When someone truly becomes a Christian, people should see a change in their behaviour.
For example, no more cheating, bullying, aggressive attitudes and more peace and fulfilment.
These things may not come immediately, though they can when someone is ‘converted’ – that is, they decide to follow Jesus.
Table of Contents:
1. Teacher’s background information.
To mark this change, when someone becomes a Christian, many churches have a practice of baptising the new believer, which means either being immersed in water or sprinkled with water, to reinforce the idea of being washed from the wrong things. See: What is Christian baptism? (opens in a new tab).
Most Christians will want to attend church to join with others in worshipping God and learning about him. Also, there should be a desire to read the Bible
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2. Lesson plans and resources for Does Christianity Change Lives?
[a] Does Christianity Change Lives? The lesson plan is a downloadable PDF document to present to the children.
[b] Does Christianity Change Lives lesson plan is a PowerPoint slideshow viewable or downloadable for teachers to show the children. (Opens in a new tab on www.slideshare.net)
[c] Does Christianity Change Lives lesson plan video based on a PowerPoint presentation. Created with 5-second slides, so pause the video to enable the children to study each slide: (Same material as the PowerPoint above).
[d] Gang Members sketch (Included in the PDF, PowerPoint and video).
[e] Video children’s songs, see below.
3. Children’s songs about having Christian attitudes.
[a] ‘Build a strong foundation in your life’ – Kid’s song.
[b] ‘Be kind and compassionate’
Based on Ephesians 4:32, this is a fun bible verse song to listen to.
[c] ‘The Tadpole and Caterpillar Song’
A Fun Song for Kids on ‘New Beginnings plus Change’.
It’s about the story of Fred the Tadpole and Joe the Caterpillar and the changes they face ahead – It Ain’t Gonna Be Like This Forever!
4. How to fulfil the locally agreed syllabus on ‘Does Christianity change lives?’
Hopefully, you will be able to match your local agreed syllabus with what is here.
This lesson plan is based on the UK RE Attainment Targets.
Here is the Mapping Grid for the Attainment Target Categories:
- Sacred Texts – stories, scriptures, parables, teachings
- Beliefs – ideas about God, truth, meaning, purpose
- Practices – worship, prayer, festivals, rituals, lifestyle
- Identity – belonging, community, worldview, personal reflection
- Values – moral ideas, attitudes, virtues
- Living – how beliefs affect actions and everyday life
🎯 Why This Grid Works for UK Schools
✔ Matches Agreed Syllabus expectations
✔ Supports progression from KS1 to KS2
✔ Aligns with Ofsted language (knowledge, understanding, impact)
✔ Works for lesson planning, assessment, and inspection evidence
✔ Non-political, non-denominational, UK-appropriate
For many local syllabi, in KS1, Christianity plus at least one other major religion is studied.
Effective RE should combine:
- knowledge (stories, beliefs, practices)
- understanding (why people believe/do what they do)
- reflection (personal response, values, empathy).
Typical Key Questions for KS1
Here are common “core/enquiry” questions or themes that appear in most KS1 agreed syllabi:
- “Who am I?” (Identity).
- “What does it mean to belong?” (Belonging).
- “What makes some people so important?” (Important people).
- “Where did we come from / how did the world begin?” (Simple beliefs).
- “What makes some stories so important to different people?” (Sacred books).
- “Why are festivals, symbols or special stories important?” (Stories & moral values).
- “Why are some places so important?” (Important places).
These then required merging within the Assessment Aims, but as can be seen, there had to be some overlapping of the themes/core questions:
- ASSESSMENT AIM: 1. SACRED TEXTS (Stories, Scriptures, parables & teachings) – [SACRED TEXTS & WHO AM I?]
- ASSESSMENT AIMS: 2. BELIEFS (Ideas about God, truth, meaning & purpose) – CREATION & IMPORTANT PEOPLE]
- ASSESSMENT AIM: 3. PRACTICES (worship, prayer, festivals, rituals & lifestyle) – [FESTIVALS & PLACES]
- ASSESSMENT AIM: 4. IDENTITY (belonging, community, worldview & personal reflection) – [BELONGING & IDENTITY]
- ASSESSMENT AIMS: 5. VALUES (moral ideas, attitudes, virtues, right & wrong) – [FESTIVALS & BELONGING]
- ASSESSMENT AIMS: 6. LIVING (how beliefs affect actions and everyday life) – [IMPORTANT PEOPLE & FESTIVALS]
Each assessment had its own set of questions to answer. These are included in each lesson plan, which is suitable for that particular subject.