Year 1 R.E – Learning Focus 3: The Holy Spirit Helps Us Change

This week in Year 1, we explored a very special question in our R.E. lessons:

Why do Christians believe the Holy Spirit can help people change, like the apostles did?

Across two thoughtful and creative sessions, the children learned about Jesus’ promise to His friends and how Catholics believe the Holy Spirit continues to guide, strengthen, and inspire people today. The week ended with a joyful celebration as the children made their own “God is Here” badges to remind them that God is always close.

✨ Lesson 1 – The Promise of the Holy Spirit

We began with a fun retrieval game, “What am I?”, using props and images from earlier stories such as Palm Sunday, the Last Supper, and the Resurrection. This helped the children reconnect with the events leading up to Jesus’ final promise.

📖 Scripture Focus – Acts 1:1–5

We shared a child‑friendly version of the moment when Jesus told the apostles to wait in Jerusalem for the Holy Spirit. The children learned that:

• Jesus promised God would send a helper

• The Holy Spirit would give the apostles strength

• Waiting with open hearts is an important part of faith

We explored some of the tricky vocabulary together — promise, Holy Spirit, wait, power, changed — and talked about what each word means in simple, child‑friendly language.

The children then watched a short video retelling of the Promise of the Spirit, pausing to match what they saw with the scripture.

🎨 Story Journey Creation

The children created a visual “story journey” showing:

• Jesus speaking to the apostles

• The promise of the Holy Spirit

• The apostles waiting

• The moment of hope

This helped them understand the sequence of events and how the apostles trusted Jesus’ words.

✨ Lesson 2 – How the Holy Spirit Changes Us

We revisited Acts 1:4–5 and reminded ourselves that Jesus promised the Holy Spirit would come and change the apostles. We talked about how Christians believe the Holy Spirit helps people today too — helping them feel:

• Braver

• Kinder

• More loving

• More patient

The children shared moments when they have felt supported, encouraged, or inspired to do the right thing.

🎨 “God is Here” Badges

To celebrate the belief that the Holy Spirit is always with us, the children created their own “God is Here” badges. These colourful badges were a joyful reminder that:

• God is close

• The Holy Spirit helps us

• We can show love, kindness, and courage every day

The children wore their badges proudly, and they sparked some lovely conversations about how they can show God’s love in school and at home.

💛 A Wonderful Week of Faith and Creativity

These two lessons helped the children understand that Christians believe the Holy Spirit is a helper who brings strength, courage, and love — just as Jesus promised. Through storytelling, discussion, art, and reflection, the children explored how they too can be changed for the better.