1-9 grading criteria. The lesson includes differentiated tasks for every activity, designed to stretch and challenge all students. As a hook, students are asked to respond to the question whether life itself causes suffering, before investigating the main causes of suffering identified by the Buddha. Students then engage with the notions of change and attachment as causes of suffering before analysing sacred writing as evidence for Buddhist beliefs. Students then apply their knowledge to a GCSE exam type question, scaffolded with sentence starters and a student friendly mark scheme that can be used for self-or peer-assessment. As a plenary, students complete a WHY-Tree, where they start with a single question and keep answering it and then asking 'why' to elaborate as far as they can ( students should aim to include 4-5 'whys').

NEW 2016 KS3 Religious Studies curriculum lesson on the topic of 'Belonging' using the 1-9 grading criteria. There is specific focus on the Baptism of Jesus. Students are introduced to the topic of baptism and belonging to the Christian faith through a YouTube video. The next task allows students to be creative by asking them to convert information about the Christian understanding of the nature and history of baptism into pictures. This always goes down really well with visual learners and those of lower ability. It can also really challenge those of higher ability to explore the concept of symbolism. Students then use Luke Chapter 3 as a source of wisdom and authority to explain the story of Jesus' Baptism by John. Finally, students consider the importance of baptism for Christians today by using the quote from Matthew 28:19 as a source of wisdom and authority, All tasks are differentiated and suitable for all abilities.

A revision task for GCSE Religious Studies to help students memorise quotes from religious wisdom and authority. Students can identify suitable quotes and link them to specific topics/sub-topics. This is ideal for students to practise the overlapping nature of quotes and their divergent interpretations by a variety of religious groups within Christianity and Islam. Students also get the opportunity to practice exam questions by creating their own exam questions. Suitable for ANY exam board.

A GCSE or A-level lesson exploring the Christian view on the value of life using sources of wisdom and authority as well as investigating how the Hippocratic Oath links to euthanasia. I have used this lesson to introduce the topic of euthanasia and get students to understand the underlying values and principles which shape the Christian beliefs on the value of life. There is plenty of scope to teach this lesson through class discussion which always goes down well on this topic.

NEW 2016 KS3 Religious Studies curriculum lesson on the topic of 'Belonging' with a specific focus on Judaism and the Bar and Bat Mitzvah ceremony for Jewish boys and girls. This lesson introduces the notion of the Jewish covenant and the concept of promise-keeping and responsibility. A YouTube video follows a modern Jewish boy as he prepares for his Bar Mitzvah and students take notes before getting the opportunity to write a piece of creative writing in the form of a diary entry, immediately following the ceremony. The plenary uses HOTS (higher order thinking skills) and invites students to analyse a picture of a Bar Mitzvah ceremony and pose questions of their own to cement their learning.

NEW 2018 AQA Religious Studies Specification ‘A’ lesson on ‘Buddhist Beliefs and Teachings’ following the 1-9 grading criteria. The lesson includes differentiated tasks for every activity, designed to stretch and challenge all students. As a starter, students explore the concept of universal laws and respond with an opinion on whether the Buddha's view about suffering constitutes a universal law. Students then use sacred writing to investigate the link between dhamma and suffering before engaging with the Buddhist belief in the 'Three Jewels'. As plenary, students are asked to create a short quiz about their learning to test someone else in the class as well as linking the lesson to keywords linked to SMSC.

A KS3 Religious Studies lesson, using an enquiry based approach to learning and based on Christianity as a way to explore belief in God. Following the 2018 Berkshire SACRE agreed syllabus with a focus on exploring the principles of ‘believing, belonging and behaving’ in a religious context and secular context. This is lesson 2 of the topic ‘What do I believe’. Students are hooked into the lesson by listening to Joan Osborne’s ‘What if God was one of us’ and then explore the Christian belief about the nature of God. The key question for this lesson is’ What is God’s most important characteristic?’

NEW 2018 Edexcel GCSE in Religious Studies, following Religion and Ethics through Christianity and using the new 1-9 grading criteria. Students have to respond to a number of sources of wisdom and authority to investigate the history, nature and purpose of evangelism. Students then suggest ways in which Christians could evangelise through a number of different situations, e.g. education. Anglican and Catholic attitudes to evangelism are explored through case studies including the ALPHA course and students are asked to make links to why Christians would engage in evangelism today.

KS3 lesson on Situation Ethics and using the new 1-9 GCSE grading criteria. The lesson introduces students to the nature of Situation Ethics and asks them to respond to its core principles by analysing and examining sources of wisdom and authority. This is followed by a class discussion (this can also be done in pairs, teams, or individually if that suits your class better) on a number of different moral principles to live by and an evaluation of how far Situation Ethics has got it right when it promotes Agape as its core moral principle. I like to give students contribution tokens to ensure that all of them contribute and no-one dominates the discussion. It also avoids students going off topic as they only have a fixed amount of contribution tokens to use before they run out and have to stay silent for the rest of the task. The tokens also promote student's listening as they have to be able to respond to comments made by other students. Finally, students explore a moral dilemma using Situation Ethics.