Religious Education

​​​​​​​Here at Good Shepherd our students are immersed in the distinct yet complementary dimensions of Religious Education as pictured below:
 
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Each day begins with the school prayer at our morning gathering.  The students also pray at various times throughout the day, for example, before break times and at the end of the day.  Our special occasions are celebrated through Liturgies of the Word and of the Eucharist (Mass).
 
Our school buildings develop our Catholic Identity in the naming of our spaces after saints.  We have been gifted, or have purchased, a number of religious icons and images to support both dimensions of Religious Education as pictured above.  The following link provides details of the images obtained in our Foundation Year through gifts and purchases. 
 
 
Our students participate in Social Justice activities to support the wider Catholic Christian community.  We raise funds for both Caritas’ Project Compassion appeal and Catholic Mission, as well as supporting both the Winter and Christmas appeals for St. Vincent de Paul.
 
Students participate in explicit classroom learning experiences about religion from the moment they enter our school.  The BCE Religion Curriculum involves four interrelated strands of: Sacred Texts, Beliefs, Church and Christian Life.
 
The Religion Curriculum is aligned with the Australian Curriculum and is taught, assessed and reported on in the same way.
 
The Year Two Year Level Description is provided below as an example of the learning and teaching experiences within the curriculum:
 
In Year 2, students learn about aspects of God’s nature and God’s relationship with people, as they engage with a variety of New Testament texts depicting the teachings and actions of Jesus and Old Testament texts that describe God’s relationship with the Jewish people. They explore contextual information about the first century Mediterranean world, to better appreciate the life and times of Jesus. They learn about Jesus’ mission and ministry and explore ways in which Jesus’ teachings and actions continue to guide the life of the Church community today. They explore, recognise and appreciate the history of a parish community as it is revealed in many ways.
 
Students learn about the sacredness of all creation, especially human life; the call to be co-creators and stewards of God’s creation; and the responsibility to pursue peace and justice out of respect for human life and all creation. They develop their understanding of the loving relationship God unconditionally offers to people; and their understanding of sin, as evident in the free choices that harm the individual and their loving relationships with God, with others and with all creation. They explore ways in which believers seek to heal these relationships through reconciliation and prayer. They investigate ways in which believers celebrate reconciliation with God and with others in the Sacrament of Penance.
 
Students examine ways in which prayer and the wisdom of the saints help believers to nurture their loving relationships with God, with others and with all creation. They develop their understanding of prayer in the Christian tradition through an exploration of prayer for forgiveness (acts of contrition and Penitential Act) and meditative prayer.
 
Further details regarding the Religion Curriculum can be accessed through the Brisbane Catholic E​ducation website.

© Brisbane Catholic Education,  (2023)