Spiritual Development
At Brooke we aim to be a place where everyone can flourish. As a church school, children’s spiritual development is very important to us. We know, the development of
spirituality can have a massive influence on a child’s well-being and their mental health and we aim to create an environment that will nurture people’s minds, body and soul.
However, we acknowledge it is a deeply personal journey. Spiritual development relates to fundamental questions about the meaning and purpose of life which affect everyone, and is not dependent on a religious affiliation. We are guided by our Christian faith and the Christian values which we hold dear but we welcome all and we openly encourage children to reflect in the way that suits them best, enabling them to participate in an ongoing process of spiritual realisation and to flourish in a way that will help them find peace, comfort and strength throughout life's ever changing journey. It is not our aim to guide children to follow a particular faith.
At Brooke we provide children with openings for spiritual development:
-
WINDOWS: giving children opportunities to become aware of the world in new ways; to wonder about life’s ‘WOWs’ (things that are amazing) and ‘OWs’ (things that bring us up short). In this children are learning about life in all its fullness.
-
MIRRORS: giving children opportunities to reflect on their experiences; to meditate on life’s big questions and to consider some possible answers. In this they are learning from life by exploring their own insights and perspectives and those of others.
- DOORS: giving children opportunities to respond to all of this; to do something creative as a means of expressing, applying and further developing their thoughts and convictions. In this they are learning to live by putting into action what they are coming to believe and value.