Visit to a local Church KS1. RE resources

1. Teacher’s background information.

The most important point is that a local church is much more than just a building. The children need to understand that the local church they are visiting is part of the Church worldwide – it is a community of Christians from all races and nationalities.

To see where the local churches are, go to Find a Church (which opens in a new tab). Most churches would be thrilled to show a school year group around their church.

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2. Lesson plans and resources for the Visit to a local Church KS1

[1] Before the church visit:

Here are common core questions or themes that appear in many KS1 agreed syllabi:

• What buildings are important in some religions? Why? What happens there?
• What are the main features of these places of worship?
• I wonder, what do people gain from being together in a shared important place?

The questions covered within the downloadable ‘KS1-Church-visit-children-question-sheet‘ can be used as the RE Assessment Checklist to show pupil learning.

It is probably a good idea, before the church visit, to work through some of the material below with the children so they can have a sensible grounding of what goes on within a church:

a) Belonging to a faith community

PDF, PowerPoint or video on Belonging to a faith community resource page.

b) Worksheets

[d] What is the Church Worksheet 1

[e] What is the Church Worksheet 2

c) Examples of a children’s talk

[a] A children’s talk called ‘I am the true vine’:

[b] A children’s talk called ‘The choice is yours’:

d) Examples of children’s songs

[a] ‘For God so loved the world’ by John Hardwick

e) Examples of modern songs and hymns

[a] An old hymn sung in a modern style: ‘Be Thou My Vision’:

[b] A video of the modern song: ‘In Christ alone’:

[2] On the day of the visit:

[a] Children could ask these questions when KS1 visit a local Church (Opens in a new tab.) – RE lesson plan.

[b] Teachers cheat question sheet to take on the visit to a local church (Opens in a new tab.)

3. How to fulfil the locally agreed syllabus on visiting a church KS1

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:

1. “Who am I?” (Identity).
2. “What does it mean to belong?” (Belonging).
3. “What makes some people so important?” (Important people).
4. “Where did we come from / how did the world begin?” (Simple beliefs).
5. “What makes some stories so important to different people?” (Sacred books).
6. “Why are festivals, symbols or special stories important?” (Stories & moral values).
7. “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.