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Year 6

Glastonbury: a contemporary spiritual place

I can explain how Glastonbury has developed as a site of Pagan pilgrimage and the connections to its past.

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New
New
Year 6

Glastonbury: a contemporary spiritual place

I can explain how Glastonbury has developed as a site of Pagan pilgrimage and the connections to its past.

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Lesson details

Key learning points

  1. Glastonbury is a town in Somerset and Glastonbury Tor is seen by some people as a sacred site.
  2. Glastonbury is a place of pilgrimage for both Christians and Pagans.
  3. Pagans have a worldview connected to nature and the earth.
  4. Many Pagans see Glastonbury as a sacred site due to a mix of legends, sacred water and the surrounding landscape.
  5. We can better understand Glastonbury as a site of pilgrimage by interviewing people with different worldviews.

Keywords

  • Pilgrimage - a journey made to a sacred place, as an act of religious devotion

  • Pagans - people who follows a religious or spiritual belief system that is based on nature

  • Solstice - the longest day of the yea; in the Northern hemisphere it occurs on 21-23rd June

  • Spiritual - a sense of connection to something greater

Common misconception

Pagans and other similar spiritualities define themselves against Christianity.

Pagan worldviews are highly diverse. However, they share a common reverance for the earth and a tolerance towards those of other worldviews.


To help you plan your year 6 religious education lesson on: Glastonbury: a contemporary spiritual place, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...

Look at the results of your local census in 2021. How many pagans live in your area? Has this figure increased from the number in 2011?
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This content is © Oak National Academy Limited (2025), licensed on Open Government Licence version 3.0 except where otherwise stated. See Oak's terms & conditions (Collection 2).

Lesson video

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5 Questions

Q1.
A is someone who makes a journey to a sacred place.
Correct Answer: pilgrim, Pilgrim
Q2.
Which of these pilgrimages is the largest gathering of humans on earth?
Correct answer: Kumbh Mela
Iona
Glastonbury
Hajj
Q3.
Which of these are tools used by social scientists to help us better understand how people live out their worldviews?
Correct answer: analysing surveys
interpreting sacred texts
creating logical arguments
Correct answer: carrying out interviews
Q4.
Who, according to legend, planted a thorn in Glastonbury?
Jesus
Correct answer: Joseph of Arimathea
Mary, mother of Jesus
Q5.
The new shrine for Catholic Christians in Glastonbury is dedicated to ...
Correct answer: Our Lady of Glastonbury
Jesus
Joseph of Arimathea

5 Questions

Q1.
A worldview based on nature and care for the world is ...
Christian
Correct answer: Pagan
Muslim
Q2.
Many Pagans gather at Glastonbury Tor to mark the summer ...
Correct Answer: solstice, Solstice
Q3.
Many Pagans visit Glastonbury because they ...
want to visit the abbey
Correct answer: feel a connection to their ancestors
Correct answer: believe the land has a spiritual energy
want to attend the music festival
Q4.
Which of these statements is true?
Glastonbury is sacred for Christians only.
Correct answer: Glastonbury is sacred for Christians and Pagans.
Glastonbury is sacred for Pagans only.
Q5.
Which Pagan path lead rituals on Glastonbury Tor for the summer solstice?
Catholic
Dragon
Correct answer: Druid