Year 1 RE: Advent Trail
This afternoon Year 1 took a visit to Whitehall Park so that we could see all of the Advent Art created by our school, which fit nicely into our RE topic surrounding the true meaning of Christmas. As we walked to the park, we thought about the Nativity story. Once we arrived, we discovered that the Wise Men brought Jesus three special gifts: gold (to show respect that Jesus was a king), frankincense (to show that people would worship Him) and myrrh (to show that Jesus would understand suffering). We tried to see if any of the artwork showcased the Wise Men. We discussed that most precious gifts are not expensive, but they have thought and meaning behind them. We also thanked God for the most special gift of all, Jesus.
Year 5 - Whitehall Park
On Tuesday, we visited the rose garden at Whitehall Park to see the wonderful Advent art made by the talented children of St Barnabas. Afterwards, we took advantage of the dry weather by spending our break time on the swings.
Year 2 - We met Father Christmas
On Friday we had a fantastic Christmas party and met Father Christmas. We were so pleased to receive a special gift from him.
Rocksteady Christmas Concert
We were so proud of Rocksteady Rock Stars for their amazing performances in their Rock Concert yesterday. It’s been wonderful to see how much their confidence has grown over the last few months. We are also super proud of Mr Mealor for performing brilliantly on the drums and Mason for singing amazingly well with him! Thanks so much Jess for being so amazing with our children. The photos can be found here: https://www.stbarnabasdarwen.co.uk/photo-galleries/rocksteady-christmas-concert and the videos have been added to class dojo.
Author Visit to KS1 and Year 3: Janek Puzon
We had a special visit from an author this morning, Janek Puzon. He read his new book “Dean the Baked Bean and his Karaoke Machine”. It was about a baked bean who loves singing on karaoke. The children sat amazingly whilst listening to him read the story and enjoyed it. They also asked some fantastic questions such as: How many books have you written? Do you enjoy being an author? Where do you write the books? How do you write a book? Which is your favourite book that you have written? We are very excited for our delivery of his books to our school library!
Year 3 Meet Author Janek Puzon
Today, the children had the pleasure of meeting an Janek Puzon an author. He read out loud the story Dean the Baked Bean and His Karaoke Machine. This picture book tells the story of Dean, a small but mighty baked bean who doesn't quite fit in with the rest of his tin. While all the other beans are content to sit quietly in the sauce, Dean has a big dream and an even bigger voice. The central themes are: Embracing individuality: Learning that it's okay to be different from everyone else in your "tin." Following the reading, the children engaged in a Q&A session, by asking about the author's journey, his creative process for generating new ideas, and the role of his illustrators. He concluded by mentioning that his works are available on various platforms, including on Amazon. The children are super excited about getting hold of one of his books which will be available at our school library soon. They were particularly fascinated to learn about the editing and proofreading process (which they recognise from using their purple pens), understanding how crucial it is to polish a book before it's published.
Reception: Muddy Monday
Reception class really enjoyed their Muddy Monday walk to Jacks Key reservoir today. There were lots of muddy puddles to splash in which was great fun. The children had to jump over a stream which they all enjoyed and loved talking to each other along the way.
Whitehall Park Christmas Lantern Parade
A huge thank you to everyone who braved the wind and the rain this evening to attend the Whitehall Park Christmas Lantern Parade. The children had great fun creating their own lanterns and going on a very muddy walk around the park. We are so proud of all the children who sang so brilliantly and brought festive cheer to everyone. Thank you Whitehall Park Supporters Group Darwen for inviting us and for the yummy sweet treats!
Forest School Christmas Party
We concluded our final Forest School session of the year with a Forest School Christmas Party! We made music using materials around us, enjoyed the beautiful full moon and played some fun games. It’s been a pleasure to share our Forest School Club with your enthusiastic and amazing children! We hope to continue the club in the new year. Thank you for embracing nature, getting muddy and learning how to look after our shared spaces.
Year 2 Pantomime Visit - Snow White
Year 2 really enjoyed their visit to the pantomime on Tuesday. Oh no they didn't! Oh yes they did!
Singing at Acer Lodge Care Home
We are so proud of the 8 children, who were selected based on their effort in Monday's singing worship, who sang at Acer Lodge Care Home on Wednesday. They brought lots of festive cheer to the residents and it was wonderful to see them joining in with the bells we gave out. The children were over the moon to get a surprise visit from Santa himself, who thanked the children by giving them each a selection box. Rosie gave some letters written by herself and her Year 4 class to the residents to introduce themselves and tell them about themselves. We hope the residents enjoyed reading them.
Snow White Pantomime
The children had a brilliant time today at Blackburn Empire Theatre. The whole school watched Snow White. It was wonderful to see their faces light up, Christmas is in full swing at St Barnabas! All of the photos will be uploaded shortly to here: https://www.stbarnabasdarwen.co.uk/photo-galleries/snow-white-pantomime