Year 1 PE: Underarm Throw
Yesterday we focused on our underarm throwing. We started by throwing a beanbag into a hoop with our dominant arm, before swapping to our non-dominant arm. The children noticed that it was much harder. Then, we tried to get the beanbag onto a marker spot inside of the hoop, which meant we had to focus more on our aim. To challenge ourselves, we swapped the beanbag for a quoit, which made us focus on the way we held the object in our hand as holding it the wrong way made the quoit roll. The children tried really hard with this and showed lots of resilience and determination.
Year 1 Art: Making Secondary Colours
As part of our class discussion, we understood that colour is everywhere around us. Artists use colour to make their work stand out, look realistic and appeal to an audience. The children learnt that there are three primary colours: red, yellow and blue. We can make other colours by mixing these three colours together. The children found that red and yellow makes orange, blue and yellow makes green and red and blue makes purple, which are secondary colours. They had lots of fun mixing the paints to reveal what colour they would make.
Year 3 Welcome Blackburn Rovers for GULP Project
We are delighted to welcome Blackburn Rovers to Year 3 for a four-week programme. They are delivering the GULP (Give Up Loving Pop) campaign, a fantastic initiative by Food Active, to help our students understand the health risks associated with sugary drinks. Today, the children kicked things off by learning all about what’s really inside their favourite sodas and how to make healthier choices.
Year 3 - P.S.H.E-Derek cooks dinner! (healthy eating)
In PSHE today, Year 3 became health consultants for some very special friends! We were joined by Harold the Giraffe, Derek the Penguin, and Kiki the Kangaroo. The children received an urgent email from Derek, who needed help planning a healthy, balanced party meal. Using the 'Eatwell Guide', the children debated which foods build muscle, strengthen bones, and provide energy. They’ve sent their nutritious meal plans off to Derek, and we are now eagerly awaiting his reply to see what he thinks of their delicious and healthy idea.
Year 5 - Science
In science, we finished our materials topic by exploring the saturation points of water at different temperatures. The children found that warm water can dissolve more sugar than cold water. We related this back to the action of particles, with heat causing the bonds between sugar molecules to weaken, allowing them to spread evenly through the solvent (water). Next week, we begin our new topic of the solar system.
Year 6 - Netball
This week, Year 6 began their invasion games unit with a focus on netball. The children explored the core principles of effective passing and receiving, including accuracy, timing, movement into space and communication. They took part in a series of rondo-style games designed to develop quick decision-making, maintaining possession and supporting teammates. These activities helped the children to understand how to keep the ball moving under pressure and apply these skills within a game-like context.
Welcome back!
A huge welcome back to you all! It was a wonderful wintery view this morning from St Barnabas. It has been lovely to see the children reunited with their friends and they have especially enjoyed playing in the snow with them at break time. They have soon settled back into school and have been working their socks off already! We are looking forward to another exciting year of achieving great things and living life in all its fullness!
Reception: Snow Much Fun
Reception class have really enjoyed our Winter Wonderland. They loved making snow angels, collecting snow to create sculptures and investigating the ice too. It was a great way to introduce our learning all about the season of Winter.
Welcome back worship & Epiphany
It was a joy to gather for this morning’s Welcome Back and Epiphany Worship. Just how did the news of the arrival of Jesus 'the light of the world' spread beyond Bethlehem? Today we heard from the Diocese as part of the Living out God's big story, the story of the Wise Men visiting Jesus and why the Feast of Epiphany is so important. Jesus was a gift sent by God that needed to be shared with everyone. We reflected on our God given gifts and how we should celebrate them. We then filled the hall with the joyous singing of our favorite worship songs in celebration of being back together again after the Christmas break.
Welcome back & weather warning
Dear Parents and Carers, happy new year to you all. A very warm welcome back to all of our families as we begin the new term after the Christmas break. We hope you had a restful and enjoyable holiday. With the recent snowfall and more forecast later on, we want to remind everyone about the need for extra care when travelling to and from school tomorrow. The roads and pavements around school are likely to be slippery. Please ensure that your children are wearing suitable footwear and warm, waterproof clothing to keep them comfortable and safe both on the journey and during their time at school. We urge all parents to take extra caution and allow plenty of time for your journey to ensure everyone arrives safely. We look forward to a successful and productive term ahead! Best wishes, Mrs Ham
Christmas Video 2025
Dear Parents and Carers, What a truly magical and festive end to an incredible first term at St Barnabas! As we reach the final day of this seven-week half term, I am filled with such pride reflecting on everything our school family has achieved. First and foremost, I want to say a heartfelt thank you to all of you. Your partnership and engagement are vital to our children’s success, and your generosity this term—from the Macmillan Coffee Morning to our wonderful Christmas Fair—has been overwhelming. We are so lucky to have such a supportive community. To our children: you are quite simply wonderful. Whether you were settling into Reception for the first time, representing our school in sports, or shining on stage in our Nativity and "Christmas Cracker" performances, you have lived life in all its fullness. You have worked your socks off, and you truly deserve this rest. For photos of our Christmas fun, please click here: https://www.stbarnabasdarwen.co.uk/photo.../christmas-2025 and also see our weekly news: https://www.stbarnabasdarwen.co.uk/news I also want to extend a huge thank you to our fantastic staff team. Their hard work and dedication ensure our school is a love-filled Christian family where every child can thrive. I am particularly grateful for them being such brilliant sports this week; they completely threw themselves into the filming of our annual Christmas video! The children had a wonderful time spotting themselves in the video during our church service this morning. I think the definite highlight for them was seeing exactly what the teachers get up to in school between the hours of 6- 7! We truly hope you enjoy watching it as much as we enjoyed making it. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ONfmvpqhqag A reminder that we break up early today at 2:00 pm. I wish you all a very Merry Christmas. I hope your holiday is filled with love, laughter, and joy. We look forward to seeing everyone back, refreshed and ready for a new chapter, on Monday 5th January. Take care and God bless, Mrs. Ham
Year 3 visit the Rose Garden
It was a lovely morning as Year 3 followed the church service with a walk to the rose garden. The children took great pride in spotting their own artwork and their siblings' pieces.