Collective Worship
At Lady Elizabeth Hastings, our approach to collective worship is:
Invitational
Everyone is welcome to take part in collective worship, as much or as little as they or their parents and carers are
comfortable with. This means we use invitational language and consider carefully our choice of words and songs.
Children are invited to pray but are not compelled or expected to do so; they always have a choice. We invite
them to pray or reflect in whatever way they would usually as a family, if that is part of their home experience.
Inclusive
Acts of worship need to be inclusive of all. Therefore, we choose topics and ideas that are shared by different
faiths and worldviews. When we present Christian teaching, we make it clear that this is ‘what Christians believe’,
saying things like:
‘I wonder why this story might be important to Christians?’
‘The story today comes from the Bible (the holy book of Christians), which teaches that …
Our worship should be accessible for children and young people with a range of different backgrounds, and so
we take care that activities do not require expensive resources. We also offer a variety of activities, so that
children and young people with differing needs can all find something they can engage with.
Inspiring
We aim for our acts of worship to inspire those engaging with them. How might it engage their emotions,
enabling a sense of peace, comfort, hope or motivation? How might it inspire them into action, into thinking
differently and considering their behaviour or actions? How might it inspire them to reflect on their faith or
beliefs, and on the faith or beliefs of others?
Collective Worship is split into 4 parts and symbolised by these 4 images:
The Welcome
We light our 3 candles, say our welcome words and introduce our collective worship.
Learning - looking through a window
Reflecting- looking in the mirror, thinking about the meaning behind the learning.
Responding - sharing a prayer or blessing, taking the message of our collective worship and going forth with it.
Collective Worship Weekly Plan
Monday - WHOLE SCHOOL COLLECTIVE WORSHIP:
-linked to our Christian Values - we focus on one per half term
Tuesday - Sing a New Song:
-we learn a song linked to the Christian Value
-we sometimes hear The Lord's Prayer sung around the world: The Lord's Prayer Malawi
-sometimes, we learn songs from around the world in other languages: Jambo Bwana - a Swahili medley
-we learn about the meaning behind the song.
-we incorporate Makaton sign language into our singing to support all learners to engage in the songs.
Wednesday - Class Worship:
-this can be a BIG QUESTION, linked to the theme of our weekly worship
-it can be creating something as a class such as a prayer tree linked to the value.
-it can also be a story to share from around the world, linked to the value of the half-term.
Thursday - Global News/British Values
-we learn about current news issues such as racism, refugees, poverty, flooding, war and conflict, famine.
-we talk about the WHY surrounding these issues e.g. Comic Relief is a wonderful organisation that we raise money to support many wonderful causes, but why are there famines in Africa? Why is there conflict in Ukraine? What can we do globally?
Friday - Celebration Assembly
-one child per class receives a GOLD AWARD certificate, linked to the Chritain value of the half term.
-children can bring awards from home to share.
-we announce the 'Tidy Classroom' Award and 'Highest Attendance' Award
-TT rockstars results - we aim to be 1st in the region with our online Maths
-we have a 'Riddle of the Week' - shout outs to all the correct entries!
Diversity and Inclusion at Lady Betty's
Everyone is welcome here.
Ephesians 4:3:
"The Holy Spirit makes you one in every way. So try your best to remain as one. Let peace
keep you together."
Maya Angelou:
“We all should know that diversity makes for a rich tapestry, and we must understand
that all the threads of the tapestry are equal in value no matter their colour.”
We want to teach our children to be tolerant, respectful and aware of other races, religions, cultures and communities around them locally and globally. We do this by weaving a diverse range of texts and songs from around the world into our whole school and class reflection time.
Here are some examples of texts we have used:
