Three ChildrenThe first was born to a single mother – his natural father died during the pregnancy. He grew up in a foster family, but then returned to his birth mother’s home as a small child. Sadly, she then died, leaving him orphaned. After a couple of years in the care of grandparents, he moved again to live with is uncle, who was an itinerant, and travelled living in caravans. The young boy had no choice but to go with him. He lived in a society dominated by religious fundamentalism. He was persecuted fiercely for his ‘modern’ beliefs.

The second little boy was born into an occupied territory, in the middle east, where political unrest made a mockery of children’s rights. His parents were displaced from their home, and his mother went into labour on the journey - so was born in the open air. His family was targeted for arrest and in danger of death from the tin-pot dictator who ruled the territories, so they became asylum seekers and undertook a hazardous journey to a neighbouring state, creeping across the border line in the middle of the night. The child’s father died when he was just a young teenager.

The third was also born in exile, to peasant parents who were scared of the racist laws under which they lived. He was smuggled to a place of safety, and brought up like an orphan, seeing his mother, but never knowing where he belonged. Unsurprisingly, he grew up to be a walking identity crisis as an adult, and committed a murder when he was 40 years of age.

Every Child Matters in REWhat do you like about

working with young people? “Watching them learn. And

watching me learn from them. And then me

learning some more.”

Children who matter

RefugeeRefugeeFoster familyFoster family

Asylum seekerAsylum seekerItinerant Itinerant

Occupied territoryOccupied territoryOrphanOrphan

TravellerTravellerIdentity crisisIdentity crisisThese words describe the childhood of

three children who matter ~ Moses, the Lord Jesus and the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH)

The ‘Every Child Matters’ Framework

The Framework says that children must be enabled to:

• Be healthy:• Stay safe:• Enjoy and achieve:• Make a positive contribution:• Achieve economic well being

I think this set of priorities can make natural links with RE’s core purposes

Do we need a sixth outcome?“In our fast changing, consumerist and global society we need a broader view of what it means to be an educated person and what indeed it means to be human. We have, therefore, committed ourselves to a sixth outcome (Be Spirited). An outcome which is focused on fostering a wider approach to enabling children and young people to grow as human beings with broadened horizons and a moral sensibility.

We place a premium on activities which enable children and young people to develop their potential by knowing, accepting and liking who they are; by discovering their special talents; and by giving creative and cultural expression to their sense of self. We will introduce additional programmes which develop children and young people to respect, listen to and understand each other and to develop as moral beings with a sense of personal and social responsibility.“

Alan Heinzman, North Tyneside LA

Some varieties of agnosticism• Spiritual agnostics• Wistful agnostics• Agnostic on principle• Ignorant agnostics• Buddhist agnostics• Drifting Christian agnostics• Christian agnostics with tradition but no dogmaHow might the RE change to go about meeting the

learning (and spiritual?) needs of these agnostics, who make up 50, 60, 70, 80% of many classes of pupils?

(This research reprt to be published in Sep 07 by NATRE in our journal Resource (www.natre.org.uk)

Sophie is 10.

Where is God?Where is God?

In this slate-grey 3-D In this slate-grey 3-D corridor a hunched red corridor a hunched red plasticine figure sits. plasticine figure sits. Meredith (12) expresses Meredith (12) expresses an experience. The words an experience. The words say: say:

““There was a man who There was a man who suffered every day and suffered every day and every night. His sadness every night. His sadness radiated from him and his radiated from him and his anger burned like fire. He anger burned like fire. He sat in the dark at the end sat in the dark at the end of the corridor. He asked of the corridor. He asked ‘is there a God? If there is, ‘is there a God? If there is, why does he let me why does he let me suffer? No answer came, suffer? No answer came, only silence. He curled up only silence. He curled up and cried.”and cried.”

“We have not answered the question ‘where is God?’ But

we have suggested how to go about answering the question.

Seek and you will find. Goddle, however, also poses the question that finding God

so easily may not be the solution to everything. If God was at the touch of a button,

would you click it? ”

Who am I?Joe McNeil, Age 10

I am my dreams,My thoughts,

I am the crossfire of creation and evolution.I am my knowledge, my wisdom, my grief,Yet my tears turn to steam on my cheeks.

I am my lost soulWhich finds its way back,

I am my cracked heartWhich is whole once again.

I am my conscience, my will,I am my own enemy.

I am the question,Yet there is no answer:

“What is the meaning of life?”

ECM and holistic educationthanks to Rosemary Walters, Canterbury Christ Church University

• The paradox of ‘business’ and ‘transformation’: creative or destructive?

• Every child matters in many religions• Affirmation, celebration, education• Exploration of the questions of what it

means to be human (belonging, identity, diversity, meaning, purpose, truth, values, commitments)

• These are also the questions of LFR

A route to tomorrowBarney Rolph, Age 14

Faith is a ropeBinding you to someoneAs strong as your mindAs weak as your doubtIt’s a contract of hopeThere are no catchesNo small printIt’s just faith.

Faith is a ropeA noose round the worldA book of evilA sentence of deathIt commands dark armiesA suicidal raceA weapon of mass destructionThis is faith.

Faith is the ropeTied to the futurePulling us forwardMaking us betterIt’s a line for our childrenA guiding starA route to followFaith is tomorrow.

INSIGHT

A new game to enable and promote spiritual development

for 12-15s in RE

Copyright: Lat Blaylock, RE Today

Rules:• Take turns. Read out your card twice.• Ask the person opposite where they would put

the card.• Ask for any other comments before you place it.• You may not put a card on an already occupied

square – move one, and then place the new one.

• When it’s your turn, you can take an upturned card from the central section and put it in your own section, as well as turning over a new one.

Models of the spiritual

• This game uses two models of spirituality, from Clive Beck and from David Hay and Rebecca Nye.

• These are specially suited to the needs of schools and young people working in plural settings

• The game is a bit instantaneous and temporary (like po-mo spirituality?)

• The models are both relational, and use an approach to spirituality that deals in self / others / earth / transcendence

What to do:• Look at Art in Heaven. What is going on here? Enter some

children and young people’s art work (some LAs and SACREs have run local rounds of Art in Heaven), and inspire yourself: www.natre.org.uk/spiritedarts. All the ‘Where is God?’ art work is there.

• Observe: the insight, profundity, depth and vision these children show. Not all children can write like this, draw like this, but they think about this stuff. How can RE better enable the ‘enjoy and achieve’ trick?

• Consider the challenges of ECM for your work. What +ve impact on syllabus making, LA policy, school advice, dealing with senior staff can this have? Would a ‘sixth outcome’ have a chance in your setting?

• Remember: Good RE has always practiced the ECM principles. Holistic approaches to the subject and the learnerenable it to make deepening links to young people’s own experiences.

• Include: every child, every child’s voice.