Today, all TIFS Pupils have been off timetable for the first RE and Curriculum day of the year.
Year 7 spent the day learning about the Islamic religion and participated in a variety of sessions. Flavi 7 were lucky enough to visit and tour the mosque in Newport this morning, whilst other classes stayed on site. During the day, pupils attended an Islamic Wedding fayre which was held in the studio with Mrs Jones and Mrs Steele, Year 7’s got crafty with Islamic Art run by Ms Travers and Mr Balch, Mr Hopley taught pupils about the Hajj (the annual pilgrimage to Mecca). They also had an introduction to Islam with Mr Lambert and Miss Fraser, and were taught about the five pillars of Islam with Mr Milton and Miss Sheen.

Pupils in Year 8 learnt about Buddhism, and how meditation, spirituality, physical labor and good behaviours are key to achieving enlightenment. Pupils were given an insight into the Buddhist way of life by engaging in meditation sessions and were taught what it is like to live as a Buddhist monk. In their meditation sessions, different positions were looked at and the benefits were discussed. They were also taught about the 5 Precepts and then created their own. A session about Thailand was also given as the majority of it’s population are Buddhist. Pupils worked in pairs to research and discover key facts about Buddhism in Thailand and create fact files with key information about the country and how Buddhism has shaped modern Thai people and Thailand itself.

Year 9 Pupils spent the day learning about refugees and the perception of refugees, as well as the circumstances that can lead to people becoming displaced. Year 9’s also completed Life in the UK citizenship questionnaires and watched a range of videos of real-life accounts, gaining a valuable insight into what it is like to be a refugee within contemporary society. Following this they then engaged in meaningful conversations regarding this.

The topic of war was the focus for Year 10’s. Pupils engaged in sessions around the geography of war, ethics surrounding war and the religious views on conflict. They then watched ‘1917’, a British war film which allowed pupils to visualise what life was like in 1917. Lots of important discussions were had across the day, and pupils responded well to challenging discussions and topics.

In preparation for their option mock exams next week, Year 11 pupils participated in a focus day for History and Geography. Our Humanities team revisited topics for revision with pupils, and looked at exam techniques in depth. Mrs Walker and Mr Wright also delivered a lecture to those studying their respective subjects, to further broaden pupils’ knowledge and skills.

We must also say a huge thank you to Darcie in Year 8 for taking these fantastic photographs of RE and Curriculum day!