Year 6- Graffiti Tunnel
We had a great time appreciating the graffiti art in Leake Street tunnel and we got to create our own graffiti art. Earlier on this year we looked at graffiti art in our Art unit so it was great to be able to apply the skills we learnt. All of the Year 6 London trip photos can be found here: https://www.stbarnabasdarwen.co.uk/photo-galleries/year-6-london-trip-2025
Year 6- Houses of Parliament
Our Year 6 class were so fortunate to be able to visit the Houses of Parliament to learn all about our British Values and in particular, democracy and the rule of law. We had a tour and watched a live debate in the House of Commons. The Foreign Secretary David Lammy also gave an announcement. We visited Westminster Hall, which we recognised from seeing on the news when the Queen was lying in State after her sad death. We then took part in a workshop about how laws are created and we learnt all about Parliament and the houses of Commons and Lords through a fun activities. We also got to explore democracy through voting and debating. Finally we were visited by our local Member of Parliament, Andy McNae and had a great question and answer session. We are so proud of the thoughtful questions the children asked him. We are sure that we have a few future MPs amongst our Year 6 class!
Year 3- English- Using Adverbs to Bring The Iron Man to Life
In English, our young writers have started writing the opening for our class narrative based on The Iron Man! The children have been busy creating their powerful adverbs to bring their writing to life. From silently towering over the cliffs to mysteriously appearing in the darkness, they’ve been working hard to make their openings gripping. We’ve had giant hands cautiously reaching out, and eerie eyes glowingly piercing through the night.
Year 4 DT - Designing Torches
In our DT session this week we looked at designing our product to fit a set of specific user needs. To begin the session, we created our circuits that we will need for our torches and then we drew the circuit formats out using the correct symbols. It was quite challenging to make the circuits light the bulbs as some of the crocodile clips in the wires were tough and some of the batteries no longer worked. We worked in small groups and it was great to see the children working as a team to problem solve. Once we had done this we then designed our torches and labelled all of the components. We can’t wait to start making the torches in our next session now we have collect all of the resources which include; a water bottle, I battery pack, a bulb, a switch and three wires.
Reception Firefighter visit
Today the Fire Service visited our Reception classroom to talk about how they help to keep us and the community safe. Lee reminded us that we must check our smoke alarms as they are the best way to keep us safe at home. He also told us about the different ways they help in emergencies, from putting out fires to rescuing trapped animals. He showed us their special uniform and the tools they need to perform their jobs. We then had a look at the fire engine and even experienced a quick shower from the very powerful fire hose. A big thank you to Darwen Fire Service for a brilliant morning.
Reception-Year of Prayer- The Floor is Lava
This week for the year of prayer, Reception class used large love heart shapes and scattered them around the room. We played the game ‘the floor is lava’ and the rule was to only touch the love hearts. The children had fun hopping, stepping, jumping and crawling across the love hearts. This was to thank God for his love for us.
Year 2 - Year of Prayer
Here are the last two weeks of Year 2's Year of Prayer. Both weeks, the children have written prayers for different reasons. Last week, we wrote prayers to say sorry to God. We said sorry for either something we have done or for something happening in the world we are sorry for. After we had written them, we tore them into pieces and threw them into the air. We discussed how doing this was like we were moving on and being forgiven. This week, it was time for a game of the floor is lava! Each child had to jump into a love heart with a partner. Every time this happened, we said prayers to say thank you to God. We had very thoughtful prayers including saying thank you for: fruit and vegetables, our homes, being healthy, our friends, living in a safe country and our families. It was a lovely opportunity to go into their spirituality garden and give thanks for all the amazing things on our lives.
Year 1 D&T- Exploring Cutting Techniques for Food Preparation
Today in their food technology lesson, Year 1 explored two types of cutting techniques. They practised the bridge cutting technique and fork secure cutting technique. This will help them to safely and successfully prepare their fruit for their healthy breakfast pots next week.
Year 4 History- Making Inferences about who was buried at Sutton Hoo
This week in history we have been trying to make inferences about who was buried at Sutton Hoo and what evidence it gives us about Anglo Saxon life. We researched artefacts such as a helmet, having bowl, shoulder clasps, belt buckles and sceptres. We each selected an artefact to look at in more detail and answered questions directly related to it. We described it, added what we thought it was made from, what it may have been used for, who its owner may have been and what it tells us about Anglo-Saxon England.
A Special Visit From Local Author, Janek Puzon
This morning, Reception, Year 1 and Year 2 enjoyed a visit from local author, Janek Puzon. Janek engaged the children in a storytelling session by reading them his latest book, Agent Glen. The book was all about Agent Glen who was hired to detect a mysterious burglar who kept stealing riches from an art gallery. However, Agent Glen was a little hard of hearing and he ended up in some rather hilarious situations whilst completing his mission. The children particularly enjoyed the part where his hand got stuck to the toilet. Thank you to Janek Puzon for visiting our school and sharing his wonderful book with our infant children. We can’t wait to add Janek’s books to our school library collection.
Year 1 Class Worship- Picture News
This week in Class Worship, Year 1 thought about their morning routine and decided that breakfast was a very important part of this. They then listened to the news about how the government are trialing breakfast clubs across 750 schools. Initially, the class was very divided with regards to whether they thought having their breakfast at school was a good idea. However, after discussing this in detail, most children decided that it was in fact a good idea as it would ensure that every child across the country would have the chance to fill their tummies up so that they can learn, have the chance to eat some of their 5 a day to keep fit and healthy and get the chance to catch up with their friends before school.
Year 3- R.E- Exploring Sadness and Joy of Easter
In R.E, Year 3 learned about the events of Palm Sunday. They watched a short film showing Jesus' triumphant entry into Jerusalem and discussed the different emotions of the people in the story. The crowd was excited and joyful, waving palm branches and shouting "Hosanna!" because they believed Jesus was their King. The disciples felt proud and amazed as they walked beside Jesus and saw how much people loved Him. Jesus himself was calm but thoughtful, knowing what was to come. However, the Pharisees were angry and worried because they didn’t like how many people followed Jesus. The children learnt that Easter Sunday is both joyful and sad because it brings together the emotions of Good Friday and the Resurrection of Jesus.