What makes a gurdwara special to Sikhs?

YEAR 8: SUMMER 1

About the unit

In this unit pupils find out about the gurdwara and the role it plays in Sikh communities. Pupils develop their understanding of how religious beliefs are expressed in practice through studying the features of the gurdwara and the activities, including worship, that take place inside it. Pupils become aware of the diversity within Sikhism by comparing textbook examples of places of worship explored in the classroom with those explored through visits. They evaluate the importance of a place of worship to believers today. Learning from the visit the significance of the gurdwara for the Sikh community and local people, pupils reflect on places that have significance for them in the local community. They explore ways in which places in their local community might have significance for them.

This unit is expected to take approximately 7 hours.

Where the unit fits in

This unit builds on work completed on a place of worship in unit 6A ‘Worship and community’, unit 6B ‘Worship and community: what is the role of the mosque’ and unit 6E ‘What can we learn from Christian religious buildings?’ in the key stage 2 scheme of work, as well as any work undertaken on Sikhism.

At key stage 3 pupils explore in greater detail the distinctive religious beliefs of Sikhism through an understanding of its place of worship. It should build on earlier thinking about the nature of God as well as raising ultimate questions.

The unit prepares for evaluative work in GCSE RE/RS.

Expectations

At the end of this unit

most pupils will: explain with understanding how some of the principal beliefs of Sikhism are expressed in the gurdwara building, in worship and in the wider life of the Sikh community, including the ideas that God is One (Ik Onkar), that all people are equal, regardless of religious background, class or gender, that God continues to teach us today through the words of the Guru Granth Sahib who is a living guru for the past, present and future; show understanding of what it means to be a Sikh in today’s world, appreciating that there are differences within Sikhism, as well as overriding similarities between different communities; have had an opportunity to reflect on the special qualities of places of worship; describe places of local or community significance in their own lives; develop their own responses to the beliefs and ideas distinctive to Sikhism

some pupils will not have made so much progress and will: describe a gurdwara using some correct terms and explain what it is used for; know that Sikhs believe in one God and express their own views about God in response; talk about local places which are special to them

some pupils will have progressed further and will: compare in detail similarities and differences between places of worship within a religious tradition as well as identifying similarities and differences across other religions they have studied; explain how beliefs affect the life of individuals and the religious community; evaluate religious and secular responses to questions of meaning and purpose using appropriate evidence and examples; explain in depth their own views

Prior learning

It is helpful if pupils have:

• learnt how to use some technical terminology specific to Sikhism. This might include something about the life of the 10 Gurus, including Guru Nanak; the five Ks and the story of the formation of the Khalsa
• learnt how to make comparisons between key beliefs and practice
• learnt how to use artefacts and pictures as sources particularly through previous visits to places of worship, eg mosque and church and lessons on Sikhism
• had the opportunity to develop skills of interpretation and reflection

Language for learning

Through the activities in this unit pupils will be able to understand, use and spell correctly words relating to:

• the place of worship, eg prayer hall, canopy
• the study of the religion which the religious building represents, eg Guru Granth Sahib, the five Ks, langar

Reading – through the activities pupils could:

• understand information which is not explicitly stated or which the reader is assumed to understand

Writing – through the activities pupils could:

• group sentences into paragraphs that are clearly focused and well developed

Resources

Resources include:

• a large map to show where the place of worship can be found. For Sikhism specifically, a map of the Punjab might be useful
• posters or pictures of different examples of the place of worship
• pictures of the lives of the gurus (as these are frequently found in the gurdwara)
• religious artefacts, eg chauri, shabads (recording of Sikh hymns), orange flag, Khanda symbol
• a range of reference books on the religion
• relevant religious scriptures, eg example of Gurmukhi script
• a good video resource of a gurdwara
• websites where virtual visits can take place, eg www.sikhs.org; www.sikhnet.com
• CD-ROMs

Out of school learning

Pupils could:

• visit a gurdwara for the day
• talk to believers about their beliefs and values
• take photographs of a range of different Sikh places of worship

Future learning

Pupils could go on to:

• develop their understanding of the nature of God in Sikhism through a study of hymns, writing and other devotional material from the Adi Granth and Guru Granth Sahib, eg think about the traditional proofs for the existence of God and relate them to a Sikh perspective
• explore the moral issues raised in greater depth, eg How does Sikhism promote the equality of women and men? Does society discriminate against Sikhs?
• undertake a research project based on the life of a particular Sikh community or one of its individual members