Year 5 - Life Cycles
Today in Science, Year 5 explored the fascinating world of life cycles, focusing on a range of insects. They compared how some insects undergo complete metamorphosis, changing form entirely at each stage, while others simply grow into larger versions of their younger selves. The children then created visual representations of their chosen insect’s life cycle, using a variety of materials such as rope, cones and counters to illustrate each stage in a creative and engaging way.
Mental Health Awareness Whole School Worship Led by Year 4
Following on from Mental Health Awareness Week last week, Year 4 led a whole school worship this morning. The children in Year 4 have been focusing on mental health, what helps us to better our mental health and they have also delivered random acts of kindness. In the worship, the children shared a lovely video that was created by primary school children on how we can share our feelings, thinking, emotions and moods. We know how to look after our physical health but our mental health is just as important. We learnt that Year 4 like to take part in sport, get a good nights sleep, spend time with friends and family, share problems and eat healthy and drink plenty of water! The children also shared some beautiful kindness poems and buckets of how they fill them to support their mental health. We are very proud of Year 4 for sharing their experiences and it’s great to know how much we can support each other along the way!
Year 4 History - Cause or Consequence?
As part of British History sessions, today Year 4 discussed the impact of events using cause and consequence. An example of this being that a cause was - The Vikings started to stay in Britain instead of raiding and leaving. The consequence was that parts of Britain then became controlled by the Vikings. We also found out that King Cnut was a king three times before he died in 1035.
Reception- Muddy Monday
Today during our Muddy Monday session, we went minibeast exploring in Jack’s Key. The children used magnifying glasses and Petri dishes to take a closer look at the amazing minibeasts our local area has to offer. They were excited to discover a variety of tiny creatures, including worms, spiders, and woodlice, carefully observing their features and movements.
Reception- Muddy Monday
During our Muddy Monday session, the children also put up their shelter, using nearby trees to help anchor and support the structure. They worked together to stretch and secure the materials, thinking carefully about how to make it stable, while also looking for mini beasts.
Whole School Worship- Your Kingdom Come
During our whole school worship, we continued looking at the special Lord's Prayer that Jesus taught us. We began by imagining what our world might look like if we were in charge for a day. The children shared thoughtful and creative ideas, such as a world filled with kindness, fairness, and care for the environment. This engaging activity led naturally into our focus on the next part of the Lord’s Prayer: “Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as in heaven.” We took time to reflect on what God’s kingdom should look like—a place where love, kindness and peace are present in everything we do. Together, we discussed how we can each play a part in God’s kingdom through our actions and behaving the way He would want. We then turned our attention to the concept of heaven and how it connects to this line of the Lord's prayer. The children were encouraged to share with each other their thoughts on what heaven might be like. Their ideas were rich and varied, painting pictures of a world filled with happiness, joy and light. Jesus tells us through the Lord's prayer that God wants His Kingdom to be like heaven on earth so we reflected on how we could create heaven on earth in our school each day. We had some fantastic answers such as showing kindness, respect and generosity to each other. This worship helped deepen our understanding of the Lord’s Prayer and reminded us all of the role we can play in making our world a better place, starting with small, meaningful actions in our everyday lives.
Year 1 Geography- Ordnance Survey Map Symbols
This afternoon in geography, Year 1 explored ordnance survey map symbols such as a school, place of worship, police station and post office. They really enjoyed trying to figure out what each of the symbols meant to match them correctly. They then explored an ordnance survey map of our local area and highlighted the symbols that they could find. They found several schools, footpaths, main roads, foot bridges and cemeteries.
Year 3 - P.E-Passing Skills and Team Games Using the Swing Pass
In PE today, Year 3 practised their passing skills through an activity called "Through the Gate." They worked in pairs, using swing passes to move from one set of cones (gates) to the next, passing the ball between the cones and counting how many gates they could pass through in the time given. If a gate was occupied, they found another one nearby. They also took turns as the central passer in a drill where Child 1 passed to each group member and received the ball back before moving on to the next player, ensuring everyone had a turn in the central role. Finally, they played a 4v1 game where four attackers around a square completed as many one-handed or bounce swing passes as possible while one defender in the middle tried to intercept, rotating the defender every minute. Throughout the session, they focused on the correct swing pass technique, forming a 'W' grip, swinging from chest to hip, and extending arms and fingers toward the target, while receivers practised watching the ball, reaching out, and bringing it to the chest for the next pass. All the children worked brilliantly as a team, showing great encouragement and support for one another throughout the activities.
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Barney's Best Bits- Summer 1 Week 4
Another action-packed week of achieving great things and living life to the fullest at St Barnabas! It's been a whirlwind of exciting activities and achievements across the school. Here's a peek at some of the highlights from this week: * A massive well done to our Year 6 children who completed their SATs this week. We are incredibly proud of their hard work, resilience, and positive attitude throughout the week. Well done to each and every one of you! A huge thank you to our staff team and parents who have supported our Year 6 children throughout their time at St Barnabas and to Mr Prescott, Mrs Irshad, Mrs Pendlebury and Mrs Haworth for supporting the SATs this week. *Our Year 5 pupils embarked on their much-anticipated outdoor and adventurous residential trip to Winmarleigh PGL. We know they've been challenging themselves, building teamwork skills, and creating memories that will last a lifetime. A huge thank you to Mr Bloomfield, Rev Ben and Mr Mealor who accompanied and supported this fantastic experience. Photos here: https://www.stbarnabasdarwen.co.uk/photo-galleries/year-5-pgl-may-2025 *Year 3 had a fantastic rock and river trip! They took part in thrilling climbing activities and had a splashing good time with the water-based adventures. It sounded like a day full of excitement and new experiences. Photos here: https://www.stbarnabasdarwen.co.uk/photo-galleries/year-3-rock-and-river-2024-25 *Reception had some very special visitors this week – animals from Nightingale Farm! It was a wonderful opportunity for hands-on learning and getting up close with farm animals. They also had a special visit to our church and Rev Matt led a great session all about the church. * Our amazing netball team continued their winning streak, securing three more victories this week! Their dedication, teamwork, and sporting spirit are truly commendable. * This week our Year of Prayer focus has been on prayers for the world. In our worships we have continued to hold the wider world in our thoughts and prayers, fostering compassion and a sense of global responsibility. For all of the news in detail from each class see our news page: https://www.stbarnabasdarwen.co.uk/news We're already looking forward to another exciting week ahead before we break up for the two-week half-term holidays! You can find details of our upcoming events here: https://www.stbarnabasdarwen.co.uk/events. We truly appreciate your continued support in all that we do and wish you all a wonderful and sunny weekend, Mrs Ham
Friday Celebration Worship
This morning, we started our worship by collectively signing our new Makaton signs ‘yes’, ‘no,’ and ‘happy’ and congratulating our amazing Year 6 children for their incredible efforts in their SATs and the way that they have tackled them with nothing but smiles and positivity. We are so proud of you all! We also reflected on many of our other highlights this week which have included prayers for the world as part of our Diocesan Year of Prayer, Reception having a visit from Nightingale Farm, Year 3 visiting Rock & River, Year 5 enjoying their PGL residential, having our DACA students join our school on work experience and our Year 5/6 Netball Squad who represented St Barnabas brilliantly in the DPSSA Netball league last night and came away with three victories. Furthermore, we congratulated Ted in Year 4 for working hard to achieve his pen license, our Year 2 and Year 5 classes for being our attendance winners this week with 99.2% and 100% attendance and River Darwen as our value award winners this week with 226 points. We then moved onto congratulating this week’s individual value award winners. Well done to Minnie, Elsie and Harry in EYFS and KS1 and Alice in KS2. Well done to these children for working incredibly hard, pushing themselves out of their comfort zone and showing our Barny’s 4Bs (being kind, safe, respectful and ready). We also congratulated the whole of the Year 3 & 5 classes for being amazing on their trip to PGL and Rock & River. They were extremely courageous, encouraged each other every step of the way and represented our school amazingly. Furthermore, we congratulated our Year 1 and Year 5 class for being our attendance winners this week and Whitehall Park as our value award winners this week with 161 points. We then moved onto congratulating all of our out of school achievers. Well done to Luna for achieving her Stage 1 in swimming, Olivia, Annie and Thea for being incredibly kind and caring at Rainbows, Hollie for achieving her Stage 2 in swimming, Lyla for achieving a distinction in her recent ballet exam, Jack for being the Player of the Match and achieving the Captain’s Armband in a recent football game, Annabel for achieving an entry level award for her music performance at Rocksteady and being Star of the Week at dancing, Eliza and Darcy for their commitment to Brownies, Maggie for achieving a gold award in Rainbows alongside multiple other certificates and badges, Olivia for being the Player of the Match and achieving the Captain’s Armband in a recent football game, Haydn for incredible football and Poppy, Brooke and Laila for being the EFLA cup winners 2025. To end our worship, we collective listened to this week’s Year of Prayer, said the Grace and sang ‘Sing a New Song.’ Thank you to all of our school family who could attend celebration worship and we thank you for your ongoing support. We send an extended thank you to the rest of our school family. We wish you all a lovely and restful weekend in the sunshine. The slides can be found on class dojo or here: https://www.stbarnabasdarwen.co.uk/about-us/church-and-worship#tab-4370
Year 3-Living Life to the Fullest at Rock and River
What an unforgettable day at Rock and River! Today, Year 3 embarked on their exciting class trip to Rock and River, a day filled with challenge, adventure, and growth. The aim of the day was to step outside comfort zones, try new experiences, and explore personal potential, and the children did exactly that! From the Low Ropes Course, climbing wall, and air bag jump, to Rafted Canoes, Sit-on-Top Kayaks, Paddle Boards, and the Mega Paddle Boards, every child embraced the challenges with enthusiasm and bravery. What made the day special was the way the children supported one another. There was a wonderful sense of encouragement, respect, and team spirit, with friendships strengthened through shared experiences and mutual celebration of each other’s efforts. Throughout the day, the children truly lived life to the fullest, laughing, learning, and pushing beyond their fears. Just as importantly, they embodied the Christian values at the heart of our school: courage, friendship and encouragement. It was a day of lifelong memories, an example of what can be achieved when we believe in ourselves and lift each other. A huge well done to every single one of them, they should be incredibly proud! All of the photos will be added to this album shortly: https://www.stbarnabasdarwen.co.uk/photo-galleries/year-3-rock-and-river-2024-25
DPSSA Netball Night 2
Super proud of our netball squad after another three consecutive wins on the bounce! Every team member is improving in every game. All listening to feedback and taking it forward. Supporting each other and showing great sportsmanship through each and every game. Go Team B!