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Content Descriptions

Knowledge & Understanding

TCREK001

• God is Mystery, a source of wonder, the giver of all life.

• God is love, always with us and continuing to give life.

• God’s love can be experienced through the love of others and through the world around us.

• God loves each of us and invites us to respond in love.

TCREK002

• Jesus is a human being like us.

• Jesus lived and learned in a loving family.

• Jesus teaches about and shows us the love of God, his Father.

• Jesus cares for us as a friend and brother.

TCREK003

• The Church is a celebrating community of people who share God’s love.

• Through Baptism, we are welcomed into the Church.

• As the church community, we live as friends of Jesus.

TCREK004

• The Bible is a collection of books about God’s love.

• We treasure the Bible as Sacred Scripture, the Word of God.

• The Gospels are the Good News of Jesus, God’s Son.

• The Scriptures can help us to pray and to live the way Jesus lived.

TCREK005

• God is always present.

• The sacraments are signs/symbols of God’s presence and action.

• We celebrate when we gather as Church.

• Our usual place to celebrate sacraments is in the Church.

TCREK006

• Our loving relationship with God grows through prayer.

• In prayer we are present to, listen to, talk to our loving God.

• We can pray in many ways.

• Simple centring practices can prepare us for and support us in prayer.

• Through prayer we learn to show God’s love to others.

TCREK007

• Every person is loved by God.

• Every person is unique.

• Jesus shows us how to care and show respect for all of life.

• By our loving choices we follow Jesus’ example.

TCREK008

• All human beings are united in God’s love.

• Jesus reveals God's love.

• Christians are people who believe in Jesus and live as his friends.

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[GOD] God is love. This love can be experienced in people and in the world around us. (TCREK001) 

Elaboration: Students will be encouraged and supported to wonder about God as Mystery. They will learn that Christians refer to God as Father, Son and Holy Spirit. They will have the opportunity to see and experience signs of God’s love in the world around us and will be supported to identify God’s presence in the loving actions of others. Students will be supported to recognise God as our loving creator, who continues to give us life. Students will be given opportunities to experience God’s constant presence and love. They will be supported to develop a loving relationship with God expressed in prayer and shown in loving actions. 

Prior Understanding

• Follow the child, observe and notice the child’s reactions and observations on a wonder walk through a beautiful bush setting or near the sea, beach, a park or a garden, invite the child to look and notice and wonder. 

• Share wonderings about the beauty of creation. 

• Invite children to wonder how creation is a gift and who is the giver of the gift?

Vocabulary - sacred, natural, senses, ritual, sign of the cross, welcome, belong 

Points of Provocation

Belonging

• Create and participate in a prayer ritual with others that expresses God as love.

• Make a prayer cloth and prayer pace, children learn the routines associated with making time and space for sacred people and places. (unpack what does sacred mean? What is a sacred space?)

• Invite children to learn the sign of the cross and begin to learn to sit with stillness.

Being 

• Use senses (feels like, sounds like) to name important words and feelings.

• Explore their own images and others’ images of God.

• Express/explore knowledge of God through song, creative expressions (art) and participation in discussion.

Becoming

• Think, puzzle and explore (Thinking Routine Scaffold) about how we know people are sacred. 

• Share ideas and responses about how all can be welcomed and belong because all are equally loved by God.

• Collect natural objects for display in the classroom and offer a prayer of thanks for the gift that God has given them.  

I Wonder Questions

Belonging

• How do I know God loves me and others?

• How do I respond with love for others?

• How do I show God’s love to others?

• How do I experience God’s love through others?

Being

• What do you wonder about God?

• How is God revealed to us through creation?  

Becoming

• How Jesus teaches us to love?

• If I can be like Jesus?

• What can I do to show love?

• How I can show love to others? 

Environment

• Gather a selection of beautiful, unique,  natural objects for display and exploration.

• Provide Fresh seasonal flowers, seed pods, leaves, branches to observe, draw and manipulate in play-based activities.

• Gather collections of shells, rocks, leaves, mixed materials. 

• Provide sensorial trays with different smelling herbs and flowers.

• Gather images and photographs of the natural and physical world, flora and fauna.

• Gather images of different people from different cultures and countries. 

Godly Play

• The Creation Story

• The Great Family

• The Holy Family

• The Parable of the Mustard Seed

• The Parable of the Pearl of Great Price

• The Parable of the Leaven

• The Parable of the Treasure in the Field

Scriptures

Psalm 139:7-10 The Inescapable God  

Where can I go from your spirit?
Or where can I flee from your presence?
If I ascend to heaven, you are there;
if I make my bed in Sheol, you are there.
If I take the wings of the morning
and settle at the farthest limits of the sea,
even there your hand shall lead me,
and your right hand shall hold me fast ...

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[JESUS CHRIST] Jesus reveals and is God’s love for us. Jesus cares for us. (TCREK002) 

Elaboration: Students will explore stories about Jesus’ life as a person and a member of a loving family. They will learn that Jesus called God his Father. They will identify Mary as Jesus’ mother and explore how she and Joseph cared for him. They will explore examples of Jesus’ loving care for others and be supported to know that Jesus cares for us as a friend and brother. 

Prior Understanding

• Provide as a learning/inquiry centre or on a provocation table different images, icons, symbols of Jesus from different times, cultures. 

• Invite the children to wonder and use the language of thinking dispositions to express connections and their wonderings. 

• Provide a provocation of the Holy family 

• Follow the child, listen to their conversation and wonderings record what they say, wonder and question

Vocabulary - prayer, scripture, Psalm, shepherd, sheepfold

Points of Provocation

• Share the prayer table and the scripture from Jesus is the Good Shepherd Psalm 23, light a candle for prayer and enjoy the light. Then extinguish the candle, sit and invite the children to wonder.

• Share Godly Play / Scripture stories - One at a time and over a few weeks present the following stories and leave them at a table for children to revisit and wonder, record children’s comments and questions. Invite children to draw, paint, build, construct a response to the provocations. The Holy Family, The Good Shepherd parable box, The Good Shepherd (Wooden Godly Play figures).

• Play and sing songs/ Psalms of the Good Shepherd ‘Hi God’ albums I, II, III, IV.

I Wonder Questions

Belonging

• Who Jesus is?

• If Jesus lived in a family?

• Is Jesus’ family like mine?

• If Jesus loved his mother (Mary) and step-father (Joseph)?

• His Father in heaven (God)?

• What did Jesus enjoy doing with his family?

Being

• How I can know Jesus?

• How I can talk to Jesus?

• If Jesus can be my friend?

• What Jesus was like as a little boy in his family?

• What games did he play? What food did he eat? What his house was like? What clothes did he wear?

Becoming

• How Jesus teaches us to love?

• If I can be like Jesus?

• What can I do to show love?

• How I can show love to others? 

Environment

Belonging

• Create a display of family photos and include images of Jesus, Mary and Joseph

• Invite children to bring in images of their family to make the link, this is Jesus’ family,  this is my family. 

• Engage with Godly Play figures of the Holy Family 

Being

• Gather images of the land of Israel, a globe, maps of the land of Israel, Images of Shepherd looking after their sheep in Israel, images of a sheepfold, Inn, buildings from the ancient world. 

• Provide provocation images, artefacts of materials and games from the time of Jesus. E.g. stones, sticks, spinning tops, hopscotch, jacks, whistles, toy animals on wheels. 

• Share Middle Eastern food for children to try and share. (e/g. Last Supper in Holy Week) Rice, chicken, grapes, Arabic bread, Zaatar, Matzah bread.

Becoming

• Explore 3D models of the sheep, shepherd, sheepfold 

• View Holy Pictures of the Good Shepherd 

Godly Play

• The Holy Family

• The Good Shepherd parable box

• The Good Shepherd (Wooden Godly Play figures)

Scriptures

Luke 2:8-18 The Birth of Jesus  

In that region there were shepherds living in the fields, keeping watch over their flock by night.

      Luke 15 The Parable of the Lost Sheep  

      Now all the tax collectors and sinners were coming near to listen to him.

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[CHURCH] The Church is a celebrating community that shares God’s love. (TCREK003) 

Elaboration: Students will be introduced to the Church as a celebrating community of people who are made one with Jesus and are welcomed through the Sacrament of Baptism. They will identify and explore how this community lives as friends/brothers and sisters of Jesus, sharing God’s love. 

Prior Understanding

Follow the child, notice how they join with others and allow others to be included and valued. Take the children on a Wonder Walk to visit the Church or sacred space, follow the child and notice what they are drawn to and record their questions and wonderings.

Vocabulary - community, belonging, sacred space, blessing, holy water, prayer, Mass, priest, family

Points of Provocation

Belonging

• Visit the church and explore questions about what we see and what we wonder about in the church. 

• Explore To Know, Worship and Love Units 10 and 11

• Decorate the sacred space with children’s work and expressions of spirituality. e.g. 3D fish for the Gospel of Jesus calls the disciples. 

• Participate in the liturgy, carrying symbols, signs, singing, reading 

• Welcome children with a blessing. 

• Expose children to religious music, clapping rhythms, church responses and prayers.

• Encourage response to Peace be with you …“And with your spirit”

• Explore Godly Play Story: The Good Shepherd – World Communion 

• Discuss people and their roles in the church community. e.g. the parish priest, the readers, the servers, those who visit the sick…

Being

• Participate in school and class prayer and liturgy. 

• Contribute to prayer and liturgy eg. decorating the prayer space/ church with children’s prayer

• Invite children to bless themselves with the sign of the cross with Holy water from the font.

Becoming

• Explore a Mass kit/role play to make connections with their experiences in Mass. 

• Play and familiarise themselves with the vestments to make connections with their experiences in Mass. 

• Role Play centre with font and baptism kit. 

• Godly play kit

• Share photos/images/videos of baptisms of one of some of the children as a provocation.  

• Invite the Parish Priest to talk about the parish community. 

• Invite the parish community for morning tea after prayer liturgy / Mass

• Invite families to join in prayer

I Wonder Questions

Belonging

• How I am part of God’s family? 

• What belonging in a church community means?

• Why do we gather in the church? 

• How we can celebrate as God’s family?

Being

• How do we know God loves us?

• How Jesus invites us into the church community? 

• If I can be still inside the church?

• How God reaches out to us?

• How I can meet Jesus in the church? 

Becoming

• What belonging to a community teaches me about God?

• What belonging to a community teaches me about God’s love?

• How I can belong to my church community?

• If you know anyone who has been baptised?  

• How we can build relationships with our parish community?

Environment

• Provide articles from the Mass and other sacraments for children to enjoy role play. 

• Provide/create vestments and other ritual clothing for play 

• Provide a Mass corner or Baptism corner 

• Gather images of symbols and signs connected to the Church 

• Present the images of people significant in the church, the parish priest, religious sisters, parish members with their names. 

Godly Play

• The Holy Family

• Charism stories

• The Good Shepherd

• The Lost Sheep

• The Good Shepherd and World Communion

• The Pentecost story (birth of the church and gifts of the spirit)

• Noah and the Ark

• The Tent and the Tabernacle

Scriptures

Mark 10:23-26 Jesus Blesses Little Children  

Then Jesus looked around and said to his disciples, “How hard it will be for those who have wealth to enter the kingdom of God!”

Matthew 4:18-22 Jesus Calls the First Disciples  

As he walked by the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon, who is called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea—for they were fishermen.

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[SCRIPTURE] The Word of God is shared when we read the stories of God’s love in the Bible. (TCREK004) 

Elaboration: Students will be introduced to the Bible as a collection of books that contains many stories of God’s love. They will be supported towards developing an understanding that the Bible is the Word of God that Christians share and respect as Sacred Scripture. Students will be introduced to the Gospels as the Good News of Jesus, God’s Son. They will explore Gospel stories about Jesus, who shows and tells of God’s love. Through a focus on the parable of the Good Shepherd they will encounter Jesus’ way of teaching through stories and parables. Students will experience the prayerful use of Scripture as individuals and as a group. Students will be introduced to simple practices that foster stillness and nurture a prayerful response to God’s love. Students will experience Gospel stories about Jesus’ life, actions and messages. They will be encouraged to reflect on Jesus’ example and, like Jesus, to respond to God’s love in the way that they live. 

Prior Understanding

Invite children to wonder about love.

• Who do we love and who loves us?

• What is the quality of that love? How does love make you feel?

• How do we respond and act around people that we love with our whole heart?

• What do we need to know about love in our ‘heart of hearts’?

• Follow the child, record their wondering and their connections.

Vocabulary - love, scripture, parable, Bible, Godly Play, favourite, prayer, infancy

Points of Provocation

Belonging

• Create a sacred space for prayer 

• Introduce important scripture for the particular Liturgical Year. For example; The Infancy Narratives in Luke and Matthew.

Being 

• Listen to the Bible 

• Listen and participate in Godly Play 

• Respond to Godly Play with mixed materials, sandbags, sensory play, practical works, Godly Play, art response.

• Visit the church, light candles and be still and listen in the Church. 

• Draw and paint what they heard in the scripture story, what was their favourite part of the story and what they thought was the most important part of the story. 

Becoming

• Listen to Godly Play: Parables, in particular, The Good Shepherd, The Pearl of Great Price, The Mustard Seed. 

• Make a big book about what we know about God’s love and how we are to live with each other 

• Respond to Godly Play with mixed materials, sandbags, sensory play, practical works, Godly Play materials, art response, theological drawings.

• See, think, wonder response to audio art, animations music and text of the Scripture.

I Wonder Questions

Belonging

• Why is the Bible a special book?

• What do I know about God from the Bible?

• How does God love his people?

• How does God want us to love him? 

• What do I know about Jesus from the Bible?

• What does Jesus teach us about loving others in the Bible? 

Being

• How do I experience God through my senses?

• How am I connected to others who show me how to belong?

• Who is the Good Shepherd?

Becoming

• Who is Jesus/ how does he teach us to love others?

• What do the teachings and parables of Jesus teach us?

• What do the actions and response of Jesus and his disciples teach us?

Environment

• Provide a variety of different Children’s Bibles with a variety of illustrators.

• Present Bible stories and picture books about people in the Bible 

• Gather mixed materials, sand bags, Godly Play kits to work with scripture and provide a wide range of response materials, craft, natural mixed materials, cloth, paper, boxes…

• Create a wonder wall of children’s questions about Bible characters and stories.

• Provide a variety of images of significant people in the Bible for children to wonder about, e.g. Joseph and Mary, Jesus in the temple.

Godly Play

• The Good Shepherd and World Communion

• The Creation Story

• The Great Family

• The Ark

• The Parables

• The Infancy Narratives

• Pentecost

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[SACRAMENTS] Through the sacraments Catholics recognise and celebrate the presence of God. (TCREK005) 

Elaboration:

Refer to specific content about essential elements, symbols, symbolic actions/words in teacher background on unit planner.

See GNFL P - 6 Sacraments Essential Elements, Symbols, Symbolic Actions/Words Resource Document 

Signs of God’s presence       1) in all of life       2) in Jesus’ actions

1. Students will be offered opportunities to grow in appreciation of people and the world around us as signs of the presence of God.

2. They will be supported to see how Jesus used words, actions and the elements of the world (the natural world, water and light, children, gestures) to communicate God’s loving presence. 

Sacramental aspects of God’s presence in and through the essential elements, symbols, symbolic  actions/words:          

Students  will explore the use of water and light as symbols of God’s life and love. They will explore God’s love and his call within a community celebration.   

Through a visit to the church, they will be introduced to the use of these symbols in celebrating of some of the seven Sacraments (Water, Candle/ Light, Bread, Wine).

The Spirit’s action in the Sacraments:               

Students will reflect on God’s presence and action in the sacraments. 

They will wonder about water and light as symbols of God’s life and love, presence and action. 

They will engage with these symbols as prompts for prayer together.  

Students will visit the church to identify items used in celebrations of the Sacraments. 

Being signs of God’s presence to others:         

They will identify ways in which they can be signs of God’s presence and love through the way they live and the way they care for God’s world and  the people in their lives. 

Prior Understanding

Follow the child and notice the language they use, actions, rituals, play that shows a connection and awareness of the presence of God in themselves, their relationships and in creation.

Vocabulary - sacrament, ritual, creation, sign, symbol

Points of Provocation

Belonging

• Establish classroom routines around the prayer table/ basket.

• Provide children opportunities to be engaged in rituals eg. Mass, morning prayer and unpack these experiences explicitly. Name the signs and the symbols.  e.g. “We light the candle to remind us that Jesus (the Christ) is the light of the world”.

• Invite children to bring in symbols and signs of their baptism or naming rituals.  (As an example of a significant ritual that connects them to others)

• Set up a learning centre/display about the symbols, signs of Baptism. 

• Share the letters from parents.

Being

• Invite parents to write a letter to their child telling that child of their love for them and why they chose their name for them. (these letters to be collected to make a big book/display folder, children write a response to their parent’s letter of love.)

Becoming

• Create a roster of roles/turns to help set up the prayer table/space and contribute to the prayer space.  e.g Class liturgical calendar wall hanging /clock

• Invite each child to contribute something to the rituals and symbols in the liturgy. 

• Engage in prayer practice and make individual responses. (https://www.prayerspacesinschools.com/ )

I Wonder Questions

Belonging

• How do you participate in the rituals at home and at school?

• Who can we share these rituals with?

• Who helps us to share in the rituals with our community?

• What do we remember about being in the church and the symbols and signs of God’s presence?

Being

• Who chose your name and why?

• How do I enter into my family rituals? eg. setting the table, bedtime rituals

• What are the rituals at school?

• How do we show God is with us in our prayer time? (lighting the candle)

Becoming

• How are the rituals at home or at school special to you and your family?

• How do the rituals connect you to others? (including the church)

• How can I know God is with me?

Environment

• Provide a Baptism corner with a font, a small jug of water, a shell, a paschal candle,  a baby dressed in white, oil to anoint the baby, white robes and towels.

• Gather images, picture books, big books showing the different sacraments of the Catholic Church. 

• Provide a mass centre include an altar, ambo, vestments, chalice, paten, lavabo, corporal, purifiers, standing cross, a children’s Bible.

• Display examples of signs and symbols that evoke rituals and allow children to play and experiment with ritual and symbol making of their own. e.g. oil, water, candles (battery), liturgically coloured cloths.

Godly Play

• The Holy Family: Baptism

• The Tent and the Tabernacle

Scriptures

               Matthew 3:13-17 The Baptism of Jesus  

              Then Jesus came from Galilee to John at the Jordan, to be baptized by him.

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[CHRISTIAN PRAYER] Prayer is a way of talking to and listening to God that enables us to grow in a loving relationship. (TCREK006) 

Elaboration: Students will be supported to be open to a loving relationship with God and will engage with prayer as a listening experience and an experience of talking to their loving God. They will learn that prayer changes us. They will be introduced to simple practices that help us enter into prayer, for example, stillness, awareness of breath, images/symbols, music, gesture/movement. Students will be invited to express prayer in a variety of different ways. They will be encouraged to use their own words to praise God, to give thanks and to present needs. They will confirm use of the Sign of the Cross as a means of both entering prayer and a prayer itself and will become familiar with the formal prayers, Our Father and Hail Mary.  

Prior Understanding

Visit the sacred spaces and places in and around your school, follow the child, record their questions and wonderings. 

• What do they know?

• What do they want to know?

• What are they drawn to?

Vocabulary - prayer, the sign of the cross, Amen, icon, cross, artefact, meditation, praise, gratitude, sacred, chant

Points of Provocation

Belonging

• Share morning prayer circle / Christian meditation.

• Sing songs/ words of prayer in praise and gratitude.

• Visit the church. 

• Learn about communal sacred spaces. e.g. prayer garden.

Being

• Create a prayer focus area.

• Organise a prayer table/basket of prayer items, cross, icons, 

• Gather personal artefacts that connect children with their home and school – for example photos of family/celebrations e.g baptism candle.

• Welcome by name inclusive of culture, religion, identity. "Good morning …and may God (Allah) bless you.”

Becoming

• Experience and learn songs/prayers of praise and gratitude. TAIZE Prayer, simple chants and clapping rhythms.

• Participate in prayer as a way of talking and listening to God. 

• Provide experiences for children to discover prayer can take many forms and be involved in any time in any place.

• Expose children to a variety of formal and informal prayers e.g.  The sign of the Cross, Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory be.

• Make time for stillness and silence and Centring Prayer or Christian Meditation. 

• Provide a ‘still tent’ in the classroom. 

I Wonder Questions

Being

• What it is like to talk and listen to God?

• How we can talk and listen to God?

• Why do we talk and listen to God?

• Why pray?

• Where I can pray?

• If Jesus can hear my prayer?

Belonging

• Who I can pray with?

• How familiar prayer connects us to our faith community?

• How families experience prayer?

Becoming

• How I can pray?

• What words, thoughts, feelings I can pray?

• How I can know God?

• How does God know me?

• How prayer will change me?

• How prayer can help me?

Environment

• Share the scripture from Jesus is the Good Shepherd Psalm 2,  light a candle for prayer and enjoy the light. 

• Provide 2D and 3D scripture-based stories; leave them at a low table for children to revisit and wonder and work with. For example. The Good Shepherd parable box, The Holy Family, The Good Shepherd (Wooden Godly Play figures) 

• Provide mixed material and response materials for children to draw and or write about these stories. Invite children to draw, paint, build, construct a response to the provocations.

• Share and have available a range of songs and psalms for children to choose to listen to or sing at any time but especially at class prayer time.

• Provide a range of images, prayer cards, candles, statues, vases, flowers, prayer books, bibles, cloths for children to be able to create prayer spaces or build the class sacred space inside or outside.

Godly Play

• The Holy Family

• The Good Shepherd parable box

• The Good Shepherd (Wooden Godly Play figures)

• Jesus Blesses The Children

• The Parable of The Sower

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[CHRISTIAN LIFE] God loves every person and has made each one unique. (TCREK007) 

Elaboration: Students will be encouraged to recognise that God loves every person and all of life. They will explore and express their unique identity. They will be encouraged to identify their talents and gifts, to rejoice in their uniqueness, God’s loving gift. Students will be supported to develop wonder, a sense of respect and an appreciation of diversity. Students will consider how Jesus showed care and respect for every person and all of life. Students will investigate making loving choices and explore how choices and actions affect others.  

Prior Understanding

Follow the child and notice the language they use, actions, reactions, play that shows a connection and awareness of the values and dispositions of the Christian life. For example, “love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control” (Galatians 5:22-23). Gratitude, forgiveness and other Christian virtues and character strengths can be added to the list.  

Vocabulary - Christian, talent, love, diversity, value, gratitude, generosity, peace, joy, patience, faithfulness

Points of Provocation

Belonging

• Share I am happy to be me because…

• Create a class or individual Gratitude Journal 

• Make a book about love

• Draw what it feels, sounds like when we love others.

• Focus on family, class, school, friends, sport relationships and positive interactions, reactions and responses. 

• Create a class mural add things children value and are learning to do and be with others. Include stories and photos.

Being

• Share a talent with the class. 

• Create an I am special story/ collage of gifts and talents. 

• Gather photos, mirrors, exploring differences 

• Sing ‘Jesus loves me’

• Brainstorm experience of love.

• Draw what it feels, sounds like to be loved 

• Share stories that value diversity - about how we are alike and how we are different.

• Engage in mime, drawings, discussion about how we are alike and how we are different.

Becoming

• Read and respond to the story of Wilfred, Gordon, Mc Donald, Partridge by Mem Fox 

• Share gratitude songs: If I Were a Butterfly, Hi God series. 

• Invite children to record themselves modelling respect towards others. 

• Discuss - Can I make others happy/sad? How do I make others feel?

• Use role-play, images, cards to display good and poor choices and their consequences.

I Wonder Questions

Belonging

• How do I love others?

• How do I show love for others?

• How do I show love for myself?

• How do I show love to my family?

• How can I experience God’s love?

• How am I like God?

• How does God want me to love others?

Being

• How I am special?

• What are my gifts and talents?

• Why am I special?

• Why am I special to God?

• How do I know I am loved?

• Who loves me?

• How do I know God loves me?

• What does it feel like to be loved?

Becoming

• Who are my friends?

• How do I become a friend to others?

• How is Jesus my friend?

• How God teaches us to make loving (good) choices

• How can I show love to others this week/ today?

• How can I show respect for others?

• What is a good/ bad consequence?

• How does knowing that I am loved by God help me to appreciate others?

Environment

• Provide images of children and people from around the world.

• Provide songs and games that highlight good and positive relationships, forgiveness songs, appreciation of God’s gifts to us of love, friendship, peace. e.g. Peace is Flowing Like a River, If I Were a Butterfly, Come As You Are, Come to the Circle

• Share different foods to try and taste from different cultures.

• Provide a range of picture books that celebrate diversity (different cultures e.g Tasmanian Aboriginal culture)

• Gather images of different faces showing different emotions and reactions.

• Provide different prayer spaces to explore different ways to pray, joy, praise, forgiveness, stillness, gratitude, compassion …

• Prayer Spaces  (https://www.prayerspacesinschools.com/ )

Godly Play

• The Good Shepherd

• The Lost sheep

• The Ten Best Ways

• The Good Shepherd and World Communion

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[RELIGION, CULTURE & SOCIETY] All people belong to one community. (TCREK008) 

Elaboration: Students will explore and celebrate the richness of our one human family, united in God’s love. They will consider groups within the human family, investigate some factors that unite them and explore how they express their connections. Students will explore Jesus’ way of welcoming all and consider some of his images of unity (eg The Vine and the Branches).  They will identify groups of people who follow Jesus and celebrate connections within the big Christian family.  

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Inquiry & Communications

Questioning and Theorising

Responding to questions with thoughts, and naming feelings, ideas and decisions (TCREI001)

Elaboration: 

• responding to open questions about where God is present in the world

• expressing feelings and thoughts about God

• making choices about how to act towards others and ourselves

• cultivating self-respect by showing mutual respect

Interpreting Terms and Texts

Listening to stories to learn about characters, words, concepts and values relating to love (TCREI002)

Elaboration:

• listening to biblical stories and wondering about their deeper meanings

• role-playing biblical and other stories (e.g., stories from the lives of the saints)

• using Godly play dolls to play creatively with biblical stories

• learning about things that were different about the world Jesus lived in as a child from the way things are now

Communicating

Sharing observations, thoughts, feelings and ideas (TCREI003)

Elaboration:

• taking turns to let others speak in prayer time

• taking turns and listening to others’ thoughts and ideas about how God is love in us, our families and the world

• visualising and imagining stories about Jesus that show us God’s love for us and acting them out

• naming the ways that Jesus shows us how to love one another because God loves us first, and making models, drawings or installations to express this to others

• taking turns to share thoughts and reflections about how God loves us

• taking turns to share thoughts and feelings about how we experience God’s love in others and in the world

_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Discernment & Making Connections

See: Identifying and Reflecting

Using senses to name important words and feelings (TCRED001)

Elaboration:

• using senses to name feelings

• using sight, smell, hearing, taste and touch to provoke responses that identify and reflect on big ideas and significant feelings

Judge: Evaluating and Integrating

Listening and responding to others’ ideas and thoughts. Pondering, and wondering and asking questions about our world (TCRED002)

Elaboration: 

• listening and responding to others’ ideas and thoughts about God’s love

• pondering, wondering and asking questions about how we experience God’s love in our lives

• drawing some conclusions about how Jesus teaches us to be open to God’s love

Act: Responding and Participating

Applying ideas about what could be done to model for others some loving choices (TCRED003)

Elaboration:

• naming behaviours that reflect being loved by God

• implementing plans and processes that promote self-respect and mutual respect

• sharing with others what being loved by God feels like and how it changes us

_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Achievement Standards

By the end of Foundation Year, students bring their sense of wonder to God as Mystery, as giver of all life and as love, revealed in Jesus, friend and brother. Celebrating God’s love and mystery in the church community, they describe the sacraments as celebrations of God’s presence. Students value both the uniqueness of the human person and the oneness of the human family. They engage with the Word of God through Scripture stories that tell of his love; they identify ways of both experiencing that love in people and in their world and, in turn, sharing it through their own loving actions. They experience prayer as talking to, listening to, and growing in loving relationship with God.

Students will be encouraged to use their imaginations when engaging with Sacramental signs and the Parables of Jesus.

Students listen, engage with and respond to sacred texts and stories, reflect on characters and concepts and share observations, thoughts, feelings and ideas. In diverse ways they express their emerging understanding of and engagement with the teachings of the Catholic Church, with Sacramental signs and with religious events and rituals. Through reflective practices, they develop ways of making loving choices that express care for self, for others and for their world.

_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Doctrinal Concepts

[GOD] 

1. God is known as Father, Son and Holy Spirit.   CR 233 

2. God loves each of us. CR 221 , 1604 

3. God is always with us. CR 410 

4. God is our loving creator and continues to give us life. CR 293 

5. We experience God in other people’s love for us. CR 308 

6. God invites us to respond in love. CR 357 

[JESUS CHRIST]

1. Jesus is a human being like us. CR 464 , 469 

2. Jesus is a member of a family. CR 531 , 533 

3. Mary is the mother of Jesus. CR 488 , 508 

4. Jesus teaches us about God, his Father. CR 151 , 240 

5. Jesus is our friend and brother. 142 , 460 

[CHURCH]

1. Jesus invites people into his community. CR 959 

2. The Church is a community that celebrates and shares the life of Jesus. CR  960 

3. Baptism welcomes people into the Church. CR 1213 

[SCRIPTURE]

1. In the Bible we find out about the life of Jesus. CR 124 , 125 

2. The Bible contains many stories about the love shared between God and God’s People. CR 125 , 126 

3. The Good News of Jesus helps us to live well. CR 131 

4. The Bible helps us to pray. CR 2653 , 2654 

[SACRAMENTS]

1. God is always present. CR 301 

2. The sacraments are signs/symbols of God’s action. CR 774 

3. We celebrate when we gather as Church. CR 1118 

4. Our usual place to celebrate sacraments is in the Church. CR 2691 

[CHRISTIAN PRAYER]

1. In prayer we can talk to God. CR 2559 

2. In prayer we can listen to God. CR 2664 

3. Prayer can be expressed in different ways. CR 2663 

[CHRISTIAN LIFE]

1. I am precious, unique and loved by God. CR 27 , 374 

2. God invites me to love and care for myself and for others. CR 1825 

3. My choices and actions affect others. CR 1749 , 1761 

[RELIGION, CULTURE & SOCIETY]

1. People celebrate God’s goodness. CR 843 

2. Christians follow Jesus Christ. CR 836 

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Level Description

The content of the Religious Education curriculum for the Foundation Year is organised in three strands: Knowledge and Understanding, Inquiring and Communicating, and Discerning and Making Connections. The Knowledge and Understanding content descriptions are aligned to the core doctrinal concepts of the eight elements around which the curriculum is structured and which are: Jesus Christ, Christian Prayer, God, Church, Sacraments, Christian Life, Religion, Culture and Society and Scripture. These elements are interrelated as outlined in the Meaningful Structure and are taught in an integrated way appropriate to the specific local context and children’s stage of development. Through the Inquiring and Communicating, and Discerning and Making Connections strands students acquire, develop and apply skills that enable them to engage with the content in ways that, over time, help them to apply in their lives the understandings gained.

Students in Foundation Year will be encouraged and supported to encounter God’s love, experienced in the world around them and in the loving actions of others and celebrated in prayer and the sacraments. They will be introduced to the Bible as a collection of sacred stories about God, loving Creator, who continues to give us life. Through engaging with Gospel stories of his Son, Jesus Christ, their friend and brother, they will learn about his life as a member of a loving family and about his actions, words and loving care for others. Students will investigate examples of his respect for every person and be inspired to treat themselves, other people and all of life with respect. They will explore and express their unique identity, rejoicing in their own and others’ individuality, God’s loving gift. Students will understand the Church as a celebrating community of Christians who, welcomed through the sacrament of Baptism, share God’s love and witness to Jesus’ teachings to care and show respect for all of life.

_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Content Descriptions

Knowledge & Understanding

TCREK001

• God is Mystery, a source of wonder, the giver of all life.

• God is love, always with us and continuing to give life.

• God’s love can be experienced through the love of others and through the world around us.

• God loves each of us and invites us to respond in love.

TCREK002

• Jesus is a human being like us.

• Jesus lived and learned in a loving family.

• Jesus teaches about and shows us the love of God, his Father.

• Jesus cares for us as a friend and brother.

TCREK003

• The Church is a celebrating community of people who share God’s love.

• Through Baptism, we are welcomed into the Church.

• As the church community, we live as friends of Jesus.

TCREK004

• The Bible is a collection of books about God’s love.

• We treasure the Bible as Sacred Scripture, the Word of God.

• The Gospels are the Good News of Jesus, God’s Son.

• The Scriptures can help us to pray and to live the way Jesus lived.

TCREK005

• God is always present.

• The sacraments are signs/symbols of God’s presence and action.

• We celebrate when we gather as Church.

• Our usual place to celebrate sacraments is in the Church.

TCREK006

• Our loving relationship with God grows through prayer.

• In prayer we are present to, listen to, talk to our loving God.

• We can pray in many ways.

• Simple centring practices can prepare us for and support us in prayer.

• Through prayer we learn to show God’s love to others.

TCREK007

• Every person is loved by God.

• Every person is unique.

• Jesus shows us how to care and show respect for all of life.

• By our loving choices we follow Jesus’ example.

TCREK008

• All human beings are united in God’s love.

• Jesus reveals God's love.

• Christians are people who believe in Jesus and live as his friends.

_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

[GOD] God is love. This love can be experienced in people and in the world around us. (TCREK001) 

Elaboration: Students will be encouraged and supported to wonder about God as Mystery. They will learn that Christians refer to God as Father, Son and Holy Spirit. They will have the opportunity to see and experience signs of God’s love in the world around us and will be supported to identify God’s presence in the loving actions of others. Students will be supported to recognise God as our loving creator, who continues to give us life. Students will be given opportunities to experience God’s constant presence and love. They will be supported to develop a loving relationship with God expressed in prayer and shown in loving actions. 

General Capabilites: Literacy, Numeracy, Personal & Social Capability

Cross-Curriculum Priorities: Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander Histories & Cultures

_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

[JESUS CHRIST] Jesus reveals and is God’s love for us. Jesus cares for us. (TCREK002) 

Elaboration: Students will explore stories about Jesus’ life as a person and a member of a loving family. They will learn that Jesus called God his Father. They will identify Mary as Jesus’ mother and explore how she and Joseph cared for him. They will explore examples of Jesus’ loving care for others and be supported to know that Jesus cares for us as a friend and brother. 

General Capabilites: Numeracy,  Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Capability, Critical & Creative Thinking, Personal & Social Capability

_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

[CHURCH] The Church is a celebrating community that shares God’s love. (TCREK003) 

Elaboration: Students will be introduced to the Church as a celebrating community of people who are made one with Jesus and are welcomed through the Sacrament of Baptism. They will identify and explore how this community lives as friends/brothers and sisters of Jesus, sharing God’s love. 

General Capabilites: Literacy, Numeracy,  Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Capability, Critical & Creative Thinking, Personal & Social Capability, Ethical Understanding

Cross-Curriculum Priorities: Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander Histories & Cultures, Asia & Australia's Engagement with Asia, Sustainability

_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

[SCRIPTURE] The Word of God is shared when we read the stories of God’s love in the Bible. (TCREK004) 

Elaboration: Students will be introduced to the Bible as a collection of books that contains many stories of God’s love. They will be supported towards developing an understanding that the Bible is the Word of God that Christians share and respect as Sacred Scripture. Students will be introduced to the Gospels as the Good News of Jesus, God’s Son. They will explore Gospel stories about Jesus, who shows and tells of God’s love. Through a focus on the parable of the Good Shepherd they will encounter Jesus’ way of teaching through stories and parables. Students will experience the prayerful use of Scripture as individuals and as a group. Students will be introduced to simple practices that foster stillness and nurture a prayerful response to God’s love. Students will experience Gospel stories about Jesus’ life, actions and messages. They will be encouraged to reflect on Jesus’ example and, like Jesus, to respond to God’s love in the way that they live. 

General Capabilites: Literacy, Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Capability, Personal & Social Capability, Ethical Understanding, Wisdom

Cross-Curriculum Priorities: Sustainability

_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

[SACRAMENTS] Through the sacraments Catholics recognise and celebrate the presence of God. (TCREK005) 

Elaboration:

Refer to specific content about essential elements, symbols, symbolic actions/words in teacher background on unit planner.

See GNFL P - 6 Sacraments Essential Elements, Symbols, Symbolic Actions/Words Resource Document 

Signs of God’s presence       1) in all of life       2) in Jesus’ actions

1. Students will be offered opportunities to grow in appreciation of people and the world around us as signs of the presence of God.

2. They will be supported to see how Jesus used words, actions and the elements of the world (the natural world, water and light, children, gestures) to communicate God’s loving presence. 

Sacramental aspects of God’s presence in and through the essential elements, symbols, symbolic  actions/words:          

Students  will explore the use of water and light as symbols of God’s life and love. They will explore God’s love and his call within a community celebration.   

Through a visit to the church, they will be introduced to the use of these symbols in celebrating of some of the seven Sacraments (Water, Candle/ Light, Bread, Wine).

The Spirit’s action in the Sacraments:               

Students will reflect on God’s presence and action in the sacraments. 

They will wonder about water and light as symbols of God’s life and love, presence and action. 

They will engage with these symbols as prompts for prayer together.  

Students will visit the church to identify items used in celebrations of the Sacraments. 

Being signs of God’s presence to others:         

They will identify ways in which they can be signs of God’s presence and love through the way they live and the way they care for God’s world and  the people in their lives. 

General Capabilites: Literacy, Numeracy, Personal & Social Capability, Ethical Understanding

Cross-Curriculum Priorities: Sustainability

_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

[CHRISTIAN PRAYER] Prayer is a way of talking to and listening to God that enables us to grow in a loving relationship. (TCREK006) 

Elaboration: Students will be supported to be open to a loving relationship with God and will engage with prayer as a listening experience and an experience of talking to their loving God. They will learn that prayer changes us. They will be introduced to simple practices that help us enter into prayer, for example, stillness, awareness of breath, images/symbols, music, gesture/movement. Students will be invited to express prayer in a variety of different ways. They will be encouraged to use their own words to praise God, to give thanks and to present needs. They will confirm use of the Sign of the Cross as a means of both entering prayer and a prayer itself and will become familiar with the formal prayers, Our Father and Hail Mary.  

General Capabilites: Numeracy, Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Capability, Critical & Creative Thinking, Personal & Social Capability

Cross-Curriculum Priorities: Sustainability

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

[CHRISTIAN LIFE] God loves every person and has made each one unique. (TCREK007) 

Elaboration: Students will be encouraged to recognise that God loves every person and all of life. They will explore and express their unique identity. They will be encouraged to identify their talents and gifts, to rejoice in their uniqueness, God’s loving gift. Students will be supported to develop wonder, a sense of respect and an appreciation of diversity. Students will consider how Jesus showed care and respect for every person and all of life. Students will investigate making loving choices and explore how choices and actions affect others.  

General Capabilites: Numeracy, Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Capability, Critical & Creative Thinking, Personal & Social Capability

Cross-Curriculum Priorities: Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander Histories & Cultures, Asia & Australia's Engagement with Asia

_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

[RELIGION, CULTURE & SOCIETY] All people belong to one community. (TCREK008) 

Elaboration: Students will explore and celebrate the richness of our one human family, united in God’s love. They will consider groups within the human family, investigate some factors that unite them and explore how they express their connections. Students will explore Jesus’ way of welcoming all and consider some of his images of unity (eg The Vine and the Branches).  They will identify groups of people who follow Jesus and celebrate connections within the big Christian family.  

General Capabilites: Numeracy, Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Capability, Critical & Creative Thinking, Personal & Social Capability

Cross-Curriculum Priorities: Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander Histories & Cultures, Asia & Australia's Engagement with Asia, Sustainability

_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Inquiry & Communications

Questioning and Theorising

Responding to questions with thoughts, and naming feelings, ideas and decisions (TCREI001)

Elaboration: 

• responding to open questions about where God is present in the world

• expressing feelings and thoughts about God

• making choices about how to act towards others and ourselves

• cultivating self-respect by showing mutual respect

General Capabilites: Numeracy, Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Capability, Critical & Creative Thinking, Personal & Social Capability

Cross-Curriculum Priorities: Sustainability

Interpreting Terms and Texts

Listening to stories to learn about characters, words, concepts and values relating to love (TCREI002)

Elaboration:

• listening to biblical stories and wondering about their deeper meanings

• role-playing biblical and other stories (e.g., stories from the lives of the saints)

• using Godly play dolls to play creatively with biblical stories

• learning about things that were different about the world Jesus lived in as a child from the way things are now

General Capabilites: Literacy, Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Capability, Critical & Creative Thinking, Personal & Social Capability, Ethical Understanding, Wisdom

Cross-Curriculum Priorities: Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander Histories & Cultures

Communicating

Sharing observations, thoughts, feelings and ideas (TCREI003)

Elaboration:

• taking turns to let others speak in prayer time

• taking turns and listening to others’ thoughts and ideas about how God is love in us, our families and the world

• visualising and imagining stories about Jesus that show us God’s love for us and acting them out

• naming the ways that Jesus shows us how to love one another because God loves us first, and making models, drawings or installations to express this to others

• taking turns to share thoughts and reflections about how God loves us

• taking turns to share thoughts and feelings about how we experience God’s love in others and in the world

General Capabilites: Numeracy, Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Capability, Critical & Creative Thinking

Cross-Curriculum Priorities: Sustainability

_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Discernment & Making Connections

See: Identifying and Reflecting

Using senses to name important words and feelings (TCRED001)

Elaboration:

• using senses to name feelings

• using sight, smell, hearing, taste and touch to provoke responses that identify and reflect on big ideas and significant feelings

General Capabilites: Numeracy, Critical & Creative Thinking, Personal & Social Capability, Ethical Understanding

Cross-Curriculum Priorities: Sustainability

Judge: Evaluating and Integrating

Listening and responding to others’ ideas and thoughts. Pondering, and wondering and asking questions about our world (TCRED002)

Elaboration: 

• listening and responding to others’ ideas and thoughts about God’s love

• pondering, wondering and asking questions about how we experience God’s love in our lives

• drawing some conclusions about how Jesus teaches us to be open to God’s love

General Capabilites: Literacy, Numeracy, Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Capability, Critical & Creative Thinking, Personal & Social Capability, Ethical Understanding

Cross-Curriculum Priorities: Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander Histories & Cultures, Asia & Australia's Engagement with Asia, Sustainability

Act: Responding and Participating

Applying ideas about what could be done to model for others some loving choices (TCRED003)

Elaboration:

• naming behaviours that reflect being loved by God

• implementing plans and processes that promote self-respect and mutual respect

• sharing with others what being loved by God feels like and how it changes us

General Capabilites: Literacy, Numeracy, Critical & Creative Thinking, Personal & Social Capability

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Achievement Standards

By the end of Foundation Year, students bring their sense of wonder to God as Mystery, as giver of all life and as love, revealed in Jesus, friend and brother. Celebrating God’s love and mystery in the church community, they describe the sacraments as celebrations of God’s presence. Students value both the uniqueness of the human person and the oneness of the human family. They engage with the Word of God through Scripture stories that tell of his love; they identify ways of both experiencing that love in people and in their world and, in turn, sharing it through their own loving actions. They experience prayer as talking to, listening to, and growing in loving relationship with God.

Students will be encouraged to use their imaginations when engaging with Sacramental signs and the Parables of Jesus.

Students listen, engage with and respond to sacred texts and stories, reflect on characters and concepts and share observations, thoughts, feelings and ideas. In diverse ways they express their emerging understanding of and engagement with the teachings of the Catholic Church, with Sacramental signs and with religious events and rituals. Through reflective practices, they develop ways of making loving choices that express care for self, for others and for their world.

_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Doctrinal Concepts

[GOD] 

1. God is known as Father, Son and Holy Spirit.   CR 233 

2. God loves each of us. CR 221 , 1604 

3. God is always with us. CR 410 

4. God is our loving creator and continues to give us life. CR 293 

5. We experience God in other people’s love for us. CR 308 

6. God invites us to respond in love. CR 357 

[JESUS CHRIST]

1. Jesus is a human being like us. CR 464 , 469 

2. Jesus is a member of a family. CR 531 , 533 

3. Mary is the mother of Jesus. CR 488 , 508 

4. Jesus teaches us about God, his Father. CR 151 , 240 

5. Jesus is our friend and brother. 142 , 460 

[CHURCH]

1. Jesus invites people into his community. CR 959 

2. The Church is a community that celebrates and shares the life of Jesus. CR  960 

3. Baptism welcomes people into the Church. CR 1213 

[SCRIPTURE]

1. In the Bible we find out about the life of Jesus. CR 124 , 125 

2. The Bible contains many stories about the love shared between God and God’s People. CR 125 , 126 

3. The Good News of Jesus helps us to live well. CR 131 

4. The Bible helps us to pray. CR 2653 , 2654 

[SACRAMENTS]

1. God is always present. CR 301 

2. The sacraments are signs/symbols of God’s action. CR 774 

3. We celebrate when we gather as Church. CR 1118 

4. Our usual place to celebrate sacraments is in the Church. CR 2691 

[CHRISTIAN PRAYER]

1. In prayer we can talk to God. CR 2559 

2. In prayer we can listen to God. CR 2664 

3. Prayer can be expressed in different ways. CR 2663 

[CHRISTIAN LIFE]

1. I am precious, unique and loved by God. CR 27 , 374 

2. God invites me to love and care for myself and for others. CR 1825 

3. My choices and actions affect others. CR 1749 , 1761 

[RELIGION, CULTURE & SOCIETY]

1. People celebrate God’s goodness. CR 843 

2. Christians follow Jesus Christ. CR 836 

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Level Description

The content of the Religious Education curriculum for Years 1 and 2 is organised in three strands: Knowledge and Understanding, Inquiring and Communicating, and Discerning and Making Connections. The Knowledge and Understanding content descriptions are aligned to the core doctrinal concepts of the eight elements around which the curriculum is structured and which are: Jesus Christ, Prayer, God, Church, Sacraments, Christian Life, Religion, Culture and Society, and Scripture. These elements are interrelated as outlined in the Meaningful Structure and are taught in an integrated way appropriate to the specific local context and children’s stage of development.  Through the Inquiring and Communicating, and Discerning and Making Connections strands students acquire, develop and apply skills that enable them to engage with the content in ways that, over time, help them to apply in their lives the understandings gained.

Students in Years 1 and 2 wonder about God as Mystery who gives all of life and are supported to recognise his presence in themselves, in other people and in all aspects of creation, seen as good and wondrous. They discover and celebrate the uniqueness, dignity and freedom of every person, investigating also the making of choices to act in life-giving ways. They are supported to respond to the Holy Spirit in their lives and to grow in relationship with God, the loving Father revealed by Jesus, who is the centre of their Christian faith. They experience prayer as an expression of relationship with God and develop a repertoire of supportive practices that nurture a reflective spirit. Recognising the Bible as a sacred book that tells of God’s love, they engage with the Scriptures as a source of and support for prayer, recognise its Old Testament–New Testament structure and explore some aspects of the Gospel, the Good News of Jesus. Through involvement with Gospel stories they explore some aspects of Jesus’ life, including his growing years in his Jewish family setting, and they investigate his later life, relationships, example and teachings. Recognising Jesus as friend and brother, they identify aspects of his life that reveal the way God wants us to live in relationship with him and in harmony with others and with the world he continues to create. They focus on the Church as a community of God’s people, recognising Baptism as a sacrament of initiation into oneness with Jesus and membership of the Church. They explore the words, symbols and ritual elements of the sacrament and consider how God’s action through this first of the sacraments enables growth in love for others and transforms Christians in their life journey.

_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Content Descriptions

Knowledge & Understanding

TCREK009

• God is Mystery, a source of wonder, the giver of all life.

• All of life, made by God through love, is good and wondrous.

• God’s Spirit is present in all people and in the world around us.

• God’s plan is for us to live in harmony with him and with all he has created. 

• God is love and invites us to respond in love.

TCREK010

• Jesus, Son of God, is a human being like us.

• He lived, grew and learned about himself, his people, the world and about his mission as Son of God.

• Jesus reveals God’s love for us.

• As our friend and brother, Jesus shows us how to live.

TCREK011

The Church is a community of people who:

• Believe in Jesus and listen and respond to his Good News.

• Through Baptism, we are one with Jesus and come together as God’s people. 

• Are empowered by the Holy Spirit to welcome, celebrate, share, and serve.

TCREK012

• The Bible is the sacred book that tells us about God’s love.

• The Old Testament in the Bible tells us about God’s love for his people in the time before the birth of Jesus.

• The New Testament in the Bible contains the Gospels, the Good News of Jesus.

• Through the Gospels we can learn about Jesus’ life, about the people who believed in him, and about how to live the way Jesus lived.

• We can use the Scriptures to help us to pray alone or together.

TCREK013

• God is present in people and the world around us. 

• Sacraments are sacred actions and signs of the Church that celebrate God’s presence and action in our lives. 

• Through the Sacraments, Jesus continues his actions of welcoming, healing and serving.

• Through Baptism, the first of the Sacraments of Initiation, we become one with Jesus and share his life as members of the Christian Church.

TCREK014

• Prayer is about relationship with God, who is with us.

• We listen to God in prayer and are invited to respond in silence, in words, in action.

• Prayer nurtures our hearts and spirit and shapes our actions.

• Jesus prayed regularly and taught others how to pray.

• Jesus and Mary are models of prayers for us.

• Believers pray with the help of silence, words, music, action, breathing practices for stillness, images, symbols and nature.

TCREK015

• God gives life to every person.

• Every human person is unique and loved by God.

• All people and all of life deserve respect.

• Like Jesus we can show how to care, and show respect, for all of life.

• By our loving choices we follow Jesus’ example.

TCREK016

• Many factors help shape what people believe and how they live.

• People who believe in and follow Jesus are called Christians.

• Christians belong to many Churches.

• The one Spirit of Jesus is active in all Christian Churches. 

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

[GOD] God is the giver of all life. God’s Holy Spirit is experienced in the people and world around us. (TCREK009) 

Elaboration: Students will be encouraged to wonder about God as Mystery. They will learn that Christians believe that God is one: Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Students will explore that God is the giver of all life. They will be supported to grow in appreciation that, coming from God, creation itself is good and wondrous. They will have the opportunity to experience the mystery of God’s Holy Spirit present in people and in the world around us. Students will reflect on our loving God, always present, and the invitation to respond in love and live in harmony with others and all of God’s creation. 

General Capabilites: Literacy, Ethical Understanding

Cross-curriculum Priorities: Sustainability

_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

[JESUS CHRIST] Jesus reveals God’s love for us. (TCREK010) 

Elaboration: Students will explore some aspects of Jesus’ life in his family in Nazareth, of his experience and development in prayer, and of his living within his Jewish community. They will consider how these aspects influenced Jesus’ understanding of his relationship with God and others. They will identify aspects of Jesus’ life that reveal the way God wants us to live with him and with others. 

General Capabilites: Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Capability, Critical & Creative Thinking, Personal & Social Capability, Ethical Understanding

_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

[CHURCH] The Church is a believing community that witnesses to Jesus’ life by welcoming, caring, serving and celebrating. (TCREK011)

Elaboration: Students will focus upon the Church as the community of God’s people. They will be supported to recognise Baptism as a celebration of welcome into this community of people who believe in Jesus. They will explore how those who believe in Jesus are helped by his Spirit to live in his way and spread his word by welcoming, celebrating, caring and serving. 

General Capabilites: Numeracy,  Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Capability, Ethical Understanding

_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

[SCRIPTURE] Stories from the Scriptures teach us about the love of God. (TCREK012) 

Elaboration: Students will learn that the Bible is a sacred book that tells us about God’s love. They will learn that the Bible consists of the Old Testament and the New Testament, which contains the Gospels and some letters. They will be introduced to the Gospels as the Good News of Jesus. They will explore God’s love for us through engaging with Gospel stories of Jesus. Through a focus on the parable of the Good Shepherd they will be led to appreciate that God always looks out for us and will encounter Jesus’ way of teaching through stories and parables. They will experience how the Scriptures help us in personal & communal prayer. 

General Capabilites: Literacy, Numeracy, Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Capability, Personal & Social Capability, Ethical Understanding, Wisdom

_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

[SACRAMENTS] The loving presence of Jesus is celebrated in the sacraments. (TCREK013) 

Elaboration:

Refer to specific content about essential elements, symbols, symbolic actions/words in teacher background on unit planner.

See GNFL P - 6 Sacraments Essential Elements, Symbols, Symbolic Actions/Words Resource Document  

Signs of God’s loving presence      i)     in all of life      ii)     in  the actions of  Jesus

Students will be offered opportunities to grow in appreciation of people and the world around us as signs of the presence of God.  

i) They will be supported to see how Jesus used words, actions and elements  of the world  (the natural world, children, gestures, water, oil and light) to communicate God’s loving presence)  

ii) Students will explore how Jesus‘ actions of welcoming and uniting (e.g. in gathering and blessing) are present in the Sacrament of Baptism. 

Sacramental aspects of God’s presence in and through the essential elements, symbols, symbolic actions/words.

i)    Students will note the three groups of the seven Sacraments: Initiation, Healing, Communion for Service (Becoming one,  Becoming healed, Together for others)     

ii)   They will explore the significance of water in human life and in the story of the Jewish people and will engage with the story of Jesus’ baptism, which is different from ours. From this account, the main focus will be on God’s words: “You are My beloved Son”

Students  will explore the use of water and light as symbols of God’s life and love. They will explore God’s love and his call within a community celebration.           

They will explore the essential elements, symbols, symbolic actions/words used in the celebration of the Sacrament of Baptism. 

They will define Baptism as the name of Sacrament and Christening as its liturgical celebration and effect and be assisted to reflect on this Sacrament as the gateway to all the others. 

The Spirit’s action in the Sacraments: 

They  will investigate Baptism as a Sacrament of Initiation, through which we become one with Jesus and share in his life as members of the Christian Church.

Being signs of God’s presence to others:

Students will consider the Sacrament of Baptism as the basis for Christian life.  They will identify ways in which they can respond to its call to life in friendship with Jesus, with the world and  with everyone, the people whom he loves.

General Capabilites: Numeracy, Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Capability, Critical & Creative Thinking, Personal & Social Capability

Cross-curriculum Priorities: Sustainability

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[CHRISTIAN PRAYER] Prayer is an expression of our relationship with God. (TCREK014) 

Elaboration: Students will have the opportunity to explore their relationship with God. They will gain knowledge of how to develop this relationship, and investigate ways in which they can creatively express it. They will examine the nature of prayer, looking to Jesus and Mary as models of praying people. They will be introduced to simple practices and supports that help us enter into prayer, for example, silence, breathing focus, posture, music, movement, actions/gestures, the natural environment. They will identify and contribute to spaces specially set aside for prayer as well as experience that we can pray in any place. They will consider and compose some basic forms of informal prayer, for example, thanks, praise, petition, sorrow and engage with the formal prayers of the Sign of the Cross, the Our Father and the Hail Mary. 

General Capabilites: Numeracy, Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Capability, Critical & Creative Thinking, Personal & Social Capability

Cross-curriculum Priorities: Sustainability

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[CHRISTIAN LIFE] God invites me to love and care for myself and others. (TCREK015) 

Elaboration: Students will be invited to discover and celebrate that each of them is unique, precious and loved by God and to recognise that this is so also for every other person. They will explore God’s invitation to care for themselves and each other. Students will consider how God’s love is experienced and shared in times of happiness and of sadness. They will investigate decision making and explore how choices and actions affect others. Students will consider Jesus’ example in making loving choices that showed care and respect for all of life and will identify ways in which they can do the same. 

General Capabilites: Literacy, Numeracy, Critical & Creative Thinking

Cross-curriculum Priorities: Sustainability

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[RELIGION, CULTURE & SOCIETY] For Christians, Jesus Christ is the centre of their faith. (TCREK016) 

Elaboration: Students will explore how people develop beliefs and practices at the personal and communal level. They will be supported to develop awareness of a range of factors (including location, culture, family experiences) that influence outlook, beliefs and practices and to grow in respect for all. They will explore how Jesus was formed in his Jewish family, consider his call for others to follow him in helping him to change the world and engage with accounts of people responding to that call. Students will develop awareness of  the development of Christian Churches and identify some central Christian symbols and practices. They will investigate that the Our Father is a prayer shared by all Christian Churches. They will be supported to recognise the action of the Holy Spirit in Christian people. 

General Capabilites: Literacy, Critical & Creative Thinking, Personal & Social Capability, Ethical Understanding ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Inquiry & Communications

Questioning and Theorising

Responding to questions about religious ideas, events or rituals and recording our thoughts and feelings (TCREI004) 

Elaboration: 

• developing questions about the Mass, its meaning, structure and symbols

• at a class/parish Mass making a photo story of the parts of the Mass using information and communications technology (ICT), and sharing this with parishioners at a morning tea

• brainstorming questions about how to pray, and inviting people from the parish to tell us how they pray

• remembering that whenever we pray, Jesus is praying within us through his Holy Spirit uniting us with God the Father in love

• researching the story of our parish church: using a photo time line, make a noticeboard display for the front office to tell the story of our parish

• using the “Explain Everything” app or equivalent to devise a question for God and give an answer in images and text drawing on Scripture or church teaching

General Capabilites: Literacy, Numeracy, Ethical Understanding

Interpreting Terms and Texts

Listening to and viewing stories from the Scriptures, and discussing characters (TCREI005) 

Elaboration:

• gathering Scripture quotations around a series of themes and making a class mural, story maps or a class big book

• using glossaries to learn the meaning of religious and theological terms

• choosing verses from the Psalms that inspire thanksgiving prayers

• exploring the first creation story (Genesis 1) as though it were a ritual (which it was!) and bringing out the symbolism in the numbers 3, 6 and 7 (first 3 days mirrored in the second 3 days; 6 days of creation; the 7th day, the Sabbath, as containing all time—past, present and future)

General Capabilites: Literacy, Personal & Social Capability, Ethical Understanding, Wisdom

Cross-curriculum Priorities: Sustainability

Communicating

Expressing personal responses and ideas in various ways (TCREI006) 

Elaboration:

• creating Godly play dolls

• sharing Godly play with other classes

• creating artworks that reflect spiritual ideas or religious questions

• ritualising biblical stories and noting how they are full of symbolism

General Capabilites: Numeracy, Critical & Creative Thinking, Personal & Social Capability

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Discernment & Making Connections

See: Identifying and Reflecting

Cultivating a spirit of reflective silence and stillness, and naming important ideas or questions (TCRED004) 

Elaboration:

• using an icon or cross, inviting written prayers for the world on sticky labels and placing them under the cross or icon (to include in class prayer)

• asking hard questions and posting them on a “Mood Wall” in the classroom

• writing reflective responses to lines of Scripture (e.g., “be still and know that I am God”, “Speak Lord, I am listening”, “Come, follow me”, “ ‘I have called you by your name, you are mine’, says the Lord”)

• using Christian meditation to practise openness to God’s love

• expressing gratitude following meditation, e.g., by singing songs of thanks and praise

• learning to listen in silence and stillness to the presence of the Holy Spirit in our hearts, minds and bodies, leading us to discover God’s loving purpose for us

General Capabilites: Literacy, Numeracy, Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Capability, Critical & Creative Thinking, Personal & Social Capability

Cross-curriculum Priorities: Sustainability

Judge: Evaluating and Integrating

Listening to and responding to others’ ideas and thoughts, and wondering and asking questions about ourselves and how we are connected to God and our world (TCRED005) 

Elaboration: 

• examining individually and in small groups questions and thoughts about God

• being open to the Holy Spirit by listening to each other share ideas, thoughts and feelings in circle time

• singing songs that give thanks to God and acknowledging the connectedness of all things in his Holy Spirit

• resting in silence, pondering how God loves us and wants us to know him embraced by his Holy Spirit

General Capabilites: Numeracy, Critical & Creative Thinking, Personal & Social Capability

Cross-curriculum Priorities: Sustainability

Act: Responding and Participating

Sharing some ideas and helping design plans of action that might lead to making loving choices towards improving specific situations at school or beyond (TCRED006) 

Elaboration:

• sharing and discussing how classroom rules and attitudes encourage, protect and guide everyone for the good of all

• constructing posters and signs to build a culture of gratitude in the classroom

• pondering how to be more loving, generous, forgiving, joyful, patient by relaxing into the loving embrace of the Holy Spirit

• creating affirmation paper bags / envelopes to affirm when others have made loving choices towards us as their response to God’s love for them

• exploring ways that the mystery of God’s love, the life-giving presence of the Holy Spirit, is revealed through the community of faith in the Church (e.g., by exploring, using the web, Pope Francis’ humility and kindness)

• creating a blessings meter or a gratitude box in the classroom to encourage kindness, positive attitudes and gratefulness

General Capabilites: Numeracy, Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Capability, Critical & Creative Thinking, Personal & Social Capability, Ethical Understanding

Cross-curriculum Priorities: Sustainability

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Achievement Standards

By the end of Year 2, students can identify God’s Holy Spirit as giver and sustainer of all life and recognise that his love for us is revealed in the Person of Jesus, the centre of faith for Christians. They can acknowledge that we experience God’s loving presence in prayer, in Scripture, in themselves and other people and in the world around us. They are aware that we are invited to grow in relationship with God and to care for ourselves, others and all of life. They can identify the Gospels as the Good News about Jesus, telling us about Jesus’ life and the people who believed in him. They can reflect on Jesus’ example in making loving choices that show care and respect for all life. They can describe the Church as a believing community that celebrates Jesus’ presence in the sacraments and witnesses to him by sharing his love. They can recognise the Sacrament of Baptism and identify its symbolic elements as the basis for the Christian life and as an invitation to live in friendship with Jesus.

Students can reflect on and respond to experiences of prayer, engagement with sacred texts and stories, their own experiences, people and the world around them and record observations, thoughts, feelings and ideas. In diverse ways they can express their emerging understanding of and engagement with religious events and rituals. They can practise stillness, reflect on their connection with God and their world and develop a response to apply at the personal level, within and beyond the school setting.

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Doctrinal Concepts

[GOD] 

1. The Holy Spirit helps us to know who God is. CR 733 

2. God is always present. CR 220 

3. God is experienced in other people’s love for us. CR 308 

4. God invites us to respond in love. CR 357 

5. God is known as Father, Son and Holy Spirit. CR 246 

[JESUS CHRIST]

1. Jesus is the Son of God. CR 724 

2. Jesus is a human being like us. CR 464 , 469 

3. Jesus is a member of a family. CR 531 , 533 

4. Mary is the Mother of Jesus. CR 488 , 508 

5. Jesus is our friend and brother. CR 460 

6. Jesus shows us the way God wants us to live. CR 1716 

[CHURCH]

1. Through the Church, Jesus is present today. CR 764 

2. The Church is a community that listens and responds to the Good News of Jesus. CR 771 

3. Baptism initiates new members into the Church. CR 1213 , 1229 

4. The Holy Spirit helps the Church to live like Jesus. CR 768 

[SCRIPTURE]

1. The Scriptures tell us about God’s love for us. CR 102 , 104 

2. The Gospels tell us about Jesus’ life and the people who believed in him. CR 125-127 

3. The New Testament also tells us about the disciples of Jesus. CR 124 

4. We learn from the Scriptures and we pray with them. CR 2653 , 2654 

[SACRAMENTS]

1. We celebrate the wonder and beauty of God’s presence in people and the world around us. CR 337 , 341 

2. The Church is a sacramental community. CR 1118 

3. There are seven sacraments that are celebrations in the life of God’s People: CR 1088 , 1113 

• Initiation: (1) Baptism, (2) Confirmation, (3) Eucharist CR 1212 , 1275 

• Healing: (4) Penance, (5) Anointing of the Sick CR 1420–1421 

• In Service of Communion: (6) Marriage, (7) Holy Orders. CR 1534–1535 

[CHRISTIAN PRAYER]

1. I am with God in prayer. CR 2560 

2. I can pray at any time, anywhere and in different ways. CR 2660 

3. Prayer involves rituals, symbols, celebrations and silence. CR 2663 

4. Prayer is a loving way of thanking and praising God for life and creation, of asking for forgiveness, and of expressing sorrow. CR 2644 

5. I can ask for help and guidance in prayer for myself and others. CR 2647 

6. Mary teaches us how to listen and respond to God. CR 2617–2619 

[CHRISTIAN LIFE]

1. I am precious, unique and loved by God. CR 27 , 355 , 374 

2. My choices and actions affect others. CR 1749–1761 

3. Jesus shows us how to live. CR 460 

4. In times of happiness and in times of sadness and loss, people can experience God’s love in their care for each other. CR 1829 , 1942,  2300–2301 

[RELIGION, CULTURE & SOCIETY]

1. All Christian Churches share the Spirit of Jesus. CR 836 

2. Christians belong to many Churches. CR 837 , 838 

3. Location, culture and family history influence people’s beliefs and practices. CR 838 

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Level Description

The content of the Religious Education curriculum for Years 3 and 4 is organised in three strands: Knowledge and Understanding, Inquiring and Communicating, and Discerning and Making Connections. The Knowledge and Understanding content descriptions are aligned to the core doctrinal concepts of the eight elements around which the curriculum is structured and which are: Jesus Christ, Prayer, God, Church, Sacraments, Christian Life, Religion, Culture and Society, and Scripture. These elements are interrelated as outlined in the Meaningful Structure and are taught in an integrated way appropriate to the specific local context and children’s stage of development. Through the Inquiring and Communicating, and Discerning and Making Connections strands students acquire, develop and apply skills that enable them to engage with the content in ways that, over time, help them to apply in their lives the understandings gained.

Students in Years 3 and 4 engage with the Scriptures, sacred art and music to explore stories and images that give insights into the mystery of the God of love, Father, Son and Holy Spirit. They recognise that human beings, created in God’s image, occupy a special place in God’s plan and recognise the loving gifts of life, body, mind, spirit, freedom and will. They consider their responsibility and capacity to value these gifts and use them to care for self and others and live in harmony with all of life as they grow in loving relationship with God, others and all of creation. They see the Decalogue, the example of Jesus and his teaching of the Great Commandment as reference points for conscience and as guides for Christian living. They explore the basic elements of liturgy and, at both the personal and the communal level, experience different kinds of prayer, including the Eucharist, the celebration at the heart of Christian prayer and life. They investigate the liturgical cycle of the seasons of the church year, a pattern linked to the life, death and resurrection of Jesus. They explore how Mary is honoured through prayer, the Hail Mary in particular, and through the celebrations of feast days within the liturgical calendar. Recognising the Bible as a library of sacred books and Word of God, they grow in familiarity with its structure, form and content. They encounter God’s Word as part of prayer and worship and seek to listen deeply to uncover the messages it holds for their lives. Celebrating the Gospels as the Good News of Jesus, they explore how and what he taught through action, instruction and stories (parables). They name followers of Jesus as Christians, and recognise that Christianity is essentially linked with Judaism through history and tradition. They investigate how the early Christians continued to spread his message of compassion, healing and forgiveness. They recognise the Church as the community of believers called to celebrate and witness to Jesus (Emmanuel), Son of God. They explore how his actions of healing and forgiving are present in the Church’s sacraments of healing and how he is present in word, sign and reality in the Eucharist, the fullness of the Sacraments of Initiation. They explore how the Church celebrates Jesus’ life, death and resurrection through its liturgy, seasons and feasts and makes his ministry present through liturgy, witness and service. They recognise how the Holy Spirit empowered Mary and empowers them to celebrate God’s Word and to witness to unity and justice.

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Content Descriptions

Knowledge & Understanding

TCREK017

• God, source of life and love, is Mystery.

• Through Jesus we know what God is like.

• We share in God’s life and love.

• Our Creator God continues to give and renew all life.

• Created in God’s image, we occupy a unique place in God’s plan.

• In God’s image, we become fully human through the experience of community.

TCREK018

• The early Christians gathered in community to celebrate the Eucharist, remembering Jesus, Son of God, and telling the story of his compassion and love.

• Jesus, Son of God, shows and teaches us the way God wants us to be healing, forgiving and reconciling people.

• Jesus (God-with-us) is present in the Church through his Holy Spirit, who continues to enliven and guide us to be healing, forgiving, reconciling people.

TCREK019

• The Church is a community of believers that celebrate and make present Jesus and his work.

• The Church celebrates Jesus’ life, death and resurrection.

• The Spirit empowers the Church to celebrate and continue Jesus’ work of worship, witness and service.

• God’s people look to Mary as a helper in times of need.

TCREK020

• Scripture is proclaimed in prayer and worship as the Word of God. 

• Scripture teaches Christians how to live as followers of Jesus.

• In the Gospels we learn about Jesus, his actions, his instruction and his way of teaching.

• Sometimes Jesus taught using stories (parables).

TCREK021

• We celebrate God’s presence in people and in the world around us.

• Sacraments are sacred gifts and signs of the Church that celebrate God’s presence and grace.

• Through the Sacraments, Jesus continues his actions of healing, forgiving, nourishing and transforming.

• Through the Sacraments of Healing and Eucharist, we are strengthened and nourished in the life of Christ.

Sacrament of Matrimony addressed in Yrs 5/ 6 'God'  

Sacrament of Holy Orders addressed in Yrs 5/6 'Church' 

TCREK022

• We pray in personal prayer and we gather for liturgical prayer.

• When we pray together we celebrate God’s presence.

• The Mass, which celebrates the Eucharist, is at the centre of the Catholic community.

• In celebrating the liturgy we use words, actions & signs to express our loving relationship with God.

• There are two great parts of the Mass: the Liturgy of the Word and the Liturgy of the Eucharist.

• The Church’s liturgical calendar helps us throughout the year to focus on the person of Jesus and on the Paschal mystery (his life, death and resurrection).

• Mary is honoured through prayers and through feasts within the cycle of the liturgical year.

TCREK023

• Through God’s love, every person has the gifts of life, body, mind, spirit, and free will.

• We respond to God’s love through our choices about caring for self, others, and for all of life.

• We have the capacity and responsibility to choose between right and wrong.

• The Decalogue and its fulfilment, Jesus’ New Commandment, guide our choices and actions.

• Jesus’ teaching and our consciences guide us in making good choices and acting with love.

• Followers of Jesus choose to live with love for God, self, others and for all of life.

TCREK024

• Because Jesus was born into and lived within Jewish society, our Christian faith has close links  with  Judaism. 

• Jesus lived and learned in his Jewish family and culture. 

• In his teachings & way of life he challenged the society in which he lived. 

• His words and actions showed & taught us to live in relationship with God as loving Father. 

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[GOD] We are created in God’s image and called to belong to a loving community as modelled in the Trinity. (TCREK017) 

Elaboration: Students will engage with the Scriptures to explore stories and images that give us some insights about God as Mystery, for example, breath, light, rock/strength, love. They will examine Christian stories, sacred art and music that seek to present images of God. Students will explore that God is the giver of all life and that he continues to give us life. They will be supported to recognise that human beings, created in God’s image, occupy the special place in God’s plan. Students will explore that Jesus reveals God’s love and has taught us to relate to God as Father. They will be deepened in awareness of God, Trinity of Love, & will be supported to grow in relationship with God, self, each other, all of life. 

General Capabilites: Literacy, Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Capability, Critical & Creative Thinking, Personal & Social Capability, Ethical Understanding

Cross-curriculum Priorities: Sustainability

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[JESUS CHRIST]Jesus is God-with-us (Emmanuel). He shares his Spirit with us. (TCREK018) 

Elaboration: Students will investigate the way people gathered in communities after Jesus’ death and resurrection to remember him, especially through the Eucharist, and to tell the story of his compassion and love. They will be supported to grow in understanding that Jesus is the Son of God who shows us the way God wants us to live. They will explore ways in which Jesus’ life and teaching focus on compassion, healing and forgiveness and how the early Christian communities continued to spread that message. They will consider how Jesus (God-with-us) is present in the church community through his Holy Spirit, who continues to heal, enliven and guide us to be healing, forgiving, reconciling people. 

General Capabilites: Numeracy, Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Capability, Critical & Creative Thinking, Personal & Social Capability

Cross-curriculum Priorities: Sustainability

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[CHURCH] The Church is a community that celebrates and makes present Jesus and his work. (TCREK019) 

Elaboration: Students will consider the Church as a community of believers called to celebrate Jesus and continue his work. They will explore how the Church celebrates Jesus’ life, death and resurrection through the Eucharist and its liturgical seasons and feasts. Students will examine and reflect on how the Holy Spirit inspires the Church to make Jesus’ ministry present through worship, witness and service. They will explore examples of how God’s people look to Mary as a helper in times of need. 

General Capabilites: Literacy, Numeracy, Critical & Creative Thinking, Personal & Social Capability, Ethical Understanding

Cross-curriculum Priorities: Sustainability

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[SCRIPTURE] Scripture is proclaimed in prayer and worship as the Word of God. Scripture teaches Christians how to live as followers of Jesus. (TCREK020) 

Elaboration: Students will be introduced to the Bible as the Word of God. They will be given the opportunity to become familiar with the structure, form and some content of the Bible. They will appreciate the Bible as a collection of sacred books. Students will celebrate the Gospels as the Good News of Jesus. They will explore the life and love of Jesus as recalled in the Gospels. Exploring the parables of the Good Samaritan and of the Sower and the Seeds, they will recognise and experience that Jesus taught using stories (parables). They will reflect upon life in the light of these parables. Students will experience listening to the Word of God as part of prayer and worship. They will explore the structure of the Liturgy of the Word. They will have opportunities to listen, think and reflect on their lives, using Scripture. 

General Capabilites: Literacy, Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Capability, Ethical Understanding, Wisdom

Cross-curriculum Priorities: Sustainability

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[SACRAMENTS] The sacraments are celebrations of the presence of God in the lives of Christians. Through the sacraments, Christians are born into and nourished in the life of Christ. (TCREK021) 

Elaboration:

Refer to specific content about essential elements, symbols, symbolic actions/words in teacher background on unit planner.

See GNFL P - 6 Sacraments Essential Elements, Symbols, Symbolic Actions/Words Resource Document   

Signs of God’s loving presence      i)     in all of life      ii)     in  the actions of  Jesus

i) Students will be offered opportunities to deepen their understanding that people and the world around us are signs of the presence of God. 

ii) They will be supported to see how Jesus used words, actions and the things of the world (voice, touch, anointing, food/meals) to communicate God’s loving presence.    

They will examine Jesus’ teachings about & demonstrations of God’s love shown in forgiveness, reconciliation & healing (Parable of the Forgiving Father & the story of Zacchaeus will be key references). 

They will reflect on examples of Jesus nourishing His friends through sharing life, meals and self. They will consider His gift of self at the Last Supper and on Calvary.

Students will explore how Jesus’ actions of uniting, nourishing, healing, forgiving & blessing are present in the sacraments of the Church through the Holy Spirit. 

Students will reflect on God’s presence and action in the sacraments of Reconciliation, Anointing of the Sick and the Eucharist.

Sacramental aspects of God’s presence in and through the essential elements, symbols, symbolic actions/words:  

They  will investigate the words and ritual elements of the Sacrament of Reconciliation. 

They will learn its key elements: confession, repentance, absolution, satisfaction.   

They will consider examples of Jesus’ blessing and healing of the sick, and will investigate the words and ritual elements of the sacrament of Anointing of the Sick. They will learn its key elements: priest using blessed oils to anoint hands and head with the Sign of the Cross, and prayer.

They will explore the essential elements, symbols, symbolic actions/words used in the celebration of the Sacrament of the Eucharist. They will identify the four-part structure of the Mass. 

The Spirit’s action in the Sacraments:

They will be supported to discover that, through the Sacrament of Reconciliation, our relationship with God and with others is renewed through his loving forgiveness and healing. 

In investigating Anointing of the Sick they will be supported to grow in awareness of respect for the human person and of God’s loving care throughout life. In considering the Eucharist, they will be supported to recognise their oneness with Jesus. They will be encouraged to realise that the Eucharist helps us grow in love for others.

Being signs of God’s presence to others:

Students will identify links between the sacraments and living with God and others. They will consider the sacraments of healing as our call to wholeness and our call to heal brokenness in our world and in others. They will identify ways to forgive, heal hurt, care for human life, support others in sorrow and grow in loving relationships. Students will reflect on examples of witnesses who express the Eucharist in their lives and actions and how it challenges and nourishes us for Christian living. Students will be supported to grow towards and in sacramental life.

General Capabilites: Literacy, Critical & Creative Thinking, Personal & Social Capability, Ethical Understanding

Cross-curriculum Priorities: Sustainability

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[CHRISTIAN PRAYER] The liturgy of the Church expresses and celebrates in ritual our loving relationship with God and helps Christians to live like Jesus. (TCREK022) 

Elaboration: Students will be invited to deepen their relationship with God and with others through prayer, both personal and communal. As individuals and in community they will have opportunities to explore different kinds of prayer and to be involved in different prayer experiences. They will investigate the liturgical cycle of the seasons of the Church year, a pattern linked to the life, death and resurrection of Jesus. They will explore the basic elements of liturgy and will be introduced to the Eucharist as the celebration at the heart of Christian prayer and life. They will explore how we honour Mary through prayers, the Hail Mary in particular, and through the celebration of feast days within the liturgical calendar. 

General Capabilites: Numeracy

Cross-curriculum Priorities: Sustainability

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[CHRISTIAN LIFE] Christians make choices that are informed by the loving example of Jesus. (TCREK023) 

Elaboration: Students will recognise the gifts given to them and to others through the love of God: the gifts of life, body, spirit and the gifts of freedom and will. They will consider how they value these gifts and use them to care for themselves and others. They will learn to discern the voice of conscience and life-giving choices in relation to self, others, the world, and they will engage with the examen as a supportive practice. Students will consider how Christian values provide a basis for life-giving choices and actions. They will explore examples of Jesus showing love in action and will examine how followers of Jesus make loving choices that are guided by the Decalogue and his Great Commandment. 

General Capabilites: Literacy, Numeracy, Critical & Creative Thinking, Personal & Social Capability, Ethical Understanding

Cross-curriculum Priorities: Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islanders Histories & Cultures, Sustainability

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[RELIGION, CULTURE & SOCIETY] Christianity is essentially linked to Judaism through history and tradition. (TCREK024) 

Elaboration: Students will explore aspects of the Jewish society in which Jesus grew, learned and lived. They will identify and reflect on ways in which Christian faith and practice reflect its Jewish roots. They will examine some ways in which Jesus challenged aspects of his society and consider their own outlook in today’s society. They will engage prayerfully with Jesus’ teaching about God as loving Father. 

General Capabilites: Literacy, Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Capability, Personal & Social Capability, Ethical Understanding

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Inquiry & Communications

Questioning and Theorising

Developing questions for investigating religious ideas, events and rituals (TCREI007) 

Elaboration: 

• developing and posing questions about the Trinity as a community of loving Persons

• generating questions about the Mass and why Catholics say “it is what God does for us”

• asking “why are there different forms of writing in the Bible and why is it not all narrative?”

• questioning and reflecting on how Pope Francis is pope, just as St Peter was the first pope

• formulating questions about, and writing examples of, ways that the Spirit of Jesus lives in others and the church community

General Capabilites: Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Capability, Critical & Creative Thinking, Personal & Social Capability

Interpreting Terms and Texts

Being familiar with some of the most significant stories of the Old and New Testaments and discussing characters and meanings (TCREI008) 

Elaboration:

• learning words from glossaries of significant words from the Old Testament and the sacraments, e.g., covenant, initiation, sin, reconciliation

• using a range of methods including digital technologies to plan and conduct an information search about the different genres in the Bible, including parables, proverbs, narratives, psalms, miracle stories, etc.

• defining and explaining the different genres of writing found in the Bible

General Capabilites: Literacy, Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Capability, Critical & Creative Thinking, Personal & Social Capability, Ethical Understanding, Wisdom

Cross-curriculum Priorities: Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islanders Histories & Cultures

Communicating

Representing and communicating religious or spiritual ideas and information using diagrams, models and simple reports (TCREI009) 

Elaboration:

• researching biblical lands and creating three-dimensional maps of geographical areas that relate to important Old Testament stories

• gathering Scripture quotations around a series of themes and making a class mural, story maps or a class big book

• writing student-derived examples of Scripture genres based on biblical texts (e.g., writing a letter to a friend who is far away, encouraging her or him to stay strong and keep going even though she or he is alone)

• retelling Scripture passages illustrating different genres and making shadow puppet plays

General Capabilites: Literacy, Numeracy, Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Capability, Ethical Understanding

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Discernment & Making Connections

See: Identifying and Reflecting

With guidance, identifying questions about religious ideas, events or rituals and recording ideas, thoughts and feelings (TCRED007) 

Elaboration:

• developing searching questions about how the mystery of God helps us grow in wisdom and understanding

• reflecting individually or collectively using imaginative prayer and meditation, journalling, reflective writing

• inviting a guest speaker (e.g., the parish priest) to class to ask him questions, using a Q and A style format, about the Mass, God, the Church, or his vocation

• designing simple surveys to find out what students understand about questions such as “How is the Church animated by the Spirit?”

• using a range of methods including digital technologies to plan and conduct an information search about the teachings of Pope Francis or Pope Leo XIV and what they say about the Church today

General Capabilites: Literacy,  Numeracy, Critical & Creative Thinking, Personal & Social Capability, Ethical Understanding

Cross-curriculum Priorities: Sustainability

Judge: Evaluating and Integrating

Weighing up values and ideas to make connections. Sharing thoughts and suggestions with others. Reflecting, contributing to group dialogue, generating questions and drawing conclusions regarding principles for living responsibly, personally and in society (TCRED008) 

Elaboration: 

• examining individually and collectively the idea of covenant

• listening to the stories of the Old Testament prophets

• examining our own actions and decisions in the light of their example

• weighing up choices

• sharing thoughts and suggestions about how families can live more like a loving community

General Capabilites: Literacy,  Numeracy, Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Capability, Critical & Creative Thinking, Personal & Social Capability, Ethical Understanding

Act: Responding and Participating

Responding at the personal level or, with others, designing, sharing and, where possible enacting, a simple action plan towards improving specific situations at school or beyond (TCRED009) 

Elaboration:

• organising and leading an assembly prayer using Scripture, calling us to trust in God to find peace

• constructing visual representations or mosaics highlighting how the sacraments are celebrations of the presence of God in our lives

• journalling during Lent or Advent to invite Jesus into our choices, and living love by practising gratitude and acts of kindness

• creating a class or school prayer calendar using appropriate Scripture passages

General Capabilites: Literacy,  Ethical Understanding, Wisdom

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Achievement Standards

By the end of Year 4, students can acknowledge that they and all human persons are created in the image of God, and that Jesus (God-with-us) reveals for us that God—Father, Son and Holy Spirit—calls each one of us into a loving relationship with him and each other. They can recognise that Jesus’ loving example, as witnessed in the Gospels, informs the choices and guides the actions of those who follow him. They can recognise that, in the community of the Church, followers of Jesus celebrate God’s loving presence through the liturgy, and are nourished by the sacraments and by his Word in Scripture to live like Jesus. They can identify the Eucharist and describe its ritual elements as the celebration at the heart of Christian prayer and life. They can recognise that Jesus through his sharing of his Holy Spirit is present in the Church and its sacraments, and they can describe how the Spirit enlivens and guides us to be healing, forgiving and reconciling people. They can identify the way we celebrate God’s healing and forgiveness, and describe their ritual elements through the sacraments of Penance and of the Anointing of the Sick.

Students can explore, pose questions about and respond in a variety of ways to religious experiences, texts and stories. They can reflect on living responsibly and can develop, share and enact a response at the personal level and/or a simple plan of action at the school or local level.

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Doctrinal Concepts

[GOD] 

1. We are created in God’s image.  CR 42 , 214 

2. The Scriptures contain many stories and images that give us some insights into the mystery of God.  CR 355 , 380 

3. God trusts us and forgives us.  CR 219 , 220 

4. God calls us to reach out in love to each other.  CR 1706 , 1822 

5. We are gifted and graced, able to share in the transforming life of God. CR 2003 

6. The Father of Jesus is our Father too. CR 238 , 239 , 240 

7. The Holy Spirit enables us to live in communion with God and other people. CR 733-736 

[JESUS CHRIST]

1. After Jesus’ death and resurrection, people gathered in communities to remember him and tell the story of his compassion and love.  CR 767 

2. Jesus is present in the church community through the Holy Spirit, which heals, enlivens and guides.  CR 729 , 747 

3. Jesus is the Son of God, who shows us the way God wants us to live.  CR 561 

4. Jesus teaches us about healing, forgiveness and reconciliation.  CR 588 , 1421 

5. When we are sorry for sinful choices, Jesus understands, forgives us and invites us to a new way of living.  CR 545 , 549 , 589 

[CHURCH]

1. The Church is a community of believers called to celebrate and make present the ministry of Jesus.  CR 783 

2. The Church celebrates Jesus’ life, death and resurrection in the many feasts and seasons of the liturgical year.  CR 1168 

3. The Church is empowered by the Holy Spirit to witness to unity and justice.  CR 791 

4. Mary is a source of strength to all people, especially those in need.  CR 64 , 489 , 967 

[SCRIPTURE]

1. The Scriptures are intended to make us think about and reflect on our lives.  CR 141 

2. The Gospels teach us about the life and love of Jesus.  CR 125 , 515 

3. Jesus taught, using parables and stories.  CR 546 

4. In our prayer and liturgy (worship) we listen to the Scriptures.  CR 2653 , 2654 

[SACRAMENTS]

1. We celebrate the wonder and beauty of God’s presence in people and in the world around us. CR 315 

2. In the sacraments we celebrate the presence of the Holy Spirit in our lives. CR 1116 

3. Baptism, Confirmation and Eucharist celebrate our initiation into the Church.  CR 1212 , 1285 

4. We celebrate God’s healing and forgiveness through the sacraments of Penance and of the Anointing of the Sick.  CR 1421 

5. The sacrament of Eucharist celebrates the presence and action of Jesus. CR 1328–1330 , 1408 

6. God’s presence in family life is celebrated through marriage.  CR 1660 

7. Holy Orders is a call to love and serve the People of God.  CR 1536 

[CHRISTIAN PRAYER]

1. People celebrate and pray together at different times and in different ways. CR 2660 , 2691 , 2720 

2. The celebration of Eucharist is the heart of our community prayer.  CR 2643 

3. When we pray together we celebrate God’s presence. CR 2558 , 2565 

4. We grow in relationship with God and others through prayer. CR 2565 

5. God’s faithfulness and goodness are recalled and celebrated in many ways throughout the liturgical seasons.  CR 1150 , 1151 

6. We honour Mary through prayers and feasts and seasons of the Church’s liturgical year.  CR 971 , 1172 

[CHRISTIAN LIFE]

1. Jesus invites us to follow his teachings and example.  CR 520 

2. Through Jesus’ life, death and resurrection, we have new life.  CR 519 

3. We are challenged to respond to God’s love.  CR 125 

4. Followers of Jesus make loving choices and take responsibility for their actions.  CR1781 , 1954 

5. When we use our gifts we are serving the community and witnessing to the Reign of God. CR 794 , 806 , 1942 

[RELIGION, CULTURE & SOCIETY]

1. Jesus lived in Israel within a Jewish society. His teachings challenged the society in which he lived.  CR 531 , 533 

2. Jesus showed people how to live in a loving relationship with God, whom he called ‘Father’.  CR 534 

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Level Description

The content of the Religious Education curriculum for Years 5 and 6 is organised in three strands: Knowledge and Understanding, Inquiring and Communicating, and Discerning and Making Connections. The Knowledge and Understanding content descriptions are aligned to the core doctrinal concepts of the eight elements around which the curriculum is structured and which are: Jesus Christ, Prayer, God, Church, Sacraments, Christian Life, Religion, Culture and Society, and Scripture. These elements are interrelated as outlined in the Meaningful Structure and are taught in an integrated way appropriate to the specific local context and children’s stage of development. Through the Inquiring and Communicating, and Discerning and Making Connections strands students acquire, develop and apply skills that enable them to engage with the content in ways that, over time, help them to apply in their lives the understandings gained.

Students in Years 5 and 6 explore and reflect on relevant texts in Scripture and in Christian writings to help deepen their understanding of the mystery of God—Father, Son and Holy Spirit. They grow in awareness that all of life, given and sustained by God, is to be received in reverence, protected, nurtured and celebrated. Engaging with Scripture, with church documents and other relevant texts to clarify understandings about the Christian basis for respecting human dignity, they explore responsibilities to self, others and society. They examine Jesus’ relationship to God whom he called Father, special concern for the poor, sick and outcast, and embrace his call to compassion and works of mercy. They consider how the name of Jesus and his titles (“Son of God”, “Messiah”, “Christ”) express his identity and mission, and they embrace that mission as agents of justice, peace and joy. They engage with Jesus as a model pray-er, as expressed within his prayer, the Our Father. Through exploring different kinds of prayer, engaging in a range of prayer experiences, and considering key liturgical feasts and practices of Marian devotion, students deepen their understandings about the Spirit’s action and the place of prayer in their Christian lives. They identify how the Holy Spirit empowers Christians to continue the work of Jesus as signs of God’s love and investigate the Sacrament of Confirmation as the Sacrament linking Baptism and the Eucharist. Recognising the Church as a believing community founded on the faith of the early Christians and empowered by the Holy Spirit, students investigate the Pentecost event and the Spirit’s action in people who carry forward the mission of Jesus. They recognise an example of this in the life of the Church in Australia and investigate the lives of men and women in the early Australian Church and across the ages, appreciating that these can inspire and encourage us. They acknowledge that the Catholic Church in Australia is committed to the mission of the universal church, led by the Pope and guided by the Spirit. They recognise that the Catholic Church shares in searching for knowledge and understanding about God with other faiths.

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Content Descriptions

Knowledge & Understanding

TCREK025

• The central mystery of faith & life is that God—Father, Son and Holy Spirit is one living in love.

• All of life is given, sustained and renewed by the Spirit of God.

• God has entrusted us to hold all life in reverence, and it is to be protected, nurtured and celebrated.

• The Holy Spirit challenges and empowers us to renew our world.

• Living in right relationship with God, each other and creation reflects the Reign of God revealed through Jesus.

TCREK026

• Christians believe that God the Father sent Jesus Christ, the One who saves.

• Jesus offers hope to the world.

• Jesus identifies with the poor, the lonely, sick and the outcast.

• Through his Spirit, Jesus empowers us to act as people of hope.

TCREK027

• From its beginnings at Pentecost, both the Church as a whole and individuals within it have been guided by the Spirit to model and advance the Reign of God.

• In the story of the Catholic Church in Australia we see an example of the Spirit’s ongoing action.

• The lives of men and women across the ages can inspire and encourage us.

• The Pope, successor of Peter, leads in unity a universal church structured and sent to be a sign of life, hope, reconciliation and service to the world.

• The Catholic Church in Australia is committed to the mission of the universal Church, led by the Pope and guided by the Holy Spirit.

• Sacrament of Holy Orders is addressed in Years 5/6 'Church' and from Yrs 3/4 'Sacraments’

Church

TCREK028

• The inspired authors of the sacred books of the Bible present God’s Word in different literary forms and in ways that reflect different social settings.

• The Old Testament tells us of God’s loving covenant with, and loving actions for, his people and reveals his plan for salvation through Jesus.

• The New Testament teaches us about Jesus and the early Christian communities.

• The Gospels contain the foundation of our faith and are at the core of the Church’s prayer and at the centre of Church teaching about how our lives are meant to be lived.

• The Scriptures speak of God’s love, help us to pray and guide our lives.

TCREK029

• God’s Holy Spirit is active in people and in the world around us.

• Sacraments are sacred gifts of God that, through Christ, celebrate God’s presence and grace.

• Through the Sacraments, the Risen Christ nourishes us for ministry and service.

• A Sacramental Church nourishes and celebrates key moments of our lives.

TCREK030

• Jesus, our model for prayer, shared with us his prayer, the 'Our Father '.

• The Scriptures can support, inspire and nourish our prayer.

• Different types of prayer express the many aspects of our lives and our need for and relationship with God, including: (a) thanks, praise, petition, intercession, sorrow, adoration (b) celebrations of the key liturgical feasts (c) the practices of Marian devotion.

• In prayer the Holy Spirit enables us to repent, experience God’s healing love and live in a new way.

• The liturgical calendar supports the prayerful celebration of feasts within the Church’s seasons.

TCREK031

• We are connected with, and responsible for, all aspects of God’s loving gift of life.

• The witness of good people challenges us to continue to strive for justice and peace.

• Our choices have personal, social and global impact.

• The teaching of Jesus, our Church, and Christian leaders in the human family serve as guides for decisions and actions.

TCREK032

• The Church reflects God’s plan for the unity of all people. 

• In different cultures, people search in different ways for goodness and meaning.(The understandings “For Christians, Jesus is the Way”… will be drawn in from the Jesus element).

• The Church respects in other religions everything that is good and true and that supports the search for God. 

• The spiritualities, beliefs and practices of Indigenous Australians can teach us about the human search for God.

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[GOD] God’s goodness is constant. Christians are invited to witness to the Reign of God. (TCREK025)  

Elaboration: Students will explore and prayerfully consider some relevant texts in Scripture and in other Christian writings to help deepen their understanding of God as Mystery: Father, Son and Spirit and will reflect on examples of God’s constant goodness. Students will be supported to grow in awareness that all of life, given and sustained by God, is to be received with reverence, protected, nurtured and celebrated. They will investigate how the Holy Spirit continues to enliven and renew our world. Students will be supported to grow in relationship with our loving God and all of God’s creation. They will explore how living in right relationship with God, with people and our world reflects the Reign of God revealed through Jesus. 

General Capabilites: Literacy, Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Capability, Critical & Creative Thinking, Personal & Social Capability, Ethical Understanding

Cross-curriculum Priorities: Sustainability

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[JESUS CHRIST] Jesus is the Son of God, who offers hope to the world. (TCREK026) 

Elaboration: Students will study the sociocultural and religious contexts of some of the terms now used for Jesus: the Christ, Messiah, Son of God. They will explore the meaning of the name, Jesus (“God saves”), and of the titles, “Christ” (Greek), “Messiah” (Hebrew)— “anointed one”. They will consider how these express his identity and mission. They will investigate that Jesus is sent by the Father as a sign of hope for the world, as revealed in his life, death and resurrection. They will examine Jesus’ special concern for the poor, sick, lonely and outcast, and will consider how the Holy Spirit inspires us to act as people of hope. 

General Capabilites: Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Capability, Critical & Creative Thinking, Personal & Social Capability

Cross-curriculum Priorities: Sustainability

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[CHURCH] The Church is empowered by the Holy Spirit to be a sign of life, hope, reconciliation and service to the world. (TCREK027)  

Elaboration: Students will investigate how the early Church was founded on the faith of the early Christians with Peter as leader. It has been continuously empowered by the Holy Spirit as it was at the Pentecost event. They will explore how the Church honours people from all ages who have been inspirational in carrying forward the mission of Jesus. Students will explore the development of Catholicism in early Australia, and the lives of those men and women who were inspirational in carrying forward the mission of Jesus in the early Australian Church. They will develop an understanding that the Catholic Church in Australia is committed to the mission of the universal Church, operating in a structure that is led by the Pope and guided by the Spirit. They will explore how this mission is lived out at a local (parish) and a diocesan level.  

General Capabilites: Numeracy, Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Capability, Critical & Creative Thinking, Personal & Social Capability

Cross-curriculum Priorities: Sustainability

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[SCRIPTURE] Christians reflect on the action of God in their lives in the light of Scripture, the Word of God. (TCREK028) 

Elaboration: Students will deepen their understanding of the Scriptures as the Word of God. They will explore the different types of writing in the Bible as The Judeo-Christian Scriptures. Students will appreciate that the Hebrew Scriptures Old Testament tell the story of the Israelite people and of their covenant relationship with their loving God. Students will deepen their appreciation that the Gospels are the core of the Church’s prayer and teaching. They will identify the significant place held by the Gospels in every celebration of the Eucharist. They will explore how the New Testament Scriptures teach us about Jesus and the early Christian communities. They will have the opportunity to become familiar with the writings of the early Christian Church through engagement with some texts from the Acts and the letters. Students will be supported to reflect on their lives, using Scripture as “a lamp for my feet and a light for my path” (Ps 118[119]:105). They will be encouraged to identify and memorise brief Scripture phrases that hold meaning for their lives. 

General Capabilites: Literacy, Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Capability, Ethical Understanding, Wisdom

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[SACRAMENTS] The sacraments are ritual celebrations of God’s Spirit in our lives. Sacraments empower Christians in ministry and service. (TCREK029) 

Elaboration:

Refer to specific content about essential elements, symbols, symbolic actions/words in teacher background on unit planner.

See GNFL P - 6 Sacraments Essential Elements, Symbols, Symbolic Actions/Words Resource Document  

Signs of God’s loving presence  i)  in all of life   ii)   in the actions of Jesus:

i) Students will be offered opportunities to deepen understanding that people and the world  around us  are signs of the presence of God.                                     

ii) They will be supported to see how Jesus, who is the greatest Sacrament,  used words, actions and elements of the world  (with his hands to bless and strengthen; with his breathing of his Spirit,) to communicate  God’s loving presence. 

Sacramental aspects of God’s presence in and through the essential elements, symbols, symbolic actions/words:

Students  will explore how Jesus’ actions of conferring his Spirit and strengthening his followers for mission and service are present in the Sacraments of the Church. 

i) Students will explore the Sacrament of Confirmation as one of the three Sacraments of Initiation, the confirming of Baptism (Initiation).  They will investigate symbols of the Holy Spirit:  fire, wind, oil, peace (dove).         

ii) They will identify the essential elements of the Rite of Confirmation and explore the symbols, symbolic actions/words of the Sacrament of Confirmation.

iii) Students will investigate  the Sacrament of Confirmation as an important outpouring of the Holy Spirit as is found in the Pentecost account in Acts of the Apostles. They will explore the  stories of the Spirit’s action  in the lives of followers of Jesus who witness/ed  and serve/d.   

The Spirit’s action in the Sacraments:

Students will reflect on God’s presence and action in the Sacrament  of Confirmation . They will identify how the Spirit  binds Christians more firmly to Christ, empowers them to live the Good News and continue the work of Jesus.

Being signs of God’s presence for others:

Students will identify links between the Sacrament and living with God and others. They will consider how to be living witnesses to the presence of the living Jesus.

General Capabilites: Numeracy, Personal & Social Capability

Cross-curriculum Priorities: Sustainability

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[CHRISTIAN PRAYER] The many forms of prayer facilitate the movement of the Holy Spirit in our relationship with God. (TCREK030) 

Elaboration: Students will deepen their understandings about the place of prayer in their Christian lives through:

• exploring different kinds of prayer (thanks, praise, petition, intercession, sorrow, adoration)

• engaging in a range of prayer experiences

• considering some of the key liturgical feasts

• experiencing the practices of Marian devotion.

They will investigate the Scriptures as sources of and prompts for both personal and communal prayer. They will consider some key liturgical feasts, including a feast of Mary under one of her titles (e.g., Our Lady, Help of Christians), as prayerful celebrations in the life of the Christian community. They will engage with Jesus as a model of prayer, as expressed within his prayer, the 'Our Father'. They will prayerfully examine how within his prayer, the Our Father, Jesus models seven steps about what to ask for. They will be supported to recognise the action of the Holy Spirit in prayer.

General Capabilites: Literacy, Numeracy, Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Capability, Personal & Social Capability

Cross-curriculum Priorities: Sustainability

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[CHRISTIAN LIFE] Christians can respond generously to God’s love for all life. (TCREK031) 

Elaboration: Students will consider the sacredness of all of life as gift from our loving God. They will be guided in a process of discerning how to be responsible for all aspects of life and how to live with respect for self, others and the world. Conscience is a person’s inner guide that helps them make moral decisions. Through considering the example of Jesus and of other witnesses to this way of living, they will explore the call to live justly in relation to individuals and to groups in various situations in society. Students will engage with the Scriptures, church documents and other relevant texts to clarify understandings about the faith basis for respecting human dignity and responding to social issues. In the light of these teachings, they will explore responsibilities to self, others and society.  

General Capabilites: Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Capability, Critical & Creative Thinking, Personal & Social Capability

Cross-curriculum Priorities: Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander Histories & Cultures, Asia and Australia's Engagement with Asia

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[RELIGION, CULTURE & SOCIETY] The Catholic Church shares the search for knowledge and understanding about God with other faiths. (TCREK032) 

Elaboration: Students will explore and reflect on extracts from Christian documents (e.g. Second Vatican Council documents including Gaudium et Spes, The Church in the Modern World, Fratelli Tutti, All Brothers, and Laudato Si, Praise Be to You - some of which is quoted in YOUCAT and YOUCAT For Kids) and will engage prayerfully with scripture to grow in understanding of God’s plan for the unity of all people.  They will consider the Church’s recognition and embrace of everything that expresses and supports the search for goodness and truth in all authentic cultural riches & traditions.  Within this process,  students will prayerfully explore sacramentality and will consider how, within this awareness, Christian prayer and life can be enriched by the spiritualities of Indigenous Australians.   

General Capabilites: Literacy, Numeracy, Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Capability, Critical & Creative Thinking, Personal & Social Capability, Ethical Understanding

Cross-curriculum Priorities: Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander Histories & Cultures

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Inquiry & Communications

Questioning and Theorising

With guidance, identifying questions about religious ideas, events or rituals, and considering our theories, thoughts and feelings in relation to the Christian worldview (TCREI010) 

Elaboration: 

• developing probing questions about the limits of our understanding of God’s infinite and absolute goodness, truth and beauty

• reflecting on why and how we should respect others and care for our planet

• exploring how the Holy Spirit inspires us to act in our families, society, Church and world

• wondering about the mysterious ways in which God constantly surprises and challenges us

General Capabilites: Numeracy, Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Capability, Critical & Creative Thinking, Personal & Social Capability

Interpreting Terms and Texts

Being familiar with stories of the Old and New Testaments and the many ways they and other media tell stories and use words and symbols to help us discover meaning (TCREI011) 

Elaboration:

• identifying and defining terms used in Scripture and the Catechism to make a graffiti wall

• comparing and contrasting parallel Gospel narratives (in Matthew, Mark and Luke) to identify how and why they are alike and how and why they are different 

• developing glossaries of terms and definitions used when understanding the sacraments

• interpreting Scripture passages (using commentaries) where Jesus teaches his disciples how to pray (i.e., as models of how to pray rather than as formula prayers)

General Capabilites: Literacy, Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Capability, Personal & Social Capability, Ethical Understanding, Wisdom

Cross-curriculum Priorities: Sustainability

Communicating

Communicating religious or spiritual ideas and information in a variety of ways: oral, graphic, written, multi-modal (TCREI012) 

Elaboration:

• discussing issues of social justice, human rights, and personal ethics, and their implications for Christians today

• using critical commentaries, analysing the message and meaning of the Beatitudes, and their implications for our own lives

• creating a Beatitude Calendar for the season of Lent or Advent: for every day, one positive action of wholehearted love for God and neighbour, compassion, mercy, forgiveness, peacemaking, honesty, fairness, nonviolence, justice

• expressing something of the invisible/unknowable mystery of God through one of the arts (musical, visual, performative, etc.)

General Capabilites: Literacy, Numeracy, Critical & Creative Thinking, Personal & Social Capability, Ethical Understanding

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Discernment & Making Connections

See: Identifying and Reflecting

Making personal or group observations, naming ideas and questions that are important for living as persons and/or communities in a local or global context (TCRED010) 

Elaboration:

• presenting contrasting views on a global issue, e.g., poverty in the world today, slavery, climate change

• investigating and writing reflectively about the implications of trading fairly for rich countries like Australia and for poor countries like East Timor

• using reputable media, chronicling stories of good news where people demonstrate human kindness and compassion for others

• identifying impoverished communities that need prayerful solidarity, advocacy and material support, e.g., after a natural disaster or war

• exploring how the Exodus story reveals God’s love as something very concrete, practical and even political

General Capabilites: Literacy, Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Capability, Creative & Critical Thinking, Personal & Social Capability, Ethical Understanding, Wisdom

Cross-curriculum Priorities: Asia and Australia's Engagement with Asia, Sustainability

Judge: Evaluating and Integrating

Weighing up competing values and choices and making a contribution to dialogue about worthwhile principles for living responsibly locally or globally (TCRED011) 

Elaboration: 

• examining competing values in the classroom, the community or the nation, and dialoguing and naming core principles for a just society

• listening to Scripture, and identifying an imperative to act with compassion towards others

• considering alternative views about the rights of the child, and identifying what it would mean to treat all children (including the unborn) justly and compassionately

General Capabilites: Numeracy, Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Capability, Creative & Critical Thinking, Personal & Social Capability

Cross-curriculum Priorities: Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander Histories & Cultures, Asia and Australia's Engagement with Asia, Sustainability

Act: Responding and Participating

Personally and collectively exploring options and commitments that could gain improved outcomes in local or global contexts and, where possible, taking some form of action (TCRED012) 

Elaboration:

• setting goals and making commitments, personally and collectively (as a class or school)

• addressing bullying in the classroom or the school and implementing strategies to deal with it

• drawing up an agreement (“covenant”) with each other as a class or school by identifying actions, attitudes and beliefs (i.e., “rules”) that give direction, security and protection for everyone

• faithfully observing some simple and helpful spiritual practices, e.g., daily meditation and prayer, periods of silence and stillness, deep and active listening to each other

General Capabilites: Numeracy, Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Capability, Creative & Critical Thinking, Personal & Social Capability

Cross-curriculum Priorities: Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander Histories & Cultures, Asia and Australia's Engagement with Asia, Sustainability

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Achievement Standards

By the end of Year 6, students can acknowledge the constant goodness of God, reflect on and identify God’s action in their lives in the light of Scripture, and identify ways to respond to his love for all of life. They can explain how Jesus Christ, Son of God, sent by the Father, offers hope to the world and describe how the Church, empowered by the Holy Spirit, is to be a sign of life, hope, reconciliation and service. They can recognise the movement of the Holy Spirit in various forms of Christian prayer and worship, in the seven Sacraments and in the lives of those who witness to the Reign of God. They can identify the Sacrament of Confirmation and describe its symbols and Rite as an outpouring of the Holy Spirit that empowers Christians to witness through ministry and service. They can recognise that the Catholic Church shares in their search for knowledge and understanding about God with other faiths.

Students can develop appropriate questions and, using a range of communication forms, present their ideas and understandings. They can reflect on, discern about, develop and enact courses of action in response to issues that they identify to be important locally or globally.

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Doctrinal Concepts

[GOD] 

1. God entrusts us with the world and with the responsibility to reverence, nurture, restore and celebrate life. CR 399 

2. The Reign of God is revealed through Jesus’ ministry of reconciliation, healing, justice and peace.  CR 543–550 

3. God’s life and love are active in our world, enabling us to live fully in the present and to come to enjoy eternal life.  CR 27 

4. Enlivened by the Holy Spirit, we are challenged to renew our world. CR 2415 , 2441 

5. Our God is One—Father, Son and Holy Spirit—who live in love. CR 218 , 234 

[JESUS CHRIST]

1. Jesus is present in life in many ways. CR 436 

2. In his life, death and resurrection, Jesus reveals the saving love of God and gives hope to the world.  CR 653 , 654 

3. Jesus identifies with the poor, the lonely, the sick and outcast.  CR  544 

4. The Holy Spirit, gift of Jesus, inspires and renews the church community to live as Jesus did.  CR 737 

5. The Holy Spirit gifts us and enables us to act with awe and wonder, reverence, courage, knowledge, understanding, right judgment, and wisdom.  CR 736 

[CHURCH]

1. The Church is empowered by the Holy Spirit and founded on the living faith of the early Christians.  CR 764 

2. At Pentecost the Church celebrates her beginnings and renews her mission to live the Reign of God. CR 767 

3. The Church honours Mary, Mother of God, who prays with us and for us.  CR 971 

4. The Church honours people from all ages who have been inspirational in carrying forward the mission of Jesus.  CR 957 

5. Our local church community, led by the bishop, is committed to the mission of the universal Church. CR 849–851 

6. The universal Church is united through the ministry of the Pope, successor of Peter, and Bishop of Rome.  CR 77 , 861 

[SCRIPTURE]

1. The Hebrew Writings and Christian Scriptures contain different writing genres. CR 110 

2. The Hebrew Writings tell the story of the people of Israel and their covenant relationship with God.  CR 126 

3. The Christian Scriptures teach us about Jesus and the early Christian communities.  CR 121 

4. The Gospel of God’s saving love invites disciples to live Christian lives.  CR 2419 

5. The Gospels are at the core of the Church’s prayer and teaching. CR 125 

[SACRAMENTS]

1. Sacraments are celebrations of the risen Christ with us in ritual, sign, symbol and word.  CR 1147-1148 

2. A sacramental Church nourishes and celebrates key moments of our lives. CR 1210 

3. The sacraments call us to live the Good News in the world. CR 738 

4. Through the sacraments we are nourished in ministry and service. CR 739 

5. In the sacraments we celebrate the presence of the Holy Spirit in our lives. CR 1116  

[CHRISTIAN PRAYER]

1. In our communities we experience various kinds of prayer: thanksgiving, petition, praise, sorrow and adoration. CR 2626–2643 

2. Prayer is expressed in different ways—through music, movement, silence and meditation. CR 2660 , 2663 

3. The Scriptures are a rich source of nourishment for personal and communal prayer. CR 2568–2589 

4. Jesus’ prayer to God shows us how to pray. CR 2599–2607 

5. Through prayer the Holy Spirit enables us to open ourselves to acknowledging our sinfulness and experiencing the healing, reconciling power of God’s love. CR 2623 , 2670 

6. The celebration of the feasts of the Church’s year is an opportunity for personal and liturgical prayer. CR 2655 

7. Mary is given many different titles. Each one tells us how the Church honours her. CR 508 , 509 

[CHRISTIAN LIFE]

1. One way we respond to God’s love is through service to others.  CR 1878 

2. We respond to God’s commandments by treating each other with respect, love and compassion.  CR 1893 

3. In our care for creation we are called to be responsible, trustworthy and wise.  CR 2415 

4. The witness of good people challenges us to continue to strive for justice and peace.  CR 1807 

5. Jesus’ life, death and resurrection teach that life and growth can come out of death and sadness. CR 654 

[RELIGION, CULTURE & SOCIETY]

1. The goodness and truth found in all religions leads believers to God. CR 843     

2. The Church reflects God’s plan for unity of all people.  CR 845 

3. Respect for Australian Indigenous religions and spirituality reflects the belief that all people share a common destiny in God. CR 842 

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Level Description

Students in Years 7 and 8 continue in Religious Education their learning of the Christian understanding of the meaning and purpose of being human, Catholic beliefs, practices and ethical values, and the contribution of the Catholic Church in the lives of believers and wider society.

The content of the Religious Education curriculum is organised as three interrelated strands: Knowledge and Understanding, Skills for Learning (Inquiring and Communicating), and Skills for Living (Discerning and Making Connections). The Knowledge and Understanding content descriptions are aligned to the core doctrinal concepts of the eight elements around which the curriculum is structured and which are: Jesus Christ, Prayer, God, Church, Sacraments, Christian Life, Religion, Culture and Society, and Scripture. These elements are integrated through meaningfully and coherently sequenced units of learning for the explicit teaching of the prescribed content and Understandings that enable students to develop their knowledge and understanding of the Catholic faith. 

The Skills for Learning (Inquiring and Communicating) and the Skills for Living (Discerning and Making Connections) strands provide students the opportunities to acquire, develop and apply skills that enable them to engage with the content in ways that, over time, help them to apply in their lives the knowledge and understanding gained.

Knowledge and Understanding

Through their study of Scripture and Catholic Tradition as sources of Divine Revelation, students will reflect on the mystery of God - Father, Son and Holy Spirit - revealed in God's Word, Jesus Christ. They will explore God's loving covenant-relationship with humankind and the call to each person to respond. They will examine the impact of sin, understood as living for oneself at the expense of others, that harms our relationship with God, each other and all of creation. In doing so they will investigate how honouring the natural laws and natural systems created by God and choosing to act with care for self, others and all of life honours God, and His call to loving relationship. 

In their study of Sacred Scripture, students will become familiar with the library of sacred books that form the Bible, identifying the Old and New Testaments and exploring how God’s word is presented in different genres and in ways that reflect different historical, social and cultural settings. Students will consider the development of sacred texts over time and reflect on the Spirit-inspired authorship of the Scriptures.

Students will deepen their knowledge of Jesus, His Person, life and teachings, through their exploration, prayerful reading and study of the New Testament, becoming familiar with the structure and content of the Gospels and the writing of the Apostles. Through their study they will explore that Jesus Christ, fully divine and fully human, proclaims and embodies the Reign of God, lived out  in right relationship with God, others and all of life. They will consider that Jesus offers hope to the world that is affected by sinfulness. They will reflect on his challenge to each of us to offer hope by creating a more compassionate and just world for all, especially the poor, calling his followers to discipleship. They will reflect upon Jesus’ promise to be with his disciples always through His Spirit, to guide and strengthen them for mission and service. Through engagement with the story of Pentecost and their research of the events and lives of its people throughout history, students will consider how the Church continues to “read the signs of the times” in service of God’s mission to proclaim the Good News to people from every nation. Students will investigate and experience different ways in which the life, prayer and worship of the Church are expressed, reflecting the light of Christ for all peoples. 

Students will learn that the Church recognises and celebrates the Sacramental presence of God. They will investigate that in the celebration of the Sacraments, words, actions and symbols are used to communicate God’s presence and action, effecting graced-encounters in people’s lives. They will learn that Jesus Christ's loving actions of nourishing, healing, forgiving, etc, are present in the Sacraments of the Church through the Holy Spirit. They will consider the Sacraments of Initiation, Healing and Communion for Service, the symbols, words and actions used in celebration of the Sacraments, and the deeper reality of the action of the Spirit.  They will be supported to recognise that through Baptism and the Eucharist Christians are born into and nourished in the life of Christ and transformed by  the action of the Spirit, reflecting on the celebrations of Sacraments as experiences that sustain Christian life.

Students will explore how Christian life is centred on relationship with Christ within a faith community and is based on the life, teachings and values of Jesus Christ. They will consider how Christian living is a response to the call to act on the basis of informed and graced-decision making, guided by a well-formed conscience. They will reflect on our inclination to sin, to live for self only, and how our personal response to a change of heart through God’s grace leads us to lives of real love, really lived. Students will consider ways to respond with compassion to suffering within our community and the wider human family. In this, they will be supported through their growing knowledge of Catholic teaching on the dignity of the human person and the common good and through their investigation of the lives of Spirit-filled people inspired by the example of Jesus.

Students will consider that prayer and Christian life are inseparable and that effective Christian prayer transforms us and leads to a deeper love for God and one another. They will reflect upon Jesus as the model of prayer and will engage prayerfully with His own prayer, the Our Father. They will explore and experience a range of traditional Christian prayers and prayer practices (e.g.Sign of the Cross, blessings, Christian Meditation, Holy Week and Easter prayer experiences, Lectio / Visio Divina, Examen, Angelus, Rosary, Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament). Students study and meditate on the Scriptures, the Word of God, which reveal God’s love and they explain how  this study and prayer can nurture relationship with Jesus and can help guide our lives.   

Skills for Learning and Living

Students will develop skills for learning by drawing from a variety of Catholic Christian sources to investigate, reflect on, summarise, discuss and to communicate their developing knowledge and understanding about the Catholic Tradition. Key sources include Liturgy, Scripture, Magisterial documents, writings of Saints, contemporary Christian authors, iconography, architecture, sacred art and sacred music.

Students will develop skills for living including the reading, reflection on and interpretation of Scripture, using both literal and spiritual senses, as a “light for the path” of their daily living (Ps. 119:105). They will begin to consider ways to transfer their learning of Catholic teaching to their own life, by developing the skills of examining and reflecting on personal attitudes, values and behaviours.

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Content Descriptions

Knowledge & Understanding

TCREK033

God is Mystery:    

• God is Mystery and Love. 

• Through the action of the Holy Spirit we grow in understanding of the one, loving relationship of Father, Son and Spirit. The Trinity is a communion of love.

• The forgiveness, compassion and mercy of God are revealed in Jesus. 

Relationship:

• Reaching out in loving relationship, God has entered into a covenant with humankind and has continued a faithful relationship with people throughout human history.

• Right relationship is damaged through sin when we choose to live only for ourselves and, in love,  we are called to change of heart.

Giver of all life:

• Through Jesus’ resurrection, humankind and all of creation are swept up by Christ into the life of God.  

• We honour God by living in loving relationship, caring for self, others and all of life.      

TCREK034

• Jesus of Nazareth lived in a particular historical, social, political and religious context.   

• Through his teaching and through the way he lives Jesus, fully divine and fully human, reveals God as love and shows us how God wants us to live. 

• Jesus Christ, who offers hope to the world, embodies the Reign of God that is lived out  in right relationship with God, others and all of life.

• In his call to discipleship, Jesus challenges us to help offer hope and create a more compassionate and just world for all, especially the poor.

TCREK035

• The Church is a community of Christians guided by the  Holy Spirit, seeking to proclaim the Good News and serve God’s mission in our world.                            

• Across the ages the Church, ”reading the signs of the times”,  has revealed its missionary and prophetic nature.                

• The life, prayer and worship of the Church are expressed differently in different cultures, manifesting the light of Christ for all peoples.

Chur

TCREK036

The Old Testament:

• The Old Testament writings tell the story of the Israelite people and their covenant relationship with God.

• The authors of the Scriptures wrote the word of God with the inspiration of the Holy Spirit.

• The sacred texts of the Old Testament present God’s word in different literary forms and in ways that reflect different social settings.

• These sacred texts are to be interpreted in their historical, cultural and literary contexts.

New Testament - Gospels / Christian Scripture:

• The New Testament teaches us about Jesus, His person, life and teachings and about the life and messages of the early Christian communities.   

• The Gospels, central to Christian faith and life, are at the core of the Church’s prayer and at the centre of Church teaching.

Prayer / Living:

• Studying and meditating on the Scriptures can nurture relationship with Jesus and can help guide our lives.

TCREK037

Signs of God’s loving presence i) in all of life  ii) in the actions of Jesus:

• i) A sacramental way of viewing the world sees God’s presence in every-day things and events.

• ii) Through language, gestures and actions, Jesus revealed the action and wonder of God’s love and presence in all of life.

God’s presence and action in the Sacraments:                             

• Sacraments are sacred actions of the Church through which Jesus’s actions continue and which bring about encounters with God in people’s lives.                           

• In the celebration of the Sacraments, words, actions and symbols are used to communicate God’s presence and action.   Each Sacrament  has its own history, symbols and rituals.              

The Spirit’s action in the Sacraments:

• Through the Sacraments, Christians are born into and nourished in the life of Christ and transformed by  the action of the Spirit. 

Being signs of God’s presence to others:

• Celebration of the Sacraments nourishes and strengthens the Christian's life of faith and mission.

TCREK038

• Through Christian prayer we respond to and open to the loving call to encounter God.

• Individuals and the wider Church are enriched by forms of Christian prayer from different spiritual and cultural traditions.

• Christian prayer, at once personal and communal, grows out of and nourishes both the individual and the community.

• Christian Prayer and Christian life are inseparable.

• Jesus’ prayer to God shows us how to pray.

TCREK039

• Christian life is centred on relationship with Christ and is lived  within a faith community that is true to his example and  teaching.

• Christian life calls us to act on the basis of informed and graced decision-making. Conscience is a person’s inner guide (the echo of God’s voice) that helps in making moral decisions.

• We are inclined to sin, to live for self only and are called to constant change of heart and ways. God’s grace leads us to lives of real love, really lived.

• Inspired by the example of Jesus, informed by the Church’s teaching and guided by Spirit-filled exemplars, we can respond with compassion to suffering within our community and the wider human family.   

• Human Dignity and the Common Good are foundational principles of Catholic Social Teaching. 

TCREK040

• Currently under review. 

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[GOD] God, revealed in Jesus, enters into a relationship with humankind and calls each person to respond. (TCREK033) 

Elaboration: 

God is Mystery:
Students will engage with relevant texts from Scripture and from Christian writings to support reflection on God as Mystery and Love.

They will be invited to use a variety of strategies and resources (Scripture, Church documents, Catholic Christian authors, sacred art and music) in order to consider prayerfully the living unity of God: Father, Son and Holy Spirit, and to use a variety of means to depict their growing understandings.

Through exploring the lives and writings of Christian models they will be supported to identify and to give examples of how the Holy Spirit helps us to grow in understanding of the living unity of God, Father, Son, and Spirit.

Relationship:
Through exploring some of the Covenant narratives, students will identify how God has continued a faithful relationship with humanity throughout human history through covenant fulfilled in Jesus.

Engaging with Scripture texts, including, The Parable of the Lost Sheep (Lk 15: 3-7); The Parable of the Lost Coin (Lk 15: 8-10); The Parable of the Loving Father, the Prodigal and His Brother (Lk 15: 11-32), students will prayerfully reflect on the forgiveness, compassion and mercy of God that is revealed in Jesus.

They will examine the impact of sin, identified as living for oneself at the expense of others. They will describe and explain how this harms our relationship with God, each other and all of creation and will consider Love’s call to change of heart.

Giver of all life:
Students will observe and reflect on God, as giver of all life. They will investigate how we honour the natural laws and natural systems created by God and will explain / illustrate how we are called to respond.

Students will consider how choosing to act with care for self, others and all of life honours God and will identify ways of responding to the call to loving relationship.

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[JESUS CHRIST] Jesus Christ offers hope to the world and calls his followers to discipleship. (TCREK034) 

Elaboration: Students will investigate aspects of how Jesus lived in a faithful Jewish family. They will then examine Jesus’ ministry in the context of the Jewish community, religious traditions and practices and the society of his day.

Throughout this process they will consider how Jesus Christ, God’s Word, reveals who God is, offers hope to the world and shows how God wants us to live.

They will explore and reflect on selected texts of the Gospels in order to identify what Jesus taught about the Reign of God. Similarly, they will examine how Jesus Himself embodied the Reign of God.

They will reflect upon Jesus’ call to discipleship and its challenge to relate to others, especially the poor, with justice and compassion.

Students will prayerfully consider and discern realistic and practical ways through which, in discipleship, they can live out the Reign of God and offer hope to the world of today.

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[CHURCH] The Church proclaims the Good News of Jesus Christ and is missionary and prophetic. (TCREK035) 

Elaboration: Students  will engage with the story of Pentecost and will explore how the Apostles, led by Peter, began to proclaim the Good News of Jesus to people from every nation. They will reflect upon Jesus’ promise to be with his disciples always through His Spirit, to guide and strengthen for mission and service, and will research examples of this in the lives of individuals and events in the Church’s story. 

Through exploration of Scripture, the events in the Church’s history, the lives of its exemplars, and the Church’s  “reading the signs of the times”,  students will gain understanding of “missionary” and “prophetic”. Students will consider how the Church’s mission is lived through the school Charism as it proclaims the Good News of Jesus Christ and witnesses to God’s presence in the world. Students will investigate and experience different ways in which the life, prayer and worship of the Church are expressed, reflecting the light of Christ for all peoples. 

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[SCRIPTURE] Studying and meditating on the Scriptures as the Word of God reveals God’s love and deepens Christian understanding of who Jesus is. (TCREK036) 

Elaboration: 

Sacred Scripture:
Students will investigate the library of sacred books that form the Bible; they will identify the Old and New Testaments and will explore how God’s word is presented in different genres and in ways that reflect different historical social and cultural settings.

Students will consider the development of sacred texts over time and reflect on the inspired authorship of the Scriptures.

They will explore the concept and reality of covenant, reflecting on God’s constant love, revealed and brought to fullness through Jesus.

New Testament - Gospels / Christian Scripture:
Students will identify the structure and content of the New Testament and will have the opportunity to become familiar with the writings of the early Christian Church. The New Testament contains a) the Gospels which tell of Jesus, His person, life and teachings and b) the writing of the Apostles who continued to share the Good News.

Prayer / Living:
Students will engage prayerfully with the Scriptures. They will be encouraged to identify and memorise brief scripture phrases that hold meaning for their lives and, using Scripture as “ a lamp for my feet and a light for my path” (Ps 119:105), they will meditate and reflect on the presence and action of God in their lives.

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[SACRAMENTS] The Church recognises and celebrates the Sacramental presence of God through ritual, sign, symbol and word. (TCREK037) 

Elaboration:

Signs of God’s loving presence i) in all of life ii) in actions of Jesus:
i) Students will be offered opportunities to deepen understanding that people, life’s events and the world around us are signs of the presence of God.
ii) They will be supported to see how Jesus used words, actions and the things of the world (voice, touching, anointing, food / meals) to communicate God’s loving presence.

God’s presence and action in the Sacraments:
Students will explore how Jesus Christ's actions of nourishing, healing, forgiving, etc. are present in the Sacraments of the Church through the Holy Spirit. They will reflect on Baptism, the basis of the whole Christian life, as the doorway to life in the Spirit and the Eucharist is its fullness.

The Spirit’s action in the Sacraments:
Students will reflect on the Sacraments as sacred actions of the Church which effect encounters with God in people’s lives. They will consider the grouping of the Sacraments into those of Initiation, Healing and Communion for Service. Through considering some of the key symbols, words and actions used in celebration of the Sacraments they will explore the deeper reality of the action of the Spirit.

Being signs of God’s presence to others:
Using analogy or metaphor (e.g. meeting places / encounters, experiences, celebrations on the journey of life) students will reflect on the Sacraments as gifts of encounter and grace that enable and challenge us to live lives of loving service. Students will identify links between the Sacraments and living with God and others. They will prayerfully reflect on the celebrations of Sacraments as experiences that nourish us for Christian living

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[CHRISTIAN PRAYER] Prayer and Christian life are inseparable. Effective prayer transforms us and leads to a deeper love for God and one another. (TCREK038) 

Elaboration: Students will engage with texts and enter into experiences, both personal and communal, that invite and facilitate encounter with God.

They will reflect upon Jesus as the model of prayer and will engage prayerfully with His own prayer, the Our Father.

They will experience forms of personal prayer linked to the realities of their lives.

Students will investigate approaches to prayer in differing historical, social and cultural contexts and identify the enduring characteristics of authentic Christian prayer.

Through praying, through reflecting and through researching the lives and experiences of Christian models of prayer they will identify ways in which prayer transforms the heart, mind and actions towards each other and towards creation.

Students will engage with and reflect upon experiences of Liturgical prayer as a source of nourishment in Christian life (including the Divine Office).

They will explore and experience a range of traditional Christian prayers and prayer practices (e.g.Sign of the Cross, blessings, Christian Meditation, Holy Week and Easter prayer experiences, Lectio / Visio Divina, Examen, Angelus, Rosary, Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament) and will reflect on and draw from the contemplative practice of Dadirri, gifted to us by our First Nations peoples.

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[CHRISTIAN LIFE] Christian life is based on the life, teachings and values of Jesus Christ and requires informed decisions and appropriate actions. (TCREK039) 

Elaboration: 

Free to choose, called to love:
Students will examine conscience as the inner guide, the voice of God within, and will consider its place in moral decision-making.

Students will reflect on human nature’s inclination to sin, expressed as living for oneself only. They will explore the nature and impact of sin and will consider examples of initial choices or of changes of heart that brought/bring right order and peace, experienced in their own lives or observed/ recognised in the lives of others.

Through engaging with chosen Gospel characters and some exemplars from the Church through the ages students will explore the nature, process and experiences of those who choose or who reject goodness and life. Through considering these models, students will explore how morality / ethics flows from encounter with God in Christ Who reveals Love itself. They will consider how Christian life and loving decision-making is nurtured and lived within a faith community.

Students will engage with a simple Examen process as a support for reflecting on their own attitudes and actions, contrasting with Jesus’ teaching and values. They will compose or engage with prayerful expressions of sorrow and change of heart.

Jesus’ teaching - Scriptures, Church documents, writings, exemplars:
Students will engage with some scriptural accounts of how Jesus chose His courses of action and will identify and reflect on His practices. They will prayerfully consider examples of His actions and His teaching, e.g. Matthew 25: 35-40, about committing to love and compassion.

Students will consider how the witness of good people challenges and inspires us to act in support of others. They will compare and contrast various examples in order to identify the characteristics of “lives of real love, really lived” for God, for others and for all of life.

They will explore the principles of Catholic Social Teaching through researching parts of some key Church documents, e.g. Pastoral Statements of the Church, Encyclicals and Apostolic Letters, and will apply these principles in considering and responding to social issues.

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[RELIGION, CULTURE & SOCIETY] Every person is a spiritual being whether this is acknowledged through religious practice or not. (TCREK040) 

Elaboration: Currently under review. 

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Inquiry & Communications

Skills for Learning : Questioning and Theorising

The students will identify and use a variety of Catholic, Christian sources to investigate, reflect on, summarise and discuss key findings about the Catholic Tradition.  (TCREI013) 

Elaboration: 

• Sources may include Liturgy, Scripture, Magisterial documents, writings of Saints, contemporary Christian authors, iconography, architecture, sacred art and sacred music.

Skills for Learning : Interpreting Terms and Texts

The students will begin to read and interpret Scripture using literal and spiritual senses. (TCREI014)

Elaboration:

• Under review

Skills for Learning : Communicating

The students will communicate their knowledge and understanding of key doctrinal concepts using appropriate forms, vocabulary and terms. (TCREI015)

Elaboration:

• Under review

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Discernment & Making Connections

Skills for Living : Identifying and Reflecting (See & Reflect)

The students will reflect on their reading and interpretation of Scripture as a "light for the path" of their daily living (Ps. 119:105). (TCRED015)

Elaboration:

• Under review

Skills for Living : Evaluating and Integrating (Judge)

The students will identify, examine and reflect on personal attitudes, values and behaviours in the light of Catholic teaching. (TCRED016)

Elaboration: 

• Under review

Skills for Living : Responding and Participating (Act)

The students will consider ways to transfer into daily life (through attitudes, values and behaviours) understandings gained of Catholic teaching. (TCRED017)

Elaboration:

• Under review

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Achievement Standards

By the end of Year 8, students indicate developing understandings of the living unity of God: Father, Son and Spirit and of God as Mystery and Love. They explore, reflect on and describe God’s covenant relationship with humanity and the related loving call for each person’s response. Describing sin as a choice to live for self at the expense of others, students can explain how this damages relationship with God, others and all of life and calls for a change of heart. Students explain how Jesus Christ, in revealing God as love, offers hope to the world and calls his followers to discipleship. They identify how Jesus Christ, fully divine and fully human, embodies and brings about the Reign of God. Describing the Church  as a community of disciples sent out, they explain how it proclaims the Good News and seeks to serve God’s mission. They describe the Church’s missionary and prophetic nature and explain how the action of the Spirit continues to guide and inspire Christians in reading and responding to the signs of the times. Students explain that a sacramental way of viewing the world sees God in every-day things, people and events. They give examples of how, through the Sacraments, the Church recognises and celebrates the transformative presence of God through ritual, sign, symbol and word. Students explain how living the Christian Life grows out of and is sustained by relationship with Jesus. They reflect on and detail how the life and  teachings of Jesus, the teachings of the Church and the lives of Christian witnesses and the practice of prayer can inform conscience for decision-making and action. They will identify examples of how our sinfulness, to choose to live for oneself at the expense of others, contrasts with Jesus’ teaching and values. Students study and meditate on the Scriptures, the Word of God, which reveal God’s love and they explain how  this study and prayer can nurture relationship with Jesus and can help guide our lives. Students  recognise that effective Christian Prayer is transformative and they  identify examples of prayer leading to a deeper love for God and to growth in loving care for one another and all of life.    

Students investigate, reflect on, summarise and discuss key findings about the Catholic Tradition using a variety of Catholic Christian sources. They begin to demonstrate their application of the literal and spiritual senses for the interpretation of selected Scripture. They use appropriate forms, vocabulary and terms to communicate their doctrinal knowledge and understanding. Students self-reflect on their reading and interpretation of selected Scripture. They identify and reflect on their attitudes, behaviours and values, examining and identifying ways to transfer their knowledge and understanding of Catholic teaching to their own attitudes, values and behaviours.

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Doctrinal Concepts

[GOD] 

1. God reaches out to us in loving relationship. CR 30 ,299  YC3 ,43 

2. Jesus reveals to us the triune God and we grow in understanding through the Holy Spirit. CR 238-248  YC 36-37 

3. God has entered into a covenant with humankind. CR 781   YC 125 

4. Through Jesus’ resurrection humankind is swept up by Christ into the life of God. CR 655   YC 108 

5. Our relationship with God is damaged through sin when we choose to live for ourselves at the expense of others. CR 1849-1850   YC 315 

6. Jesus Christ reveals the forgiveness, compassion and mercy of God, who is love. CR 221   YC 33 

7. We honour God by caring for all living things and our environment. CR 339-340   YC45 

[JESUS CHRIST]

1. Jesus Christ showed us in the way he lived for others that he is God’s Word, revealing who God is and how God wants us to live. CR 65   YC 9 

2. Jesus Christ lived in a particular historical, social, political and religious context. CR 423   YC 71 

3. Jesus Christ proclaimed and lived the values of the Reign of God and challenges us to discipleship. CR 561 

4. Jesus relates to others, especially the poor, with justice and compassion. CR 544, 545   YC 89 

5. The Reign of God implies right relationships between humans and the natural world. CR 339, 340  YC 46 

[CHURCH]

1. The life and mission of the Church in our world are inspired and guided by the Holy Spirit. CR 737   YC 119 

2. The risen Jesus commissions disciples for service in the world. CR 748 , 764 , 782   YC 121-122 , 125 

3. Church history reveals its missionary and prophetic nature. CR 849-856, 858   YC137 

4. Through cooperation and dialogue, the Church recognises the presence of God in diverse cultures and traditions. CR 1202   YC192 

5. Life, prayer and worship of the Church are expressed differently in different cultures. CR 1204   YC192 

[SCRIPTURE]

1. The Scriptures reveal God’s creative and covenant love. CR 50 , 58 

2. The Scriptures witness to a people’s developing experience of and relationship with God. CR 53 

3. The Scriptures are a library of sacred books, in each of which is a variety of text types or literary forms. CR 120 

4. The authors of the Scriptures wrote with the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. CR 106 , 126 

5. Scripture texts must be interpreted in their historical, cultural and literary contexts. CR 109-110 

[SACRAMENTS]

1. Creation is sacramental. CR 32 , 1147 

2. Sacraments express and enrich the shared life of the Catholic community. CR 1210 

3. There are three major groups of Sacraments which we celebrate: initiation, healing and the service of communion. CR 1211 

4. Each Sacrament has its own history, symbols and rituals. CR 1145 , 1189 

5. Baptism is the foundation of the whole Christian life. CR 1213 , 1323 , 1326 

6. In the Eucharist, the People of God are reconciled and strengthened through the Word of God and the Body and Blood of Christ. CR 1443 

[CHRISTIAN PRAYER]

1. Forms of prayer emanate from the spiritual and cultural traditions of the community, nourishing and enriching individuals and the wider Church. CR 2663 

2. Prayer celebrates the sacredness of God within time and place. CR 2659 

3. Through prayer we are called into a mysterious encounter with God. CR 2591 

4. Drawing on the spirituality of indigenous Australians enriches prayer. CR 842-843 , 2566 

[CHRISTIAN LIFE]

1. The life, teachings and values of Jesus Christ inspire us to lead Christian lives. CR 1701 

2. Every person is born into a world greatly affected by sinfulness, and each person has an inclination to personal sin which is the consequence of original sin. CR 386 

3. Christian life calls us to act on the basis of informed and graced decision-making. CR 1700 , 1959 

4. Christian life is nurtured and lived within a faith community and is characterised by ecumenical cooperation and dialogue. CR 782 , 836-845 

5. Justice calls us to celebrate cultural diversity as a reflection of God’s creativity. CR 1807 

6. Followers of Jesus Christ are called to respond to times of trouble or disappointment with love and compassion. CR 1803 , 1808 

[RELIGION, CULTURE & SOCIETY]

1. The nature and role of religion is integral to society, reflecting humanity’s desire for God. CR 27 

2. Religion is a system of individual and communal responses to the divine mystery. CR 28 

3. Catholicism is a divinely revealed religion. CR 168 , 208 

4. Our spiritual soul is made evident in openness to truth, moral goodness, freedom and voice of conscience, the longing for the infinite, the search for happiness and the questioning of God’s existence. CR 33

5. The Church invites political authorities to measure their judgements against the inspired truth about God and humanity. CR 2244 

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