Religious Education

Children aged seven or eight are in the “Affiliative (belonging)” stage of faith. Their faith is likely:

• to be strongly influenced by parents and other significant adults;
• to be eager to belong and thus to share in the values, attitudes and practices of their family and other groups;
• to find stories a valuable form of learning and to use their own stories to help them find meaning;
• to have reached ‘the age of reason’ but have limited ability to think in abstract terms i.e. they are literal thinkers;
• to begin to differentiate between fact and fantasy;
• to see God as a parent – a rewarder of good and punisher of wrongdoing.

(Sourced from: Diocese of Lismore RE Curriculum Documents)

Children aged nine or ten are in the “Affiliative” (belonging)” stage of faith. Their faith is likely:

• to accept the belief and practice of their parents and other significant adults. The example set by family and teachers is therefore important;
• to be ‘joiners’ and therefore keen to be part of the Church community with their family;
• to be thinking more logically but still in concrete rather than abstract terms. They need to have a literal understanding of life and faith;
• to learn by doing, by taking part in activities involving service to the community;
• to find symbols an important means of conveying religious meaning;
• to be conscious of rules that apply to all and to see God as a lawgiver. It is therefore appropriate for them to learn about God’s Laws.

(Sourced from: Diocese of Lismore RE Curriculum Documents)

Children aged eleven or twelve are in the “Affiliative” (belonging)” stage of faith. Their faith is likely:

• to share some of the characteristics of nine and ten year olds, such as a tendency to view matters literally and legalistically;
• to be moving towards a more ‘searching’ faith which has elements of uncertainty and questioning;
• to respond strongly to the expectations and judgments of others rather than making and questioning;
• to be increasingly influenced by the values and behaviour of peers and heroes or ‘idols’ of youth culture;
• to find symbols an important means of conveying religious meaning.

(Sourced from: Diocese of Lismore RE Curriculum Documents)