In RE we are currently learning all about Judaism. Today we were very lucky to have a special visitor, Russell Conn, the Chair of the Education Group for Jewish Representative Council of Greater Manchester! 

He spoke to our children about his faith and about some of the important festivals and celebrations that Jewish people celebrate. He brought in a number of artefats to show the children and he was impressed with how much they have learnt in their unit so far! 

Thank you so much for visiting Russell! We hope to welcome you again to St Hilda's soon. 

Part of our RE enrichment, we have taken our children and parents to Oldham’s Parish Church.  Children and parents thoroughly enjoyed the trip.  We carried out a Christmas treasure hunt, looked at the different decorated trees by the local schools and establishments.  We loved St Hilda’s tree the best!  Finally, we sang a carol for our parents and visitors of the church.

On Wednesday 5^th February 2025, year 3 went on a trip to Shree Swaminarayan Mandir in Oldham. It is a part of the year 3 RE curriculum 'what does it mean to be a Hindu in Britain today?' The children were amazed at how beautiful the mandir was from both the outside and inside and they compared it to other places of worship they have seen before. It was a great insight to the religion of Hinduism and being able to see some of the deities and stories being depicted through images around the mandir. The children enjoyed working in small groups to complete a jigsaw puzzle of a deity. They also had the opportunity to ask questions to consolidate their understanding on Hinduism. 

We placed the morals from 'The Parable of the Unforgiving Servant' on a continuum of 'most likely to be Jesus' message' to 'least likely to be Jesus' message.

As part of our RE lessons, Owls Class explored why Christians celebrate Advent and also the significance of Christingles during this time of year, Rev. Daniel led the session and taught the children what each part of the Christingle represented. He was very impressed with our children's knowledge and understanding of this unit of work and commented on how engaged and enthused Owls Class were during their RE lessons. Well done Owls! 

Continuing with our new unit in RE, Owls class have been learning about the 'Five Pillars of Islam'. As a class we created and collated our knowledge of 'The Statement of Faith' - Shahadah. Then in groups we discussed how Muslims follow the other 4 pillars in their daily life by collating our knowledge on Salah, Zakat, Hajj and Sawm. The children presented their work to the class and were very confident and excited to share their ideas. 

Following on from our wonderful workshop, the Y6 children have been writing up their acrostic poems and presenting them in an artistic way. The team from Groundbreakers were really impressed with the quality and thoughtfulness of our poems.

Year 3 visited the Shree Swaminarayan Mandir in Oldham as part of their RE topic, “What does it mean to be a Hindu in Britain today?” During the visit, the children explored the Mandir and observed the statues of the deities, learning about their significance in Hindu worship. They were introduced to the daily routines and practices that take place in a temple, including prayer, offerings, and moments of reflection.

The children also had the opportunity to learn about important features within the Mandir, such as the prayer hall, shrine, and sacred symbols. They listened to explanations about how Hindus show respect in a place of worship, including removing shoes, speaking quietly, and participating in acts of devotion. The visit helped them to understand key beliefs and values in Hinduism, such as respect, community, and devotion to God.

In addition, pupils asked thoughtful questions and deepened their understanding of how religion is practised in modern Britain. The experience supported their learning by allowing them to see first-hand how Hindu traditions are maintained and celebrated, helping to bring their classroom studies to life