Year 3 Celebrating World Book Day
To celebrate World Book Day, the children arrived dressed as their all-time favourite book characters or snuggled up in their best pyjamas. Whether they were channelling their inner hero or getting cosy for a story, the spirit of reading was truly alive today.
Year 3’s World Book Week -From Doodles to Drama
What an incredible week we’ve had celebrating World Book Day! We have truly embraced the spirit of living life in all its fullness by immersing ourselves in the magic of storytelling. We launched our celebration on Monday with an energetic live drawing session with Liz Pichon. Throughout the week, Year 3 has been busy exploring reading, writing, and performing, from joining live author sessions and listening to stories online to bringing characters to life through their own drawings and drama. Highlights have been the joys of discovery; the children loved opening mystery books, guessing the mystery reader behind a book, and reading to their peers. The fun continues into tomorrow as we settle down to enjoy the classic tale of 'Postman Bear' by Julia Donaldson.
Year 3-Class Worship: Exploring Rail Safety and Electricity
As part of our class worship, the children watched an impactful video from the Rail Safety Education Mapping Tool, which they found incredibly interesting. The session highlighted the tragic story of Harrison, who lost his life after being electrocuted by overhead wires while attempting to retrieve a football. This served as a vital reminder of the hidden dangers near tracks and the importance of staying "Rail Safe." Following this powerful introduction to the topic, we are now eagerly awaiting a visit from the rail industry partners, who are keen to support our school in further embedding these safety messages.
Year 3- Computing- Stop Motion Animation
In computing today, Year 3 put on their director hats and began filming their stop-motion sequences. They applied Mr Bradley's guidance on visual aesthetics to bring their chosen storylines to life through frame-by-frame animation.
Year 3- Music- Developing Ukulele Technique
In music today, the children explored the fundamentals of stave notation, learning how it functions as a visual map for reading music. They developed their ukulele technique by mastering both thumb and finger strumming, which they then applied to reading and playing rhythmic patterns. To finish, the children took on the role of composers, creating their own stave notation for the class to perform together as an ensemble.
Year 3-West End Choreography Workshop-Pinocchio
Today, the entire school was buzzing with creativity as we took part in a fantastic West End Workshop based on the story of Pinocchio. Our guest choreographer, James, was absolutely brilliant, bringing the magic of the theatre directly to our pupils. The children focused on rehearsing and perfecting the second half of the story, working hard to synchronise their movements and add expressive actions to their performances. It was truly amazing to see everything come together during our final whole-school assembly, where the narrative was told through a seamless collaborative performance. Year 3 were truly in their element, showing incredible enthusiasm and confidence throughout the day. Well done to everyone!
KS2 Timestable Rockstar Battle
A huge well done to our champions of this month’s Times Table Rockstars Battle! Our individual champions are: Year 6 – Luca Year 5 – Charlie Year 4 – Bobby-Ray Year 3 – Charlie A special congratulations to Year 6 and Year 4, who were our overall winning teams and claimed victory in their class battles. Well done to everyone who participated — your effort, enthusiasm and determination made it a fantastic competition!
Whole School Worship
During today’s whole school worship, we reflected on what we might give for Lent. We explored how Lent is a time of sacrifice, remembering Jesus’ sacrifice, but also a time to give — not only by giving something up, but by giving more of ourselves. We thought about how we can share smiles, kindness, love and live out our Christian values in simple, meaningful ways each day. The children shared thoughtful ideas about small changes they could make, both at school and at home, to show patience, forgiveness and generosity. We also focused on this week’s Kindness Kite theme, “Share what you have,” reminding ourselves that even the smallest act of generosity — sharing time, helping a friend or offering encouraging words — can make a big difference to others.
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Whole School Worship - Ramadan
During worship, we were also treated to a special and informative reflection on Ramadan, thoughtfully led by Miss Kachwalla. The session helped us to understand the importance of this sacred month in Islam — a time of prayer, fasting, reflection and generosity. We learned about how Muslims around the world show dedication, self-discipline and compassion during Ramadan, and how values such as kindness, gratitude and community are central to this time. It was a wonderful opportunity to deepen our understanding, celebrate diversity within our school community and reflect on the shared values that bring us together. We also looked at the similarities between Lent and Ramadan and how they were both important times to give to others and give food up or fast to feel closer to God.
Year 3- Science-Exploring the formation and properties of sedimentary and metamorphic rocks
This afternoon, our Year 3 scientists investigated the fascinating formation and properties of sedimentary and metamorphic rocks. By carrying out a series of comparative tests, the children explored the durability, permeability, and density of various specimens, even using microscopes to search for embedded crystals. They applied their scientific enquiry skills to determine how these physical properties dictate a rock's everyday use, such as why marble might be chosen for a statue or sandstone for a building. It was wonderful to see them reporting on their findings with such enthusiasm as they grouped their rocks and compared them to their previous learning on igneous formations.
Friday Celebration Worship
What a wonderful and incredibly busy first week back we have had in school. On Monday we welcomed special visitors into our school and they were so impressed with the children’s beautiful behaviour, their hard work and their fantastic oracy skills. We are so proud of the way our children represent our school community. A huge thank you to Miss Kachwalla for organising Mad Science, it was a brilliant experience and the children absolutely loved it. This week we have also spent time reflecting on Lent, thinking carefully about what we might give up and how we can grow closer to God during this special season. It has been lovely to see so many children taking part in our amazing after-school clubs and joining in with the Big Winter Wander. We are delighted to celebrate our Values Award winners this week. In Reception, Mason and Phoebe have shown our school values so beautifully. In Year 1, well done to Thea. In Year 2, congratulations to Joey. In Year 3, Alice and Evie have impressed us all. In Year 5, well done to Miles, and in Year 6, congratulations to Beau. Our Pen Licence this week goes to Scarlett in Year 4, what a fantastic achievement for your presentation and handwriting. In our Team Values results, fourth place goes to Darwen Tower, third place to Whitehall Park, second place to India Mill and in first place this week is River Darwen. A huge well done to River Darwen who will get to wear their own clothes on Friday for their disco, enjoy your celebration. We also have so many wonderful sporting achievements to celebrate. Alice has been awarded a trophy in cheerleading for coming second place. Bowen has received a football trophy for his excellent skills. Ida and Layla have both earned a badge for riding trot in horse riding. Phoebe has achieved her 10m swimming certificate and Stage 3. Olivia and Eleanor have earned a Rainbows badge for baking, trying different foods, completing a duck hunt and caring for animals carefully, and Eleanor has also achieved a water skills certificate. Maggie has been awarded a purple belt in martial arts for her fantastic kicking and punching, as well as achieving Stage 3 in gymnastics. Annabelle has received the hardest worker certificate in dance and has the amazing opportunity to go to New York for a dance show, we are so proud. Callie and Charlie have both achieved their 50m swimming certificates. Lyla has won medals in dancing. Seb and Scarlett have received certificates from a sports club during the half-term holidays and Scarlett's netball team also won the league. Tristan has been awarded a purple belt for punching and blocking. Ted has won a huge trophy for BMX racing for coming second in his age category. Lydia has awarded Olivia from Brownies for being kind and helpful. Grace has achieved dance medals for coming second and third. A special well done to our Year 5 football team who played six games, drawing two, narrowly losing one game 1–0, and winning three – a fantastic effort and great teamwork. Well done to Year 1 and Year 3 for achieving the highest attendance this week, your commitment to being in school every day really does make a difference. Looking ahead, we are excited for World Book Day next week. On Tuesday we have special Pinocchio dance workshops and a performance to look forward to. Don't forget to get your dolly peg book character entries in too. On Thursday, children can either dress as a book character or come in their pyjamas. Reception will be performing for Mother’s Day on Friday 13th March and we warmly invite families to join us for our Mother’s Day Sunday Service at church on Sunday 15th March where all of our children are welcome to sing to their Mums. Thank you to Olivia and Ava for leading us in our prayers this week.
Year 3- Geography- Exploring North America
Today, we started a brand-new unit focused on the continent of North America. The geographers located North America on a world map, specifically mastering the use of latitude and longitude and outlining the continent's key physical features.