Image of Monday Worship: Harvest Appeal
14 Oct

Monday Worship: Harvest Appeal

This week is Recycle Week so we will be thinking about all of the rubbish we throw away and how it could be rescued and reused or recycled. Bobby-Ray said what one man’s rubbish is another man’s treasure! Thank you for all of the donations of coats we have had so far for our Rota Kids Wrap Up Appeal. Mrs Ham showed us two bin bags that at first she thought was rubbish but they were filled with coats that can be donated to the homeless. Mrs Ham then introduced the Bishop’s Harvest appeal which our WOW group have chosen to support this year at Harvest along with DARE (Darwen Asylum and Refugee Enterprise). We started by exploring our spirituality window and looked at a photo of the classrooms of a church school in Multan in Pakistan. We stopped and reflected on what is great about our classrooms. Lottie loves the amount of paper, Ella-Grace said our teachers, Callie said our books, Eleanor said our friends, Jacob said the opportunities to learn, Olivia said the view of Darwen Tower and Will said everything. There are some boys and girls in Multan in Pakistan that are unable to go to school and some who do but don't have many resources in their classroom. We took some time to look at a picture and reflect on what we could see. The classrooms in Multan do not have any chairs, tables, pictures, windows or toys. The children reflected and felt empathy for the Christian children in Multan who did not have the same experience and resources as we all do at St Barnabas. We then started to think about what we could do to make a difference to their lives. The Bishop’s Harvest Appeal has helped the children to receive books, solar panels and hand washing facilities in the past. Rosie said we could do a sponsored run and James said we could collect books. Bishop Philip has asked us all do to a Harvest Heptathlon . We need to think of seven things we could do to help the children in our area and also the boys and girls in Multan. Over the next few weeks, we will be thinking about how we can help and make a difference. We ended our worship by singing ‘I can make a difference’.

Image of Hello Yellow Day
10 Oct

Hello Yellow Day

To celebrate and raise awareness for World Mental Health Day, all the children and staff dressed in yellow to show their support. During a special worship, the children danced to happy songs. We reflected deeply on our emotions, exploring how they shape our inner lives and how we can find strength in times of struggle. We discussed the importance of nurturing our mental well-being through kindness, prayer, and community support. This spiritual reflection reminded us that we are never alone in our challenges; by turning to our faith and embracing hope, we can find peace and resilience within ourselves.

Image of WOW Group- Harvest Donations
9 Oct

WOW Group- Harvest Donations

Dear parents, Harvest is almost upon us and, this year, our wonderful WOW group have chosen to support two charities. They would like to continue to support refugees in our local area through the charity D.A.R.E. (Darwen Asylum and Refugee Enterprise) and are asking for donations of non-perishable food items, toiletries and good quality clothing. Please send these into school any time over the next week (by Thursday 17th October) and we will ensure they get to D.A.R.E. More details of the second charity we have chosen will be released shortly. Thank you, Mrs Araujo :)

Image of Year 4 - RE: People Who Stood Up Against Authority
9 Oct

Year 4 - RE: People Who Stood Up Against Authority

This week, in RE, the Year 4 class researched some famous courageous advocates. The children were split into 4 teams, each being given a picture of a well-known figure who has seen disparity in the world and has acted as a voice for those affected, despite great personal risk. They studied Swedish climate change activist Greta Thunberg, segregation protester Rosa Parks, human rights advocate Archbishop Oscar Romero and slave trade abolisher William Wilberforce. They learned about the important causes these people fought for and why they took action. They also spent time considering which Christian values were shown in their actions.

Image of Whole School Worship: Courageous Advocacy
8 Oct

Whole School Worship: Courageous Advocacy

Today in worship we continued to explore the meaning of spirituality, looking at adversity in the world, how it makes us feel, and talking about what we can do about it. We discussed how we can turn our sparks into flames, our ideas into actions. The children were really inspired by some of the images and shared some great ideas, such as donating warm clothing to the homeless, picking up litter so that it doesn’t hurt wildlife and donating food to local shelters and charities. We will be putting some of these ideas into action over the next few weeks, through our Harvest festival and our Rotakids initiatives.

Image of Rotakids - East Lancashire Wrap Up Warm
7 Oct

Rotakids - East Lancashire Wrap Up Warm

Good afternoon, In order to support East Lancashire Wrap Up, RotaKids have decided to collect coats to clothe the homeless. Please can you donate any winter coats that are no longer of use and these can be collected into the box above. The coats will be collected, sorted and delivered to local charities throughout East Lancashire. The campaign will run from the 1st October until 31st October 2024. There will be collection box in the hall for all the coats to be collected. Please can we also try and collect glasses too to continue to help developing countries. Thank you for your support Year 5 RotaKids

Image of The WOW Group - Our Spiritual Garden
2 Oct

The WOW Group - Our Spiritual Garden

After a great deal of hard work and creativity on the part of Mr Fairbanks and the WOW Group, the new spiritual garden was launched in Tuesday’s worship. The WOW members presented the rest of the school with ideas for using the garden as intended and in a respectful manner. Unfortunately, the garden was a bit flooded due to the heavy downpour on Monday, but we are hopeful that it can be used towards the end of the week.

Image of Macmillan Coffee Morning
27 Sep

Macmillan Coffee Morning

A huge thank you to everyone who has supported our Macmillan Coffee Morning this morning with donations of cakes and/ or money. Every child in school was able to have a cake at break time thanks to your generous donations. Donations can still be made on parent pay or after school. We have some cakes left over so we will have a stall after school on the infant yard.

Image of Year 6 - Picture News Worship
9 Sep

Year 6 - Picture News Worship

Year 6 took part in a virtual worship which followed on nicely from our class worship. It focused on the clean up and the importance of community in the aftermath of this summer’s riots, that took place up and down the country. We discussed how we can all come together, no matter what our background, and work towards a common goal.

Image of Class Worship- How can communities help each other in times of difficulty?
4 Sep

Class Worship- How can communities help each other in times of difficulty?

During our class worship, Year 3 looked at a story about the summer when riots occurred in England and Northern Ireland, causing damage to cars and buildings. We defined the term 'communities' and discussed the importance of everyone feeling welcome and safe within their community. The children reflected on their differences and similarities, recognising that our school community is special because it is made up of so many different individuals with unique interests. We discussed our British value of mutual respect and tolerance, considering how our words and actions can impact others. We then sang ' When I needed a neighbour' and ended the worship by thanking God for our school community.

Image of Fundraising - East Lancs Hospice
8 Jul

Fundraising - East Lancs Hospice

A huge well done to the whole of St Barnabas, we have raised a massive £277.30 for the East Lancs Hospice through our Hop, Skip and Jump event and our Barney's Got Talent Show. The money will be used to help care for those in need and will support the wonderful staff that do an amazing job within the health care system.

Image of Year 5 - Balanced Arguments
2 Jul

Year 5 - Balanced Arguments

Year 5 have begun researching one of the most debated topics - should animals be kept in Zoo’s? The children found out a number of alarming facts that are against Zoo’s such as: that animals have 1800 times less space in zoos than in the wild and animals are not evolving the way they should. But found many compelling reasons why animals should be kept in zoos such as: they live longer, stop species becoming extinct and it can advance medicine. The children will use these arguments to create their own balanced argument.