Religious News Term 4 Week 3

Introducing the New Religious Education Curriculum

At Clairvaux Catholic School, Religious Education is at the heart of who we are and how we live our faith as a community.

Melbourne Archdiocese Catholic Schools (MACS) has been developing a new Religious Education (RE) curriculum in response to the 2023 Review of Religious Education. The curriculum aims to deepen students’ understanding of the Catholic faith, strengthen their knowledge of Scripture and Church teachings, and help them recognise how faith connects with their everyday lives.

At its heart, Religious Education is about more than learning about religion. It is about creating opportunities for students to encounter Jesus, explore their faith, ask meaningful questions and discover how they can live out the values of the Gospel through kindness, compassion, justice and service to others.

Clairvaux’s journey with the new RE curriculum

Throughout 2026, Clairvaux has been actively involved in the development of the new RE curriculum. Our Foundation (Prep) team has participated in the trial-based learning teams, exploring and implementing draft units of work. Teachers in Years 1, 3 and 6 have also contributed to developing and evaluating draft units, helping to shape the curriculum and ensure it supports meaningful learning at each stage of students’ primary school journey. 

This work is part of a broader process overseen by the Religious Education Reference Group, established by Archbishop Peter Comensoli (Archbishop of Melbourne), with MACS supporting the writing, resourcing and development of the curriculum.

What does this mean for our students?

The new RE curriculum (still in its draft form) will provide carefully developed units of work to support engaging, meaningful and age-appropriate learning. Students will continue to explore key aspects of the Catholic faith, including the stories of the Bible, the life and teachings of Jesus, prayer, liturgy, Catholic traditions and how we are called to care for others and our world.

As we continue this journey, our goal is to nurture students’ knowledge and understanding of their faith while encouraging them to reflect, wonder, question and put their learning into action in their daily lives.

As Pope Benedict XVI reminds us, Catholic education offers students an opportunity to “encounter the living God” and discover a life shaped by all that is beautiful, good and true.

We look forward to continuing to strengthen Religious Education at Clairvaux, supporting our students to grow in faith, hope and love and to become people who make a positive difference in the world.

Advent: A Time to Prepare for Jesus

Our Prep students are currently exploring the Foundation RE unit  Advent: A Time to Prepare for Jesus , learning that Advent is a special time of waiting and preparing our hearts to celebrate the birth of Jesus through prayer and acts of kindness. They are also discovering how Mary was chosen by God and how her courageous “yes” teaches us to respond to God with love and put our faith into action.   Yesterday they opened the special Advent box…