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Wellbeing Warriors Wow Challenge - October
In our Wellbeing Warriors meeting today, the children identified who had done enough walks or park and strides and to gain their October badges. We are thrilled to see that so many children are trying so hard to make their journey to school a healthier one. The girls went through each class highlighting names and then collecting the right amount of badges which they will give out in Worship tomorrow. Another great achievement is that St Barnabas have managed to come third place in the Blackburn with Darwen Top Ten Leader Board for Autumn 2025 which shows that our engagement rate is outstanding!
Year 3- Geography- Identifying lines of Latitude and Climate Zones
This afternoon, our amazing geographers have been exploring the concept of lines of latitude, the imaginary lines that run horizontally around the Earth. Using these key lines, the children identified different climate zones across the globe, from the tropical heat near the Equator to the icy cold near the poles. We focused on the extreme environments defined by these lines, learning about the Arctic Circle and Antarctica, and explored the fascinating animals that live there, too.
Year 5 - Science
Our new topic in science is properties of materials. We started by defining what the terms transparency, magnetism, thermal and electrical conductivity meant before carrying out a range of experiments to determine the properties of fabric, glass, iron, copper, clay, wood and plastic. The children worked like real scientists, collaborating together and debating their observations and conclusions.
Reception: Muddy Monday
The children in Reception went to Jacks Key for their Muddy Monday session. They found lots of natural resources to build bonfires in preparation for Bonfire night on Wednesday. The children then went on a rainy walk and showed great perseverance and resilience. The children all worked well together and it is lovely to see them continuing to develop during these sessions.
Whole School-Harvest Festival at the Church – Living Life in All Its Fullness
This morning, our school community came together at our church to celebrate our Harvest Festival, a joyful morning filled with song, prayer, and thanksgiving. The service began as Naomi and Martha signed The Trinity, followed by everyone joining in a rendition of our Harvest Samba song. We also heard about Bishop Philip’s inspiring challenge, pedalling to raise money for those in need, reminding us that even small acts of kindness can have a big impact. As part of the Bishop of Blackburn’s Harvest Appeal, we have been encouraging everyone to ‘Pedal Along’ and raise money for Christians in South Africa. Olivia shared a thoughtful talk, and Darcy reminded us to keep in our prayers families and countries around the world who are suffering. We also gave thanks for the work of DARE and reflected on people using their time and energy to support good causes. The reception and Year 2 class delighted everyone with their Harvest songs. Year 1 shared Thank You for Our Favourite Food, helping us reflect on gratitude. Lilly and Sofia led us in a thoughtful final prayer. We also said goodbye and good luck to Miss Norton, April, and Eve, and shared our thanks to Mrs Araujo, Mrs Ham, and our dedicated WOW Group for helping make this service so meaningful. Our Harvest celebration at the church was a wonderful reminder of our school vision, living life in all its fullness, through thankfulness, compassion, and community. Wishing all our families a restful and joy-filled half-term break!
Rotakids Harvest Collection
A huge thank you from our RotaKids to everyone who has donated shoe boxes filled with toiletries and warm clothing for DARE - Darwen Asylum and Refugee Enterprise over the last few weeks. They are still collecting warm coats, hats and scarfs for Darwen Rotary to help those who are homeless or are in need. Perhaps you could sort through any old coats during the holidays. Thanks for your generosity!
Year 5 - History
We finished our history topic by considering the reasons why the Maya abandoned their cities during the post classic decline starting around 900AD. The children thought like historians, researching the evidence for and against possible explanations before deciding which theory they felt was the most plausible. The children discussed the relative impact of war, drought, deforestation and lack of water.
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Cidari Earth Conference
Seven Year 4 children represented our school family brilliantly at the Cidari Earth conference at Blackburn Cathedral. They participated in activities addressing environmental challenges like plastic pollution, war and conflict, and global warming. The children made new friends by working in groups with students from other schools in the Trust. Rev Ben led an opening worship about God's creation and our responsibility to care for it. After activities, they admired the "Gaia" Earth installation and listened to Bible stories like David & Goliath and Jesus calms the storm, which emphasised faith and courage in tackling these "insurmountable giants." Each group also created prayer stations, which will be displayed in The Temple Gallery at the Cathedral over half term. Families are encouraged to visit and see the Earth installation, photographs, and prayer stations. Some of the children said “It’s been the best day ever!” A huge thank you to Mrs Araujo for planning and leading one of the activities
Year 6 - Road Safety
Today, Year 6 took part in an informative Fire Safety talk that focused on the importance of road safety. The session helped the children understand how to keep themselves and others safe when walking, cycling or travelling near roads. They discussed the importance of wearing bright clothing, using crossings correctly and staying alert around traffic. The children also learned how the emergency services respond to road incidents and why it’s important to make sensible choices to prevent accidents. Everyone came away with valuable knowledge about how to stay safe both at school and in the wider community.
Reception Autumn Activities
This week has been all things Autumn in Reception! We have been looking at seasonal change and how the environment around us is starting to look and feel different. We created hedgehog collages, counted Autumn treasures, finger painted Autumn leaves and used Autumnal colours to create patterns on leaves.
Whole School Worship - Preparing for Harvest Time
This week in worship it has been a time of reflection. We thought about some of the many injustices around the world with the aid of picture and video prompts. The children explored what they saw in the video and explained the injustice of each situation. Mrs Ham then talked about the causes we are supporting this Harvest and we celebrated the charitable efforts made so far by members of our school family. Then it was over to the children as they taught the teachers how to sing a Harvest song in Zulu. We’re all in for a treat at the Harvest service next Thursday.
Year 1 RE: God as a Creator
This afternoon, we started our new topic about Creation. The children had 5 minutes to create anything they could choose, either drawing something or building something. They then thought about how they felt when they are creative, whether they found easy or tricky and if they had an idea straight away or if their idea changed whilst they were making something. Then we learnt about the Creation story in the Bible. It took God 7 days to make our earth and all of the living things. We then sequenced the story to solidify our understanding.