Moral and religious education Year 5: Changing, growing and being different together
Moral and religious education, Year 5 (Portugal): Change is a constant of life that helps us grow, and every group is richer because its members are different.
Change never stops
Nothing in your life stays the same for long: you grow, change class, learn what you could not do last year, make new friends and sometimes move house. Change is a constant of life. It can be uncomfortable, because we leave behind what we knew, but it is also how we grow: the first time you rode a bike, you did not know how. Groups change too — a class, a team or a family is never exactly the same next year.
A group is richer when its members differ
Imagine a football team where all eleven players are goalkeepers: it could not play. A team needs defenders, midfielders and strikers, and a class needs people who draw, write, count, organise and make others laugh. Members differ in talents, tastes, families, origins and beliefs, and that variety gives the group more ideas and more ways to solve problems. Diversity is a source of enrichment, not a problem to be removed.
Case: a new pupil joins the class
Sofia arrives in your class in the middle of the year. Step 1 — what changes for her: new school, new teachers, nobody she knows; it is hard, and that is normal. Step 2 — what changes for the class: one more member, so seats, groups and habits change too. Step 3 — what she brings: she draws well and knows a card game from her old school. Step 4 — the result: the class learns a new game and Sofia makes friends. Both changed, and both grew.
Change is not loss, different is not wrong
It is easy to think that changing means losing who you are, and that people who are different from us are a problem. Neither is true. Sofia is still Sofia in a new school; you keep your name, your memories and your friends while you grow. And valuing diversity does not mean agreeing about everything or pretending nobody is different: it means recognising what each one brings and disagreeing with respect.
Where you see it
Change and difference are everywhere outside school: a school orchestra where violins, flutes and drums sound different but play one piece; a neighbourhood where families of many origins share a park; a family that grows when a baby is born or a grandparent comes to live with you; a new school year or a move to another town. Every time, the group is not the same as before, and it can be richer than before.
Test what you learned
How does this topic describe change in life?
- a) A rare event that only happens when we become adults
- b) A constant of life that, even if uncomfortable, helps us grow
- c) A loss: whoever changes stops being who they were
Correct answer: b) A constant of life that, even if uncomfortable, helps us grow — Right: we leave behind some things we knew, but change is also how we learn and grow, like the first time you rode a bike.
Sofia joins your class in the middle of the year. Which analysis is best?
- a) Only Sofia changes; the class stays exactly the same
- b) The class should ask Sofia to become like everyone else
- c) Both change: Sofia adapts, and the class gains what she brings
Correct answer: c) Both change: Sofia adapts, and the class gains what she brings — Right: it is hard for her at first, but the group also learns from what she brings, and both grow.
What does it mean to value diversity in a group?
- a) To recognise what each one brings and to disagree with respect
- b) To agree with everyone about everything, to avoid conflict
- c) To pretend that there are no differences between members
Correct answer: a) To recognise what each one brings and to disagree with respect — Right: differences are what enrich the group, and valuing them includes voicing other opinions respectfully.
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