KS1 Christmas Cracker
We are so proud of our Year 1 and 2 children for their wonderful Christmas Cracker Concerts this morning and yesterday afternoon. It was an absolute delight to see them singing and dancing with such enthusiasm and confidence. They certainly did bring joy to everyone who came to watch. A huge thank you to Miss Flynn for her amazing role as musical director, Mr Norris for the high pressured job of playing the music, Miss Craig, Mrs Hegarty and Miss Lyons for their wonderful props, stage directions and encouraging the children with the actions and to Mr Bloomfield for filming. Thank you to all of the parents and grandparents who came along to show their support. Thank you also for helping the children learn their lines and for providing them with their wonderful Christmas clothes. Thank you to Rev Ben for leading us in prayer and blessing us all. All of the photos can be found here: https://www.stbarnabasdarwen.co.uk/photo-galleries/ks1-christmas-cracker-1 The video can be found here: https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=usy-SsMPTGc
Year 3- Class Worship- Love- Christmas Cards
In today’s worship, Year 3 enjoyed learning about the history of Christmas cards, from when the first postcard was made to how they’ve changed over the years. We talked about how things like rising postage costs have led to more people sending digital or hand-delivered cards. The children shared their own family Christmas traditions and thought about the real meaning of the season, focusing on the story of Jesus’ birth. Lyla ended the worship by reading a prayer, thanking God for all the joy and excitement that Christmas brings.
Year 3- Advent trail- Rose Garden
Year 3 enjoyed exploring the Advent trail at Whitehall Park's Rose Garden. Working in pairs, the children answered questions about the amazing artwork created by our students. Some of the questions included spotting how many stars they could find, counting how many baby Jesus’ were depicted, and identifying where the birth of Jesus took place in the scenes. Well done to Naomi and Jacob, who were the first to finish the quiz. To spread festive cheer, the class also sang festive songs like "Jingle Bells," "Ding Dong," and "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer," bringing joy to everyone around.
Reception: Year of Prayer
This week, Mrs Wilkinson gave each child in Reception a piece of ribbon. We discussed how we sometimes receive special looking presents with ribbon wrapped around them. We all took it in turns to tie our ribbon to our prayer tree and gave thanks to Jesus who is the best gift ever!
Year 5 - RotaKids - Christmas Cards for Care Homes
Building on from our Worship earlier in the week about spreading joy this Advent, our Year 5 Rotakids decided to take action. Today, they spread festive cheer in the community by creating thoughtful Christmas cards to send to care homes around Darwen. The children poured their creativity and kindness into each card, adding heartfelt messages and festive designs. These cards will soon be delivered, bringing warmth, joy and a sense of connection to residents who may need it most this Christmas season. It’s a wonderful way to show that even small acts of kindness can make a big difference. Well done, RotaKids, for embodying the true spirit of the holidays!
Whitehall Park Rose Garden Art Trail
Thank you to all the children who created fantastic Art work for our ADVENTure trail at the Whitehall Park. A selection of the Art work is now on display in the Rose Garden for everyone to see. All classes will be visiting next week to look at the Art work, talk about the Nativity story and sing some Christmas carols to get us all in the festive spirit!
Worship with Rev. Ben
During worship with Rev. Ben, the children began by playing a game of "Spot the Difference," where they had to identify which picture was missing from a selection of displayed images. Following this, Rev. Ben shared the story of Daniel and the Lions' Den. The children learned how Daniel, despite knowing that following God and continuing to pray would put him in danger, trusted in God and was unharmed by the lions. This led to a thoughtful discussion about Daniel's courage and faith. The children then reflected on how they could show courage in their own lives, drawing inspiration from Daniel’s example.
Not Getting Inn!
Our whole school was treated to a modern day version of the Nativity story. 4Front Theatre put on a wonderful production for our children. There was lots of laughter, singing and chanting throughout. Most importantly, there was a wonderful heartfelt message at the end of hope and joy. The photos can be found here: https://www.stbarnabasdarwen.co.uk/photo-galleries/not-getting-inn-1
Whole School Worship: Joy at Advent
This week, our advent theme is JOY. We learned about the joy of Jesus’s birth and how we can bring joy into the lives of others this Christmas. We looked at the John Lewis advert about the man in the moon and how the little girl brought joy to the man, who had been very lonely. We also watched an alternative to the original advert about a girl searching for God and when she almost gave up looking, he sent to her his greatest gift: his son, Jesus. We finished with a look at all of the ways our classes have been bringing joy to each other and the community, including litter picking and singing in the local care home and reflected on how we can bring joy to to others this Christmas.
Reception: Bubble Prayers
At the end of our school day, Reception class lit our candle and signed the holy trinity. We then burnt some Frankincense which was lovely and calming for all of the children. This week, for Blackburn Diocese's year of prayer, we focussed on bubble prayers. We discussed what we were thankful for. Some of the children's responses were God, the Holy Spirit, Jesus, parents, teachers and friends. It was lovely for the children to stop and reflect which aided them to explore their own spirituality.
Year 6 - Class Worship
This week, in our class worship, year 6 discussed what it means to feel included. We explored a new incentive from the FA to raise participation of disabled people in football and expressed how we felt about this. The overarching views were positive, but we also explained how this incentive could have happened sooner. We then linked this to school life and spoke about what it means to feel fully included. The word that epitomises this is ‘belonging‘.
Reception Nativity
A huge well done to our Reception children who were amazing in their Nativity this morning. We are so proud of how much their confidence has grown since starting with us in September. They sang and danced their little hearts out and they really did fill our hearts with joy! A massive thank you to Mrs Wilkinson, Mrs Govan and Mrs Thompson for all of their effort into making the production such a success. A special thank you to Mrs Hegarty and Miss Craig for helping get the children in and out of their costumes and Miss Lyons for painting their faces. Thank you to Rev Ben for blessing us all and leading us in prayer at this special time of year, when we remember the birth of Jesus. Thank you so much to all of our Reception parents and carers for providing the children with wonderful costumes and for practising their lines. Thank you also for coming along and showing your support today. We hope you enjoyed it and hope your hearts were filled with joy too.
Year 4 - RE: How Did Jesus Bring Light?
In Year 4, the children’s acting skills were put to the test today when they were asked to re-enact the story of Zaccheus. They began by watching a range of stories that showed how Jesus brought light into the lives of those around him, including the stories of Zaccheus, Levi and the Rich Young Man. They then had to choose one to act out in their groups, identifying the “dark” parts of the story and when Jesus brought light. I think the story of Zaccheus was their favourite as all of the groups chose this one and they each acted it out brilliantly.
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Year 5 - Peace Class Worship
During today’s class worship, Year 5 participated in this year’s Picture News Christmas campaign, focusing on the symbol of peace, which was also our focus this week our Diocesan Year of Prayer. The session began with a thoughtful discussion where the children reflected on what peace means to them, its importance in the world, and how they can actively spread it in their daily lives. Inspired by their reflections, the children then created beautifully crafted origami doves, symbolising peace and hope. Each dove was lovingly decorated with heartfelt prayers, expressing their wishes for kindness, understanding, and harmony. The activity helped the children connect deeply with the true meaning of the season, fostering a sense of unity and purpose.
Reception: Nativity Crafts
The children in Reception have been getting very creative. They have made stables using different materials and drew the scene explaining who each person and animal was. The children have also made angels using paper plates.
Reception: Year of Prayer
As part of the Diocese of Blackburn's Year of Prayer, this week's focus was on alphabet prayers. Reception class thought about what brings them joy. Evie said her star on her Christmas tree, Max said playing his memory game, Beau said her family and Mikey said visiting the dinosaur museum. It was wonderful to see the children reflecting and listening carefully to one another. At the end of our prayer we thanked God and said Amen.
Collective Worship: Peace at Advent
Our school is starting to get ready for Christmas and has been decorated. There was one final job to do- our youngest child, Annie placed the star on our Christmas tree. This week we started our worship by looking at the Year of Prayer, which we will be taking part in along with lots of other schools from across our Diocese. Our WOW group explained what we would be focusing on this week in classes. All classes will have a go at alphabet prayers. The children will all think about something that brings joy to them. We then looked at our whole school focus which was on the value of peace. Mrs Wilkinson led the children in prayer. Mrs Wilkinson recapped what Christians focus on in the first week of advent: hope. She lit the first Advent candle. We then looked at what we would be focussing on this week which was peace. The children watched a video all about peace. Leonora said that if we experience conflict in school, we could walk away or not argue with our friends and remain at peace. Matthew said smiling brings us joy and peace. We all reflected on what the world would be like if it was always at peace. The children discussed how loving everyone can bring peace. We ended our worship by singing 'We Three Kings' and 'Ding Dong'.
It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas!
Today, every child in school helped to decorate our real Christmas tree in the hall. They have been busy decorating their classrooms too so it really is beginning to look and feel like Christmas! On Monday, as part of our St Barnabas tradition, the youngest child in our school will place the star on top of the tree in Worship.
Worship with Rev. Ben
During worship with Rev. Ben, the children explored the story of Daniel and "the boys who liked to say no." Worship began with a fun game of yes or no, where the children decided which foods they would or wouldn’t eat. In the story, Daniel and his friends said no to the king’s food to show their obedience to God. Because they supported one another and remained loyal to their faith, they were granted strength and looked healthy. Rev. Ben explained that, unlike Daniel and his friends, Christians today don’t follow food rules in the same way. However, there are many ways we can remember God in our daily lives. The children reflected on how Daniel and his friends stayed faithful and considered how they could remember God this week—in their prayers, words, and actions.
Reception: Christmas
This week we have been retelling the Nativity story. We have also been thinking about why Christmas is important. The children said Christmas is important because Jesus is born on Christmas Day. We discussed how Jesus is very important to Christians and is God’s son. The children have been enjoying retelling the story using dressing up, our small world area and through our Eggsplorers too.
Year 3- Class Worship-The Earthshot Prize winners
Today in class worship, we celebrated the Earthshot Prize winners. This inspiring award recognises people and organisations working to protect our planet. Year 3 were particularly excited, having just cleaned up their local community. We discussed how small acts of kindness, like their community clean-up, can contribute to a healthier world. The Bible reminds us that we are stewards of creation, and responsible for caring for the Earth. We prayed, thanking God for our beautiful world and asking for forgiveness when we haven't been good stewards.
Year 3- NO PENS DAY - Litter picking- Brainbox games-What can you remember in just 10 seconds?
Today, Year 3 celebrated No Pens Day thanks to our Smart School Council. They combined learning by litter picking, demonstrating teamwork, communication, and a strong sense of kindness and spirituality. They even discussed how God and the community would be pleased with their efforts. In the classroom, they paired up for a fun game of BrainBox, boosting their memory, observation skills, and understanding of math and reading. Oracy skills were embedded throughout the day, as students listened attentively, took turns to talk, and engaged in thoughtful discussions.
Collective Worship: First Sunday of Advent
Today during worship, Mrs Wilkinson shared the word Advent with the children. We started by discussing what this means. The children said that it was about the countdown to the arrival of the birth of Jesus. It is a time to prepare for Christians. The first Sunday of Advent, Christians focus on hope. We discussed what hope meant and how it is a sign of good things to come. During our reflection we thought about how we can bring hope to people and how we can show love and kindness to others. Cassidy said we could donate to charity, Sonny said we could buy a present for a homeless person and Leonora said we could smile at one another. We prayed to God together and thanked him for sending Jesus at Christmas to give us the hope that the world can be a better place. We ended our worship by singing 'come and join the celebration' and 'ding dong'.
Reception - How the Church celebrates Christmas
This morning, Rev Matt visited us to share with us how the church celebrates Christmas. He explained that the retelling of the Nativity story is the most important part of the celebration as it is about the very special birth of Jesus. The singing of hymns and lighting of candles also symbolises the joy and light that was brought into the world at this time. We also talked about how we celebrate Christmas at home. Beau said ‘we decorate the house’ and Eleanor said ‘we have Christmas tea’
Rev Matt Worship
Today, Rev Matt led a fantastic worship that focused on how we can often lose sight of things that are important. He started with a challenge that involved watching a video with a focus in mind, but in doing so, we missed some other events that occurred. This linked nicely to the story ‘God Sends Fire’ as King Ahab had lost faith in God and decided to worship a false God called Baal. To show everyone that God was the true God, Elijah challenged the prophets of Baal to a contest. They had to build an altar and ask their God to set it on fire. The prophets of Baal danced and prayed all night, but nothing happened. Then, Elijah asked people to drench his altar with water. He prayed to God, and fire came down from heaven! It burned up the altar and all of the water. Everyone saw this and knew God was the true God. This story can help us remember to have faith in God, even when things are tough, and to always trust that He is in control.
Whole School Worship - World Toilet Day
In worship yesterday, we looked through our spirituality windows and out into the world on toilets. We were shocked and saddened to find out that around 700 children under 5 die every year due to poor sanitation. We heard about Jeremiah in Kenya who doesn’t have access to a toilet. In his community, people would mostly use a hole in the ground or a plastic bag, which some people would tie up and throw on other people’s roofs. We talked about how this affects people’s health and shared ideas of what we could do to help. The children then learned about our Toilet Twinning project for which we raised money a few years go to sponsor the building and maintenance of toilets in Nepal, Uganda, Tanzania, and Afghanistan. We reflected on how we should never take our toilets for granted and thought of ways we could save loo paper and water.
Year 4 - Class Worship: How Do We Know Who We Are?
We had an extremely thought-provoking class worship today. We found out about Amur, a Muslim boy in Denmark, using Lyfta. He shared a small snapshot of his daily life and explored the question “Who am I?” The discussion which followed was the perfect opportunity for us to practise our talk tactics and listening skills as we shared our opinions on who Amir is as a person, whether or not we thought he was a good person, and how we could tell. There was a lot of agreement among the children with some building on others’ ideas, and a couple of respectful disagreements.
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Year 3- R.E- Exploring God's Story through Art
This afternoon in R.E, the children looked closely at the People of God panels in the big frieze by Emma Yarlett. They searched for words hidden among the pictures, such as "idols," "temptation," and "repent." The children discussed why these words were included in the artwork and how they relate to the stories of God's people in the Bible.
Year 1- Interfaith Week and Hinduism Workshop
To celebrate Interfaith Week, Year 1 had a special Hindu Workshop. They started off by taking part in a traditional Hindu dance before learning about Hindu worship known as Puja which involves all five of the senses. Our visitor, Prags showed us some of the important artefacts used as part of Puja such as the bell (used to make sure that the God knows the worshippers are there), a candle, incense stick, the Swastika symbol and the red paste which is used to make a mark on a a Hindu’s head as a sign of respect to their God. Prags also told us about some other Hindu practises such as offering food or flowers to their God known as arti, washing thoroughly before worship and taking their shoes off as they enter the temple. Since Year 1 have also been learning about how Hindus created the world in their creation unit, Prags gave them the opportunity to ask some of their own questions that they had. Harry asked, ‘Why does the God have lots of heads?’ Prags explained this was because the God needs to look all around the world and also because they have many different forms. She explained that we have many roles e.g. Phoebe is a daughter, sister, granddaughter, friend etc.. and the Gods do too and this is why they’re drawn and painted with many heads. Callie asked, ‘Why does the God have four arms?’ Prags explained that this was because they are powerful and need to be able to do lots of things/carry many things at the same time. Bella asked, ‘Why is the God shown as being blue?’ Prags explained that Shiva is blue to symbolise the world’s poisons that he drank in order to protect it and Vishnu is blue to represent his calming personality. However, Prags also said that by representing them as blue, we are celebrating colour and appreciating people’s differences.
Year 2 - Hinduism Workshop
Year 2 were very lucky to have an exciting visitor in school today. During our workshop, Prags shared her knowledge and experience of Hinduism. We discussed how Hindu’s prepare for worship and how their prayers are similar and different to Christians. We also joined in some classic Hindi dancing wearing very colourful skirts and jackets.
Whole School Worship: Anti-Bullying and Respect
Our worship today introduced the theme of Choose Respect for Anti-bullying Week. We heard from primary school children from around the country talking about the effects of bullying, the importance of respect and how we can change the way we speak to others. Mrs Ham invited up some of our pupils to act out various scenarios so that we could identify the potential bullying problem and suggest ways to correct it that benefit everyone involved. The children had some fantastic suggestions, which we can all try to use on the playground to resolve conflict. We spent some time reflecting on the meaning of respect and on how others may feel when they are treated with disrespect.
Year 4 - RE: Interfaith Week & Hinduism
The Year 4 class thoroughly enjoyed their Hinduism workshop on Monday. Our visitor, Prags, from Cultural Educasian, brought in a variety of artefacts in order to explain and demonstrate some Hindu beliefs and practices. The theme for the Year 4 workshop was Reincarnation. Prags gave a great, child-friendly explanation to the children about the Hindu belief that everyone has a piece of Brahman inside them, like a part of a jigsaw, and that their aim is to live a good life in order to complete the jigsaw, Brahman, and make him whole. We learned that being reincarnated signifies that the previous life was lived imperfectly and Hindus are given a chance to correct this in the next life. There was also some time for trying on some traditional Indian clothing and performing a traditional dance.
Reception celebrate Interfaith Week
Reception class were lucky enough to meet Prags who delivered a wonderful workshop exploring Hinduism. We learned about the story of Rama and Sita and we even got to dress up in traditional Indian clothing and dance together. We also enjoyed eating delicious samosas cooked by Prags! It was a great way to learn about a different religion and culture. Thank you so much for visiting.
Year 5 - Hinduism Workshop
Year 5 had an enriching Hinduism workshop, diving into the teachings of sacred texts, discovering the significance of various Hindu gods, and exploring vibrant traditions and cultural practices. The children were captivated by the storytelling and symbolism, and they eagerly participated in traditional dancing, experiencing the joy and rhythm of Hindu culture firsthand. It was a fantastic opportunity for them to broaden their understanding and appreciation of diverse beliefs and traditions!
Year 6 - Hinduism Workshop
Year 6 welcomed Prags into our school today, who led them in a Hinduism workshop. She was very impressed by the children’s knowledge of pilgrimages and she then spoke in more detail about a Hinduism pilgrimage. She explained how the River Ganges is sacred to Hindus and that they believe the water washes sins away. When Prags first went on this pilgrimage, she expressed how it is an emotional event and one that she will never forget. Year 6 listened attentively and showed fantastic levels of respect.
Year 3- Interfaith Week- Prag's trip to India- Hinduism
Year 3 celebrated Interfaith Week by learning about Hinduism. Prags, who was born in East Africa, shared her experiences of visiting India. She showed pictures of both traditional and modern parts of the country, highlighting its diversity. Prags also discussed the importance of recycling and her love for visiting sacred sites like the River Ganges and the Golden Temple. The girls then wore colourful, sequined skirts while the boys wore jackets and they all learned a dance routine together. The children asked insightful questions about the language and clothing and enjoyed trying the vegetable samosas that Prags brought in. It was great to learn about the traditions and religious beliefs of Hinduism.
Reception: Visiting our Spiritual Garden
Today we are celebrating outdoor classroom day. Reception class are always on the go but we had a wonderful time to sit and reflect in our spiritual garden during our collective worship time. This serene outdoor space was perfect for our children to contemplate love, gratitude, and remembrance. The children were encouraged to reflect on the people they love to foster empathy and connection. The children said that they loved their family, friends and teachers. They also expressed gratitude for God’s beautiful creation, a reminder of the wonders that surround us daily. Beau said that she loved God, Ralphi said he loved the planet, Evie said she could hear the trees blowing in the wind and Oliver said he could hear the birds singing during our moments of silence. We then remembered our poppies and why we were wearing them. Will told everybody it was to remember the soldiers in the war. The class took a moment to remember the soldiers as a sign of respect. As a symbolic gesture, the children used a bubble machine to release bubbles into the sky to heaven. The children really enjoyed this spiritual experience and we are looking forward to the next time we can visit the garden.
Year 5&6 Remembrance Walk
Today, our Year 5 and 6 children made a heartfelt visit to the remembrance graves to honor and remember those who courageously sacrificed their lives in times of war. Standing among the headstones, the children took time for quiet reflection, paying their respects to those who gave everything for the freedoms we enjoy today. With gentle hands, the children tended to the graves—a simple yet powerful act of care and gratitude. This experience reminded our children of the bravery and selflessness that paved the way for peace. This moment of reflection encouraged the children to find gratitude in the everyday blessings we often take for granted, fostering a sense of mindfulness and appreciation for the many freedoms we cherish today.
Years 2 and 3-Outdoor Classroom Day- Remembrance Walk
This afternoon, Year 2 and 3 celebrated Outdoor Classroom Day by walking up to the WW1 Memorial Wall in Darwen Cemetery. As they gathered at the memorial wall, they paused to remember the brave soldiers who fought in the War. They thought about the sacrifices made and the courage shown by those for our freedom. Isaac, Bobby Ray, Lyla, Renee Archie, and Heidi shared heartfelt prayers and poems, honoring the memory of those who gave their lives for our country. As they walked back to school. they appreciated God's creation, the beauty of the trees, and the sweet songs of the birds.
Year 1- Remembrance
Year 1 have been busy reflecting on the importance of Remembrance Day whilst making poppies using various media, creating Remembrance moving pictures and writing Remembrance prayers. They have thought about the soldiers that have and continue to fight for our country to keep us safe. They have also kept in their thoughts many people who work bravely and tirelessly everyday to bring about positive change and keep us safe from harm such as the police, NHS, paramedics, Royal Navy and charity workers.
Cidari Moon Conference
Some of our children and WOW group from Year 4 had an amazing day admiring and reflecting on the moon today at Blackburn Cathedral with Mrs Ham and Mrs Araujo. Most of the schools in our Cidari Multi-Academy trust took part and it was a great way to meet new friends. Each of the children took part in a different activity around a big question about the moon with children from other schools. Rev Ben led an opening worship where we learnt about how God created the moon by hand and crowned us all with honour and glory. Bishop Philip encouraged us all to lie underneath the moon art installation and gaze at it whilst pondering some thought provoking questions. Rev Alan closed the day with a fun moon quiz and we discussed how the moon reflects the sun's light and we can reflect God's light . We finished by singing and joining in with the actions to 'our God is a great big God'. Thank you so much to Mrs Gray from St Oswalds, Knuzden for organising the event and to Mrs Araujo and staff from the other schools for leading a number of amazing activities. What a wonderful day of celebrating one of God's most amazing creations!
Whole-School Worship: Remembrance
At St Barnabas, we always take the time leading up to Remembrance Day to reflect on the people who kept us safe in the past and those who keep us safe now. In worship, we heard examples of people who came from other countries to help defend the UK during the World Wars, and the courage and friendship they demonstrated in doing so. We also thought about how we would like to remember those who lost their lives in war. The children had some lovely ideas, including writing or saying prayers, drawing poppies, visiting memorial sites, attending church services, and even holding a two-minute silence at their weekend football matches. We remember those who gave up their lives for our country and also say a huge thank you to those who work hard everyday to protect us such as the armed forces, the police, firefighters and the NHS. We sang a lovely song of peace at the end of our worship in hope that the world will one day be filled with peace.
The W.O.W. Group: Creating Viewfinders
This week, the W.O.W. Group created viewfinders to help us explore the beautiful natural patterns in our spiritual garden. Over the next couple of weeks, they will be showing the other children how to spend time exploring patterns in nature and they will develop further activities from this, such as observational drawing, describing and games.
Year 4 - RE: Shabbat
This week in RE, Year 4 learned about how some Jewish people observe their holy day of rest: Shabbat. The children learned that many blessings are said over the Challah, the Kiddush and as the candles are lit, but they were most fascinated by the restrictions on the use of electricity. No technology for 24 hours! We will be following this up next week by exploring why Jesus chose not to observe Shabbat and continued teaching.
Year 3- Class Worship- Hopes and Dreams
Today in our class worship, we learned about the incredible achievements of Adriana Brownlee, the youngest woman to climb all 14 of the world's 8,000-meter peaks. We then reflected on our hopes and dreams, both individually and as a class. We discussed the Bible's message of God's love, strength, and guidance, and how these principles can help us to pursue our aspirations. Lyla then read the prayer to the class: Thank God for always being there as we journey through life and giving us hope for the future as we learn and grow. Amen
Reception RE: The Birth Of Jesus
Today our Reception children began their Christmas unit in RE. We took part in a sensory story all about the birth of Jesus. We used Widget symbols for each part and used our senses to get involved with the story. The children smelt baby oil to understand that Mary was expecting a baby, we walked to show how Mary and Joseph travelled to Bethlehem and we lit candles to show how dark it was. The children then used a drum to knock on the door to see if there was any room. We then used the sign for no. Finally, the children wrapped a baby in blankets to show the birth of Jesus. The children really enjoyed drawing parts of the story in our scrap book and enjoyed getting involved in the story all about the birth of Jesus. We can't wait for the children to act out this special story in their Nativity production in a few weeks time.
Reception: Painting Skills
Our Reception children have been really working hard on painting like an artist. The children have carefully selected colours and the right amount of paint to create some Rangoli patterns for Diwali. Well done!
Reception - Diwali
During today’s worship, Reception Class led a special service to celebrate Diwali. The children proudly showcased their beautiful artwork, including vibrant rangoli patterns filling the space with vibrant colours. They sang joyful songs and shared the story of Diwali with the whole school. It was a wonderful opportunity for everyone to learn about and appreciate this important Hindu celebration!
Harvest Heptathlon
Today, each class took part in our Harvest Heptathlon obstacle course challenge for the Bishop’s Harvest appeal. The course consisted of running, hurdles, travelling through a hoop, hopping, skipping, speed bounce and star jumps. A huge well done to every child that took part. They gave it their best effort. And an extra big thank you to all of the Year 6 helpers for helping to set up, replace equipment, demonstrate the course and support and encourage the younger children to complete the course. Let’s hope we can raise some much needed funds for developing classrooms and literacy in church schools in Multan, Pakistan.
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Whole-School Worship: Allhallowtide
In our first collective worship of the week, Mrs Ham looked at Allhallowtide through our three spirituality lenses. Lens 1 - Windows: we looked out into the world at a photograph from Bangladesh depicting Christians gathered around graves with lit candles on them and discussed our observations and ideas about what the people were doing and how they might have felt. We had some fabulous ideas such as it must be a place of worship as they could see a cross and candles like we have in our worship, that they might be praying and that they were remembering. Lens 2 - Mirrors: we learned about All Souls’ Day and reflected on how we might remember our loved ones. The children had some lovely ideas about lighting candles and going to a special place. Lens 3 - Doors: we learned about All Saints’ Day and thought carefully about how we could be like saints. The WOW group introduced our behaviour focus for this half term , which is using good manners around school, and the children immediately put these into action by saying please and thank you, holding doors for each other, and letting people past. What a fantastic start to the new half term!
Enjoying our Spiritual Garden
A huge thank you to our WOW (Worship Our Way) group, Mrs Araujo and Mr Fairbanks for planning and developing our Spiritual Garden. We are loving having time to reflect, admire God’s creations, be peaceful and connect with our friends in it at break and lunch times. Thank you to SACRE for the generous grant we received to create a spiritual garden made from mainly reclaimed and recycled materials.
Reception: Diwali
Reception have been learning all about Diwali this week. Diwali will be celebrated by Hindus on Thursday and we are looking forward to teaching the school about it on Thursday. The children learnt about Rama and Sita and how Diwali is the festival of light. They have made Rangoli patterns, cards, Mendhi, diva lamps and cards. The children have also learnt a special song all about Diwali.
Year 3- R.E- What does it mean to be called by God?
In R.E. today, the children explored what it means to be "called" and shared times when they’ve been asked or called to do something, whether by friends, family, or teachers. They discussed different kinds of tasks they’re asked to do and how they feel when it’s something important versus something they may not want to do. Some shared moments when they didn’t feel skilled enough but tried because they trusted the person asking. This led to a conversation about feeling called by God, with many children expressing that they believe God may send signs through different forms, like weather, friendships, or even a beam of light, to guide and encourage them. They felt this calling could be an invitation to try new things, make good choices, and grow in confidence. It was a wonderful session of reflection.
Harvest Church Service 2024
Thank you to our Wow group, EYFS, Year 1 and Year 2 classes for leading our Harvest celebration at church today. I have uploaded some videos to class dojo and additional photos can be found here: https://stbarnabasdarwen.co.uk/photo-galleries/harvest-church-service-2024 It was wonderful to see so many of our families in attendance. A huge thank you to you all for coming to watch and thank you to all of our families for your continued support this half term. Thank you for all of your kind harvest donations, these can be continued to be sent in during the first week that we are back at school. Wishing you all a wonderful half term, Mrs Wilkinson
Reception: World Faith learning
Today, the children found out a little bit about Islam. Mrs Wilkinson showed the children some Islamic prayer beads called Subhah. We started our learning by wondering what they could be. The children thought it could be a necklace to wear. We wondered what they could be used for. Will said we could give them as a present. We learnt that Muslims used Subhah to pray with. The children all got to hold a Subhah.
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’.
Rev Matt’s Whole School Worship
Today, during Rev Matt’s worship, the children were captivated by a short clip showing the powerful moment when Moses received the Ten Commandments. The video illustrated how, with people's disbelief in God, dramatic lightning and clouds appeared, revealing the presence of God as he delivered these sacred laws. Through this visual and the accompanying story, the children were guided to understand not only the importance of the commandments but also the broader significance of rules in our lives. This reflection helped them recognise that rules, much like the Ten Commandments, are there to keep us safe, fostering a sense of responsibility and care for one another within our community.
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.
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.
Year 3- R.E- Comparing harvest festivals around the world
In RE today, Year 3 learned about how harvest is celebrated around the world. We watched a short clip and explored images and text from different countries like India, Italy, America, and China. It was fascinating to see how people celebrate this important time in different ways. India celebrates it with fireworks, lights and sweets, while America often has a roast dinner with family and friends, In China they eat mooncakes, a traditional pastry and in Italy they have parades.
Rev Ben’s Collective Worship
In today’s collective worship, Rev. Ben began by engaging the children in an interactive challenge, where three children had to use two pieces of paper as stepping stones to cross the hall. This activity set the stage for the theme of the session: perseverance and trust in challenging times. Rev. Ben then shared the Bible story of Moses and the Israelites' long journey through the desert, highlighting the struggles and faith they experienced along the way. After listening to the story, the children were encouraged to reflect and discuss key questions: 'What did God's people do during their journey through the desert?' and 'What are some positive alternatives to complaining when things get tough?' These discussions helped the children connect the story to their own lives, exploring how patience, gratitude, and faith can guide them through difficult situations.
Whole School Worship: What is Spirituality?
In our Tuesday worship, the theme was spirituality and what it means to us. Mrs Ham talked about things that we can see (physical/ material things) and things that we just feel (spiritual things). We played a fun game where we had to put on a pretend pair of binoculars if it was something physical/ material that we can see or cover our eyes if it was something spiritual that we can't see. We had things like connecting with nature, a big house', money, connecting with friends, inner peace and believing in a God. She introduced the ‘windows’ looking out on the world and how we should take time to learn, to gaze, to wonder and admire and ask ‘why?’ We looked at some of the ways we can live life in all its fullness and today we particularly focused on being 'grateful' for all of God's creations. We also explored how taking notice is one of our five ways to wellbeing too. We looked at some of God’s creations in a video and discussed our favourite ones with our partner. There were lots of 'WOWs' and 'aahhs' at some of God's amazing creations. We finished with a prayer thanking God for all of his creations and sang 'If I were a butterfly' to sing thank you to God. Across this academic year, we will continue to further explore what spirituality means to us at St Barnabas.
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.
Year 4 - RE: Jesus’s Authority
In RE this week, we began with a matching game in which children had to match the gospel story with the painting. We spent time discussing the paintings and how the artists portrayed that Jesus was acting in God’s name. The children provided some thoughtful answers about the miracles Jesus performed, particularly his ability to heal those who had lost hope.
Rev Ben’s Worship: God the Rescuer
Rev Ben came in today to talk about rescuers. He began with a dressing up challenge in which 2 teams had to create their own superhero. Mind Reader won the most votes as the best superhero. Rev Ben linked this to a great rescuer from the Bible: Moses. He told us about God recruiting Moses to talk the Pharaoh into setting his people free. It was a difficult task but, with God’s help, he achieved it. The children spent some time thinking about what made Moses a rescuer and what made Jesus the ultimate rescuer.
Rev Ben's Collective Worship- Moses
Collective Worship - 19.09.24 During this week's worship session, Rev. Ben shared the story of Moses and the burning bush. He explained how, when God gave Moses a mission, Moses initially struggled to obey, feeling unsure and inadequate for the task. However, God revealed his power and presence to Moses, showing him the way and helping him develop trust. With God's guidance, Moses was able to achieve far more than he ever thought possible. The children engaged in thoughtful discussions, exploring questions like: What might it look like for you to recognise God's presence in your life? Some children reflected on seeing God's presence in acts of kindness, through nature, or in moments of peace when they feel supported by their friends and family. Others spoke about sensing God during quiet times or prayer, feeling that God is guiding them in difficult situations. When asked, Why do you think Moses was hesitant to follow God's instructions? The children expressed that they could relate to Moses’ fear and uncertainty. Some mentioned how Moses might have felt unworthy or scared of failing, while others said that like Moses, they too sometimes feel afraid when they are asked to do something new or hard. The group agreed that trusting God, even when they feel unsure, can help them overcome their fears. The final question, How does it change things for you, knowing that God is always with you? brought a range of responses. Some children said it gave them comfort to know they are never truly alone, even in hard times. Others felt it gave them courage, knowing they could rely on God’s strength when facing challenges. Many agreed that just like Moses, having faith in God’s presence helps them feel more confident in the tasks they are given, knowing they have divine support.
Whole School Worship: The Good Shepherd
Today, we were learning about Jesus’s parable of the Lost Sheep. We discussed why Jesus said 'I am the good shepherd', and how he will always come to us when we feel lost. Thanks to Mr Bloomfield and some of our younger children for acting out the story so brilliantly. We reflected on how we can life live in all its fullness knowing that Jesus is always watching over and protecting us, just like a good shepherd does for his sheep.
Rev Matt 's Worship - Moses
Collective Worship - 12.09.24 During this week's worship session with Rev. Matt, the children engaged in a meaningful and reflective activity. Rev. Matt began by reading a Bible story. The tale centered on a baby boy placed in a basket and gently set adrift along a riverbank. This story unfolds against a backdrop of great hardship for the Hebrew people, who were oppressed under the rule of the Egyptians. The Egyptian king, fearing that the Hebrew people might rise against them, had decreed that all Hebrew infants be killed. Amidst this dire situation, a courageous act of compassion emerged. The baby, destined for death, was discovered by none other than the Egyptian king’s daughter. Moved by the child’s innocence, she decided to save him and raise him as her own, naming him Moses. Under the watchful eyes of God, the baby was spared and later grew up to become the leader who would free his people from their suffering. Following the story, the children participated in a thoughtful discussion. They paired up and pondered a question: What are some ways they can show respect to their teachers, friends, or family members? The children shared numerous ideas, reflecting their understanding of Christian values. They suggested acts such as actively listening, showing kindness, and embodying respect in their interactions. Their responses demonstrated the importance of treating others as they themselves would wish to be treated, a principle at the heart of our Christian Value of Respect. Through this worship session, the children not only learned about a significant biblical figure but also explored the practical application of respect and kindness in their own lives.
Year 4 - RE: Rosh Hashana
We began our RE unit about Jesus by exploring a bit about who He was. We investigated some Jewish artefacts and talked about Jewish festivals that Jesus would have celebrated. We found out about the festival Rosh Hashana and how it is celebrated today. We lit candles, listened to the shofar and tasted apples dipped in honey whilst we talked about our hopes for a sweet year.
Whole School Worship: Paralympic Values
We began our Monday worship with a race this week, except the race wasn’t very fair. One person was running the race, one was hopping and one was blindfolded. We discussed why this wasn’t a fair race and then we watched some athletes’ performances from the Paralympics. We were amazed to see people with no arms playing the piano, flying aeroplanes, brushing their teeth and driving cars etc and then we reflected on how we can learn from the Paralympians and have a 'yes, I can' attitude. We learned about the Olympic and Paralympic values and how some of the values are the same or similar to our Christian Values., We discussed how we can do anything with hard work, determination and self-belief and read in the Bible that with God, all things are possible.
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Year 4 Picture News Big Celebration Assembly
This morning we got the chance to take part in a virtual Picture News Big Celebration Assembly. We started with a picture which we had previously looked at in our class worship on Wednesday which showed the volunteers that had come together to clean up after the recent riots. We linked this to how we serve our school community and discussed British values. We always make sure that we welcome our community by showing our 4 B’s. Following this we heard from Boston St Nicholas School in Lincolnshire who highlighted how we can shine our light in so many different ways . It was lovely to share this special time to reflect and pray and we look forward to highlighting how we really do matter within our special school community.
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.
Year 5 - What is the Bible?
Year 5 have been exploring the key question, what is the Bible? The children have gained a deeper understand of the library of the books the Bible contains and how this has helped Christian’s all over the world. We looked at how it influences our decisions and helps guide people in times of difficulty.
Whole School Worship: Jesus the Good Shepherd
We were all so happy to have everyone back for our first day of the school year. In our first worship we recapped and celebrated all of the amazing ways we live out our school vision and what Jesus meant when he said we should have life in all its fullness. We heard about His teaching of the sheep and the gate and learned that He wished for all of us to use Him as our gate to God; that we can have a good life if we follow His word. We then recapped our 4 B's school rules and our Christian Values. Our teachers will be looking for our children to demonstrate these in order to gain values points each day and get on our 'time to shine' board. We reflected on what we are looking forward to this year and how we will achieve great things and live life in all its fullness.
Year 3- First Day in Year 3
Year 3 had a wonderful first day back at school and were full of excitement about joining the juniors! We began the day by writing prayers for the new academic year, with children expressing their hopes for sharing love and kindness, supporting their families, and fostering a caring school community. We also built upon our school’s 4 B’s — Being Kind, Being Respectful, Being Safe, and Being Ready — with thoughtful ideas from the children, such as walking safely around the school and avoiding swinging on chairs. They practised lining up in alphabetical order with great enthusiasm and did an excellent job! In the afternoon, we explored our science unit on Light, where the children explored and compared natural and artificial light sources. It was a fantastic start to the year!
Staff Team Holy Communion Service
What a wonderful way to start a new school year with a special service of Holy Communion for our staff team this morning. Thank you so much Rev Ben for leading the Eucharist today and for saying special prayers for our new school year. We also enjoyed listening to the Bible reading of John 10 and reflected on our role in looking after and protecting our children and enabling them to achieve great things and live life in all its fullness.
Rev Ben’s Worship: Talents
Today, Rev Ben set a task for our volunteers: to carry a balloon from one side of the hall to the other without using their hands. He shared the story of Paul and the shipwreck and talked about the Christian belief that it is their task to share the good news of God and His Son, Jesus. We also considered the talents God gave us and how these talents can be used to serve God and others.
Year 1 RE- Joseph
In RE, Year 1 have been learning about the story of Joseph. They have learnt about Joseph being a dreamer, a prisoner and eventually a ruler. In their most recent lesson, Year 1 discussed what they had learnt from this story and a couple of the things that the children said that they had learnt was that God is always with you and will support you in achieving your dreams and it is worth being resilient and overcoming challenges to achieve something that you really want. It tied in really nicely with the whole school worship that we had on Tuesday morning about growth mindset. To end the lesson, the children thought about their own dreams and shared these with their friends.
Rev Matt’s Worship - Seeking Truth
Rev Matt shared with us the fantastic news of his recent ordination. Some of the children even helped with a little re-enactment. He explained that his duty as a Christian is to live a life of truth. We listened to the story of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego; three men of faith who were punished for refusing to turn their backs on God in order to worship an image of the king. Rev Matt spoke about how it isn’t always easy for us to stand by our beliefs and we discussed times when this might be particularly difficult.
Year 4 - RE: Symbolism in the Methodist Church
We ended our final RE unit of Year 4 with a class trip to Springvale Methodist Church. The children had the opportunity to explore the church, looking for symbols of Christianity and they listened attentively as Rev Elizabeth explained all about the Methodist faith. The children also had a chance to ask some questions and comment on the features they had noticed. We were impressed by the children’s behaviour and their thought-provoking questions.
Year 3 - R.E. - Interview a Christian
For R.E. this week we learnt all about what it means to be a Christian and what skills and qualities someone needs to lead by example. To do this we had an interview of a Christian, which Desmond volunteered for and gave some great answers to questions the children in the class asked. We then wrote our own job descriptions looking for a Super Christian and thought about what responsibilities they might have and what kind of characteristics they would need.
Reception: Rev Ben Visit
A huge thank you to Rev Ben for visiting our class this week. Rev Ben read a story from the bible all about the Holy Spirit. He told us how if we believe in the Holy Spirit, the Holy Spirit will live in us. Rev Ben asked 6 children to come to the front and dressed them in party hats. Pentecost is the birthday of the church. Christians believe that God’s present to us all to celebrate Pentecosts is the Holy Spirit. It is a superpower that lives inside of us all. Thank you to Rev Ben for giving up his time to teach our children.
Rev Ben’s Worship - Living a Life of Truth
This week, in Rev Ben’s worship, we learned the importance of telling the truth and we discussed the consequences of lying. We found out that part of being a Christian is aiming to live a life of truthfulness. We also reflected on ways we could stay truthful in our daily lives.
Reception: Our New Classroom
The children in Reception have loved our new outdoor canopy that was built last week. This has extended our classroom to provide an outdoor area that the children can access in all weathers. Our indoor classroom has also had a refresh and the children have loved exploring all of the areas!
Rev Ben’s Worship
In Rev Ben’s worship, we looked at what it means to describe something and we started with a challenge: Lucy, Hamza, Poppy and Isaac had to describe something to their partner without using the chosen word or actions. Rev Ben then spoke about how God describes things to us and that the Bible speaks God’s truth. The worship was concluded by the children expressing their favourite bible stories and what they feel the purpose of the Bible is today.
Year 4 - Linking Schools: Mosque Visit
Whilst visiting our link class in Blackburn, we visited the Jamia Ghosia Mosque, where some of our friends go every day after school. We explored the main prayer hall and learned about some of the religious symbols inside the mosque. We also visited the wash room (wudhu) and learned about how Muslims carry out ablution prior to praying. We will be talking about this further in our RE lesson next week. Thank you to the leaders at the mosque for welcoming us and answering our questions.
Year 4 - Linking Schools: Developing Friendships
Year 4 class had a fantastic time at St Matthew’s on Tuesday. The children made some lovely friendships, taking part in collaborative activities and games, and having a picnic together. Our time at St Matthew’s came to a close by joining the Linking Network’s celebration Zoom meeting. We can’t wait to welcome our friends to St Barnabas next week.
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Year 4 - Linking Schools: Poem Dedications
Whilst visiting St Matthew’s, we decorated poems about the power of working together. We then dedicated these to a friend from our link class and they did the same for us. We had a great time decorating the poems and loved exchanging them with our friends.
Year 3- Collective Worship- What makes a good friend?
During our class worship, Year 3 discussed the qualities of friendship. The children suggested someone you can trust, humble, caring, understanding, kind, encourager, supportive and someone who enjoys hanging out with you. We then watched a short clip inspired by singer, Taylor Swift, who is in the midst of her world tour, one superfan, Devon, has made hundreds of friendship bracelets to donate to people in care homes. She hopes to inspire all generations to get involved in the bracelet craze. We discussed that everyone is different so the friendships we choose are different too. It might be that people have similar hobbies, beliefs, or values that make them friends. The Bible teaches us many things about friendships and being a good friend. We also thanked God for all our wonderful friendships and how God helps us show love through kindness, patience, honesty and forgiveness.
English- Year 3- Refugees from Sudan and Libya
Today in Year 3, we welcomed two refugees. Zinab from Libya and Samah from Sudan. They both had to leave their families because it was not safe in their countries. Zinab and Samah told us about their struggles and worries about fitting in here in the UK. They were very grateful to the UK for providing them with housing and support. They also reminded us to be thankful that we don't have wars, and that we have safe places to stay and food to eat. The question and answer session helped the children understand the challenges refugees face, which they could then portray in their writing.
Rev Matt’s Worship: God’s Great Creations
Rev Matt began his worship this week with a challenge for us all to vote for “the best one for the job”. He showed two people or animals and asked which would be the best runner, the best fire fighter, the best world leader etc. He then read a poem from the Bible about nature and how precious God’s creations are. We spent some time discussing our favourite creations and how we could take care of them.
W.O.W. Group - Spiritual Garden
The W.O.W. group began to see all their ideas and planning coming to fruition on Wednesday when they started work on our new spiritual garden. The area had kindly been dug out by Mr Ham and so W.O.W. got to work laying the membrane and spreading stones. They will be adding to this area each week, so keep a look out for their progress.
Year 5 - What happened after Pentecost?
Today, Year 5 have been exploring what happened after Pentecost. The children looked at the significance of five Bible Acts and how life was affected after the Holy Spirit arrived using Bible Gateway. The children looked specifically at: Acts 2:43-47, Acts 3:1-10, Acts 4:1-22, Acts 4:32-37 and Acts 5:12-42. These acts all demonstrate the positive effects the Holy Spirit has and how the mindset of people changed to believing in Jesus.
Reception: Refugee Worship
Today our Ducklings had a worship focussing on refugee week. We discussed what a refugee is and how they may feel. Harry said they may feel sad, Percy said they might be hungry, Callie said they might be worried and Phoebe said they might be scared. We remembered why we donate to DARE and how important it is to be kind and to help others. We discussed what we could do. Olivia said we could donate, Skye said we could buy them a present and Haydn said we could give them a hug to make them feel better. We are lucky to have such kind Ducklings, well done for all contributing to a very thoughtful worship. At the end we sang my lighthouse about how God will always look after us and guide us to safety.
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Rev Ben’s Worship: Jesus is Our Compass
This week, Rev Ben joined us for worship to talk about seeking the truth. He began with a true or false quiz in which the options become progressively more difficult. We discussed why sometimes it’s hard to know what’s true and how it feels to feel lost. We learned that Christians believe that Jesus will always guide them to the truth if they put their trust in him.
Year 6- Islamophobia Workshop
This week, year 6 took part in an islamophobia workshop. They discovered what islamophobia is, why we have islamophobia and how we tackle the issue. The overriding theme from the workshop is that it exists from a lack of education around the Islamic faith and it can be tackled through education. This will allow the children to make informed choices as they go out into the world.
Year 4 Class Worship - Is it fair to judge others based on first impressions?
In our class worship this morning we used Picture News and looked at if it is fair to judge others based on first impressions? We discussed the all girls football team from Bournemouth who were undefeated all season in a league dominated by boys. We shared our ambitions and goals with each other and looked at how we can exceed expectations.
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Year 3- Collective Worship- First impression
We discussed this week's story about first impressions during our class worship. The children shared what first impressions mean to them and talked about times when someone had the wrong impression of them or when they misjudged someone based on appearances. They also discussed occasions when they try to make a good impression, such as when meeting visitors at school, new students, or their new teacher. We then explored the biblical story where God told Samuel that He had chosen a new king for Israel, who would be one of Jesse's sons. Jesse assumed it would be his eldest son, but God chose David, Jesse's youngest son. This story teaches us that God does not judge by outward appearance but by the heart. Learning the facts rather than making assumptions based on first impressions is important. We concluded by thanking God for giving us the wisdom to see beyond first impressions.
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Year 3- Religious Education-Which of the ten commandments do you think are the most important?
During our R.E. lesson today, we discussed a child-friendly version of the Ten Commandments and talked about their impact both in the past and now. The children shared which commandments they think are the most important and why. We also considered if any of the commandments could be left out, with pupils arguing for and against particular ones. The children felt that all of the commandments were still relevant. They thought that if God sent a new set of Ten Commandments today, the original ones would be kept the same, but new ones could be added. Some suggestions for new commandments included being humble, being kind, and not bullying.
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Year 2 & Year 4 - RE: The Church
Our pupils in Years 2 & 4 had a walk down to St Barnabas Church this week. Both classes are currently studying the church in RE and Rev Ben was kind enough to invite us into church to explore symbols within the church. For Year 2, this built on the children’s learning about important features found in a church, and for Year 4, this gave a starting point for comparisons with churches from other denominations of Christianity. The children were very knowledgeable and loved exploring the inside of St Barnabas Church.
Rev Matt’s Worship - Pentecost
Today Rev Matt came in to lead a worship all about Pentecost and being filled with the Holy Spirit. As a challenge, a group of children were chosen to blow up a balloon as large as possible in 30 seconds. He told us about the events of Pentecost and how the disciples received the Holy Spirit. Pentecost is considered the birthday of the church.
Year 4 - RE: The Essence of the Church
After writing an extensive list of what we would need to create our own class church on the playground, we read what Peter said about ”the church” and realised that we actually only needed 3 key elements: people, the Bible, and a place to gather. Once we found a quiet spot to gather, we began our church by signing the trinity. One of the children selected a passage to read and told us all that she thought it meant that Jesus is always with us. We discussed times when it is important to remind ourselves of this, such as when we are worried about an upcoming event. The children then gathered some natural materials to make their own crosses. We finished with a prayer and returned to class singing “My Lighthouse”.
Year 4 - Class Worship: The Great Escape
Year 4’s class worship on Tuesday was all about the Jewish festival of Passover, the last supper and how Moses led God’s people out of Egypt. We learned about how the people were persecuted by the Egyptian King and how God helped them to escape by calling on his special messenger, Moses, to complete a seemingly impossible mission. We discussed the trust between God and Moses and ended with a prayer from Lisa, our friend from the Diocese.
The W.O.W. Group - Planning for our Spiritual Garden
The W.O.W. Group have been working hard on planning for our new spiritual garden. We successfully secured some funding to be able to create a peaceful area with multi sensory features and an eco friendly environment in which children can spend time on calm activities. We hope to attract local birds and insects too. Look out for ways in which you can support us to create this new area over the coming weeks.
Reception: Songs of Praise
Our Ducklings enjoyed our class worship today. We sang two of our favourites, build up and make a difference. We then learnt a new song called ‘We’re all together again’ which is all about everybody being a valued member of our class. The children really enjoyed it and sang beautifully. We ended our worship with some very thoughtful prayers by Edward, Summer, Cici and Hollie.
Reception: Monday worship- The Great Escape
Today our Ducklings started our worship with some call and response from Lisa from Blackburn Diocese. We said God is good, all the time, Amen. We listened to the story from the Old Testament called ‘The Great Escape’. God’s people were saved and freed. Bishop Phillip explained that the story was like us playing a computer game where we were in control. Moses was in control and led God’s people to safety with the help from God. The Red Sea split into two to help God’s people to escape from the army. God sent Moses to free the Israelites. God sent his son to lead us to freedom from sin. Today, we rejoice in the gift of freedom. We all prayed together and thanked God for being with us always. We finished our worship by singing ‘Our God is a Great Big God’.
Year 3 - Class Worship - Passover
Today for class worship we listened to the story of how Moses helped the Israelites escape Egypt and cross the sea to safety. We learnt about how the Jews celebrate this each year and this is called Passover.
Year 6 Class Worship
Yesterday, our class worship was led by our WOW group members Luca and Archie, who did a superb job. The focus was all about how the past can help us learn about modern life. From the past, we can learn from mistakes, the consequences of actions and how they have impacted the world, and be inspired by positive outcomes.
Year 1 RE- Mock Baptism with Rev. Ben
On Tuesday afternoon, Year 1 wore their celebration clothes and went to St Barnabas Church. We learnt all about Baptism and welcoming babies, teenagers and adults into Christianity. Year 1 named their baby Snowflake and Rev. Ben showed them what it would be like if Snowflake was baptised. We learnt that baptism is like a badge that people wear to show they belong to the church. We also learnt about why water is used as part of a baptism and we witnessed Rev.Ben pour water over baby Snowflake’s head which came from the font. Snowflake received a baptism candle and a Bible. We then came back to school for a baptism party. The children enjoyed a dance, a cup of juice and a biscuit. Thank you Rev.Ben for creating a memorable experience for our children.
WOW leading Class Worship in Year 4
The WOW group led our Class Worship this morning and Year 4 really enjoyed taking an active role alongside them. The children posed various questions and asked how the past has helped us learn new things for the future and how we may have experienced life changing events. The children shared some really heart warming experiences and we closed the worship with some beautiful prayers.
Year 3- Class worship delivered by members of the 'WOW' group
Lucy, Grace and Ruby did a wonderful job delivering our class worship today. Year 3 learnt about the new study published in an archaeological journal, using evidence found in Italy, which found that Neanderthals organised their living areas and tools similarly to modern humans. The class discussed how the events and people in our past have shaped who we are. Lucy ended the worship by thanking God for all the people who have shaped and influenced the world we live in today.
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Reception: Prayer
In our RE lesson, our Ducklings explored how prayer is a way to communicate to God. We all spoke to God through prayer and thought of ways to thank God, ask for help and to say sorry.
Rev Ben’s Worship: The Ascension
Rev Ben spoke about the exciting events between Jesus’s crucifixion and his ascension. Many see Jesus’s ascension as a sad time, but Rev Ben explained that Christians believe that, although Jesus helped many people whilst he was here on Earth, he can help all of us from heaven. We also spent time thinking about when someone was helpful to us and how we can be helpful to others.
Reception: Psalms
In RE, we learnt all about how psalms are songs which are a way to communicate to God. We listened to a psalm from the clever cub book, Clever cub sings to God. The psalm was a way of saying thank you to God for everything on earth. We then had a think about what we were thankful for and drew some pictures.
Rev Matt’s Worship - The Road To Emmaus
Rev Matt asked us to participate in the story of the disciples walking to Emmaus and talking about the sad events of Jesus’s death. We learned about the stranger who joined them and later revealed himself to be Jesus resurrected. Rev Matt involved all of the children in an activity in which they had to work together to keep an inflatable off the floor. He used this to explain the importance of believing, especially without proof, in God and His Son, and that it is this that keeps faith going.
Collective Worship-Forgiveness
This morning in Rev Ben’s worship, we started with a challenge. Dougie and Jake had a minute each to catch as many fish as possible using a rod and transfer them to another bowl at the other side of the room. The whole school gave them lots of encouragement which spurred them on enormously. This then led us on to a story of a fisherman called Peter. In the story, Peter realised that Jesus was more than a friend, he was God as he did such amazing things such as save him from drowning and heal his mother. When Jesus told Peter that he would betray him by not knowing him three times before the cockerel crowed, Peter didn’t believe him. Peter told Jesus that he would never betray him as he was his best friend. However, later in the story Peter did in fact betray Jesus when he denied knowing him three times. Then, the cockerel crowed. This is when Peter had the realisation that he had betrayed Jesus after all and he was extremely upset with himself. He wasn’t sure if Jesus would ever forgive him but Jesus did because Jesus loved him very much. Peter became a forgiven man and he spent the rest of his life telling everyone about Jesus and how amazing he was. He spread the word of God. Rev Ben asked us about the story and what we could learn from this. A lot of our Year 6 children shared their views and said that making mistakes can be good as you can learn, grow and improve and that Jesus will always forgive you for the mistakes that you make. We ended our worship with a lovely prayer and a sing along to ‘Jesus Strong and Kind.’
The Pupils’ RE Conference 2024
Mrs Araujo and two of our W.O.W. group members enjoyed a fun-packed day at the RE conference. They met the author of the story The Dove Stone and explored the prayer themes revealed in the book. They even had the opportunity to create their own prayer stones from clay. All in all, it was a fantastic day, and our children were fantastic ambassadors for St Barnabas.
Rev Matt’s Worship: The Resurrection
Rev Matt came in to lead our worship today and tell us about the biggest surprise in the Bible: the resurrection. Rev Matt began with a mystery box game in which children had to feel an object in a box and guess what it was. He talked about how, even though we may worry about what’s coming, the surprise can often be the best thing. This is how the women felt when they visited Jesus’s tomb after his death. They were worried when they noticed Jesus was missing and the ground began to shake, but were overjoyed when Jesus appeared and spoke to them.
Year 4 - RE: Exploring Artefacts
In RE, Year 4 spent some time exploring religious artefacts using some key questions. There was lots of discussion involved, followed by an observational drawing of the object from each child, and finally they recorded their best ideas.
Reception: Stories Jesus Told
This week, the children in Reception listened to the parable, ‘The Wise and Foolish Builders’. The parable explained how you should listen to Jesus. The children enjoyed pretending to listen and not listen to see what happened when building a house on a hard and soft surface.
Easter Church Service
Thank you to everyone who joined us for our Easter Service this morning. I’ve added some videos and photos to class dojo for parents who weren’t able to join us. Thank you to our Heads and Deputies for leading the service with me and to our KS2 classes for leading the singing. A special thanks to Rev Ben too for leading us in a special Easter prayer. We’ve had a wonderful few weeks in school in the lead up to Easter. Please click here to see all the Easter fun we have had: https://www.stbarnabasdarwen.co.uk/photo-galleries/easter-2024 Thank you so much to our children for the amazing walking they have been doing both in and out of school for our Big Lent Walk challenge. As a school family we have walked a fantastic 2383km and raised £215 so far to help fight global poverty! Sponsor money can still be paid in on the following link: https://schools.walk.cafod.org.uk/fundraising/st-barnabas-big-lent-walk A quick reminder that we break up early today at 2.00pm and return back for the Summer term on Wednesday 10th April.
Year 1 Easter Egg Hunt
After celebrating Easter in church this morning, Year 1 came back to school and enjoyed an Easter egg hunt on the KS1 playground.
Year 1 Easter Cards
Year 1 made some Easter cards by printing either a bunny, Easter egg or chick to the front of them.
Year 1- Visit to the Rose Garden
This week, Year 1 visited the Rose Garden to explore the Easter artwork that our whole school have been busy creating. They spotted artwork that showed Palm leaves to represent Palm Sunday, artwork to represent Judas’ betrayal to Jesus and artwork to represent the last supper, the crucifixion and the resurrection.
Rev Matt’s Worship: Good Friday
Rev Matt’s worship this week began with a drawing challenge. A Year 4 child was shown a picture and they had to draw the picture on the back of a Year 5 child. This child then had to draw what they thought the picture was on the back of a Year 6 child, who had to attempt to draw it on flip chart paper. Rev Matt then explained that messages sometimes become distorted when we don’t see the full picture, but it is important to stay hopeful. This mirrors the sadness of Jesus’ death on Good Friday. We must remember that it was all part of God’s plan to save mankind.
Year 5 and 6 Rose Garden Visit
This morning, year 5 and 6 visited the Rose Garden to see the art work that each year group created to represent different elements of the Easter story. The standard of work was superb across the school. Mr Bloomfield then led a quiz based on the art work that was kindly created by Mrs Araujo.
Year 4 - Big Lent Walk & Easter Trail
We had a great time clocking up a few miles between us on our walk to the Rose Garden this morning. Once we arrived we completed an Easter quiz and explored the lovely artwork created by our school friends. The children knew so much about the events of the Easter story and really understood the symbolism too. We finished our visit with a walking gallery, deciding on our favourite pieces of art.
Reception: Easter Artwork
Our Ducklings enjoyed viewing the artwork in the Rose Garden. They looked at the Easter story and tried to describe each picture.
Reception: Forest Schools
Our Reception children explored a different area of Whitehall park today. They made fairy houses, balanced on beams, built dens and climbed trees.
Year 2 - Whitehall Park
This afternoon we visited the Rose Garden in Whitehall Park. As a school, we have turned the rose garden into an art exhibition full of the whole school’s Easter artwork. The children loved seeing all their art being displayed for the public to see. It is definitely worth a visit to the Rose Garden this Easter.
Year 3- Easter Artwork
This afternoon, Year 3 went for a little Easter walk to the rose garden at Whitehall Park. The children enjoyed guessing which part of the Easter story each class, from Reception to Year 6, represented through their artwork. Once there we all sang Easter songs together too. Our walk covered 2.5 miles, contributing to our Lent journey as well.
Easter Artwork Trail in the Rose Garden
The St Barnabas Easter trail is now ready for visitors! Our whole school family has worked hard to represent a different part of the Easter story through art and we have selected some for our community to enjoy when they visit the Rose Garden at Whitehall Park. Our pictures have brought a lovely splash of colour to the garden to celebrate this joyous time in the Christian calendar. We hope that they will bring joy to all visitors.
Year 1 RE Artwork
This afternoon, Year 1 created their artwork for the Rose Garden at Whitehall Park. Their artwork was based on the resurrection of Jesus. The hands on their artwork represent Jesus rising from the dead and the butterflies, flowers, dragonflies and bunny rabbits represent new life.
Year 4 - RE: Easter Art
We have been busy in Year 4 creating artwork inspired by the betrayals found in the Easter Story. The children chose one of the betrayals we studied, designed three symbols to represent the key events and then used Brusho paints and water to create a mottled effect on the symbols. They then created a checked background on which to mount their symbols.
Rev Ben’s Worship: Palm Sunday
Today, Rev Ben read the story of Palm Sunday and talked about the joy of the crowd when Jesus’ arrival in Jerusalem. He contrasted this with the anger of the crowd when they were led to believe that Jesus lied about who he was. Determination and perseverance were two key qualities demonstrated by Jesus during that time and Rev Ben asked everyone to reflect on when they will need to show these qualities this week.
Year 2 - RE
In Year 2, we have produced artwork that will go on display in the Rose Garden at Whitehall Park. Our class created the last supper scene using painting and stamping. The children took real pride in making sure their artwork was exactly how they wanted it to look. The final results are wonderful and we can’t wait to visit our artwork in Whitehall park next week!
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Year 3- Collective Worship- Jesus the Powerful Friend
This morning in our class worship, Year 3 watched and listened to the worship together across the Diocese video. The children first explored God's Big Story by exploring the timeline. The story comes from the gospel. After listening to the story of Mary, Martha, and Lazarus the children discussed two key questions. What was Jesus trying to teach us and how can we use the story in our lives today. The story taught us about faith, trust and the power of Jesus in our lives.
Year 3- R.E- The Easter Story
This afternoon, Year 3 explored 'The Easter Story' using a children's bible. After reading the story, they described the emotions expressed through the paintings related to the various parts of the story, such as the 'Entry into the City, the Crucifixion, The Women at the Empty Tomb and Good Friday. They found the paintings and the story bring happiness and some are quite upsetting. They then expressed the symbolisms and sadness and joy through art.
Year 3- Easter Artwork- Express the symbolism of sadness and joy through art.
This afternoon, Year 3 explored 'The Easter Story' using a children's bible. After reading the story, they described the emotions expressed through the paintings related to the various parts of the story, such as the 'Entry into the City, the Crucifixion, The Women at the Empty Tomb and Good Friday. They found the paintings and some parts of the story bring happiness and some are quite upsetting. They then expressed the symbolisms and sadness and joy through art. Year 3 are super excited about displaying their artwork at the Rose Garden.
Year 6 Art
In year 6, we have started to look at our new art unit and have linked it to our R.E. Artwork that will be displayed in the Whitehall Park Rose Garden. We started by analysing a piece of work created by the artist Lubaina Himid, entitled ‘Five’. In her artwork, she displays symbols and addresses issues close to her heart. We have used her work as inspiration for our own creation and have started to develop our own ideas to answer the question ‘Who was Jesus?’ in our own piece of artwork.
The W.O.W. Group: Messy Church
Last week, W.O.W. Group delivered a very exciting infant Messy Church on the theme of creation. They read a short story about creation and then they took the participants outside to appreciate God’s creations and create their own nature bracelets. The children were very proud of the bracelets and marvelled at all the gorgeous colours in the plant life around us.
The W.O.W. Group: Messy Church
This week was our final week of Messy Church and the W.O.W. Group have thoroughly enjoyed planning and delivering these interactive sessions. Our final week was based on creation again. The children watched a video about God creating the world and then chose, from a range of activities, to create something with a partner. All sorts of materials were available so that they could let their imaginations run wild.
Rev Matt’s Worship: The Story of Zacchaeus
This morning Rev Matt began our worship talking about soft and hard materials and how some materials can be softened. This led nicely into the story of Zacchaeus, the tax collector who had a hard heart and did not treat people very well. However, when Jesus called Zacchaeus to Him and requested to go to Zacchaeus’s house, Zacchaeus changed and had a softer heart. The story taught us that those who struggle are the ones who need our kindness most.
Reception: Easter Artwork
Today, during our Muddy Monday session, we collected lots of green natural objects to create palm leaves for our Easter art work. The children worked together as a team to create their art work. You will be able to view our artwork soon in the Rose Garden at Whitehall park.
Year 5 - Religious Art
Today, Year 5 created their religious art piece ready for a selection of them displayed in the Rose Garden in Whitehall park for Easter. The children were focusing on the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus. They created their colourful backgrounds and then used black card to create a silhouette depicting Jesus on the cross.
Values Points House Team Winners - Spring 1 2024
A huge well done to our Values Awards Winners for Spring Term 1 2024 - Team Whitehall Park. Today they celebrated their win with a special non- uniform day, sweet treats and a disco. It was lovely to see each and every one of them dancing and having lots of fun! Well done Team Whitehall Park on another successful half term win!
The Big Lent Walk in Year 4
This afternoon, Year 4 went on their Big Lent Walk around our local area. We walked past both Mrs Gardner’s and Mrs Singleton's houses on our journey. The children loved being out in the fresh air and working together to add more km to our whole school total. We are so proud of them as we were also in our World Book Day outfits which included onesies, dresses and dressing gowns. Collectively we walked 92.8k - WELL DONE Year 4
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Year 5&6 Big Lent Walk
Today, Year 5&6 completed their big lent walk. The children walked through Jacks Key and around the local area and completed 4.5km each so that's 265.5km towards the school's 2000km target.
Year 1- The Easter Story
As part of their RE unit, Year 1 are exploring the Easter Story. This week in their RE lesson, they acted out the story from Palm Sunday until Jesus’ resurrection on Easter Sunday.
Reception: The Last Supper
Today the children listened to the story of the last supper. They thought about what Jesus did because he loved everyone. Before Jesus and his disciples sat down to eat, Jesus washed their hands and feet. Harry was Jesus and the rest of the class were the disciples. We role-played the story and thought about what Jesus did.
Year 2 - Big Lent Walk
This afternoon, Year 2 set off to Whitehall Park to do our bit for the Big Lent Walk. We added 2.5 kilometres to the school total.
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Year 3- Big Lent Walk
This afternoon, Year 3 went on the 'Big Lent Walk', covering a distance of 2.8 km. A small donation has been made to CAFOD to help fight poverty worldwide. We also had fun being Geologists exploring different kind of rocks.
Year 4 Class Worship - Jesus and the Taxman
In our Class Worship this morning, we looked at the story of Jesus and the Taxman and how your life can be transformed by loving Jesus. We found the story in the New Testament in The Gospels. Zacchaeus was a hated taxman who at first hid from Jesus. He hid in a tree until Jesus invited him for tea. Jesus chose Zacchaeus for a reason. He learnt that Jesus loves you just as you are so go and invite him into your hearts. After realising his wrongs Zacchaeus said that he would pay back everyone that he had stolen from x4 and he would sell half of what he owned and give this to the poor. He remembered that whatever you trust and rely on is probably your God and God shares his love with everyone.
Year 3- Class Worship-R.E- How does Jesus change lives?
In today's class worship and Religious Education lesson, Year 3 explored the story of Zacchaeus. He was a tax collector, which meant he collected taxes for the government. However, many disliked him because he was known to cheat people out of their money. When he met Jesus, everything changed. He felt sorry for tricking and lying to people in the past. After hearing the story, the children generated questions asking Zacchaeus about how he felt during different parts of the story. Then they got into the role of Zacchaeus and answered those questions, imagining his feelings. The story of Zacchaeus teaches us that people can change for the better. Even if someone has done wrong things in the past, they can choose to make things right. When Zacchaeus met Jesus, he decided to be honest and kind instead of cheating people. It shows us that it's important to say sorry when we make mistakes and try to be better people. We learnt that everyone deserves a second chance, and it's never too late to do the right thing.
CAFOD: Lent Big Walk Update
Wow, we have already met our target of 200km!!Well done to everybody who has contributed so far! Who thinks we can double our distance by the end of Lent? If you are up for the challenge, please continue to send your photos in to either myself or Mrs Ham . So far we have raised £94. Please ask your family and friends to see if they will sponsor us so that we can reach our target of £200 for a worthwhile cause. Donations can be sent here: https://schools.walk.cafod.org.uk/fundraising/st-barnabas-big-lent-walk Thank you so much, Mrs Wilkinson
Year 4 - 1K for the Big Lent Walk
Year 4 class are doing their bit towards the Big Lent Walk with a 1K run on the Key Stage 2 playground. This week and last, each child completed their 1K, racking up a total of 54km between them. They will continue to do this each week.
The W.O.W. Group - Messy Church: Faith in Action part 2
The WOW Group Messy Church activities continued this week with the final KS2 Faith in Action session. Participants watched the story of David and Goliath and talked about how David believed in God and himself. They then chose an affirmation bookmark to decorate and take home. Next week the WOW Group will be moving on to the KS1 sessions, with a focus on creation.
Reception- Palm Sunday
In our R.E lesson we have been learning all about Palm Sunday. We firstly looked at the bible story, which the children were really interested in. They answered some brilliant questions after listening to the story. The children then acted the story out. We had Jesus, the donkey, the crowd who took off their coats and made a path for Jesus. We also had some angry people in the crowd who didn’t believe Jesus was the king. Some people in the crowd waved palm leaves and branches as Jesus rode by.
Rev Matt’s Worship: Perseverance
Rev Matt’s worship began with a balloon challenge this morning. The aim was for the children to persevere and keep the balloon up in the air for as long as possible. All three contenders did extremely well. He then shared the story of the man through the roof, in which the sick man’s friends had persevered in seeking help for him. After bringing their friend to Jesus they discovered the house was overcrowded, but they refused to give up. Instead they made a hole in the roof and lowered him in so that Jesus might heal him. We spent time reflecting on how we could help our friends, and those in need.
Year 5 - The Mustard Seed
Today, Year 5 explored the parable of the mustard seed. The children delved into the deeper meaning of the parable that even the smallest of things can make a huge difference. We contrasted those with our Christian values and created our own mustard tree with the values we value the most. Both Year 5 and Year 6 class joined in the mustard tree song and enjoyed singing along.
Year 2 - RE
We continued to learn about the Easter story in RE, in particular the resurrection of Jesus. After Jesus had risen, in the book of John, he told his disciples that seeds must be planted so new life can shoot up. In class we planted flowers that will grow from the darkness of the soil and in to the world as beautiful, bright flowers. Just like Jesus rising from the darkness of the tomb. It will be lovely to have a reminder in class of new life being brought into the world at Easter.
Year 3- Collective Worship- Should we learn sign language at school?
Today in Year 3's class worship, we explored different ways of communicating, including prayer to connect with God and the importance of British Sign Language. The children feel learning sign language at school is vital to support the deaf community, break down barriers, and promote understanding between different communities. They also discussed the importance of respect and celebrate difference. We ended our worship by thanking God for creating each of us uniquely different.
Year 4 - Meeting Our Linking Schools Class
The children were so excited to meet their Linking class this week. We had a Zoom meeting with the Kestrels class from St Matthews in Blackburn, in which we introduced ourselves, taught and learned some sign-supported English and played games. I think their favourite game was ‘Draw An Object’; the children had to hold their whiteboards on their heads and draw the instructed object without looking. Needless to say our attempts were hilarious and nothing like what they were supposed to be!
The W.O.W. Group - Messy Church: Faith in Action
The W.O.W. Group have done a fantastic job in planning some exciting lunchtime Messy Church sessions. The first one was for KS2 children and the theme was “Faith in Action”. Participants had to think of someone who is their hero and make them into a superhero. They also listened to the story of Samson and his strength, and they were treated to a drink and a biscuit whilst they worked on their superheroes. The W.O.W. Group are looking forward to the second KS2 session next week.
Rev Ben’s Worship- Jesus chooses his disciples
This morning in Collective Worship, Rev Ben started with a fun game where we had to guess the superpowers that our wonderful volunteers, Walter, Lottie, Isabella, Charlie-Rose and Matthew acted out. We guessed the superpowers of speed, strength, sports, invisibility and flight. We then followed on from Jesus' 40 days in the desert and we watched a story from the Bible that showed what happened next. We watched as Jesus chose his followers, called his disciples. They didn't have superpowers and were very ordinary and often made mistakes, just like us. Rev Ben told us that the best followers of Jesus don’t have super-powers and God works today through ordinary people who love Jesus and admit it when they get things wrong. He then told us about Ash Wednesday and how that is a time to ask God for forgiveness for the things we have done wrong. Wilson, our Head Boy, volunteered to have an ash cross put on his head. We then reflected on what we can do when we get things wrong and how God will always forgive us. We finished by singing My Lighthouse and My God's the King of me. Thank you Rev Ben for another wonderful worship.
Reception: Introduction to Easter
Today, our Ducklings read the story ‘Clever Cub and the Easter Surprise’. We discussed the big Easter surprise and the children retold the story. We looked at how there is a cross on a hot cross bun and why there is one. We then enjoyed some hot cross buns together. What a treat!
Reception: Muddy Monday
Our Reception class really enjoyed our Muddy Monday session at Whitehall park. We looked at some habitats for different minibeasts that we found and also enjoyed creating dens and continued to take risks climbing trees. They walked 3.84km and enjoyed contributing to the Big Lent Walk!
Whole-School Worship: Understanding Lent
In worship today, Mrs Ham explained that Lent is a time in the Christian calendar in which we observe Jesus’ time in the wilderness and prepare for Easter. We discussed what we could do to observe Lent. Some of the children’s suggestions included giving up sweets, chocolate, crisps, time on devices, or giving back by helping at home or making an extra effort to show kindness to others. We also learned more about THE BIG LENT WALK and how each member of our school family can contribute by walking a few kilometres over the Lenten period and raising money that will go towards ending global hunger. More information is available on Class Dojo.
The Big Lent Walk
During Lent, our school are currently fundraising for CAFOD. We are taking part in the big Lent walk where we are collectively trying to walk 200km. Please help us to raise as much money as possible by sponsoring our whole school family. If you have been on a walk, please either sponsor and leave a message with how many km you have walked or send me a message and I can update our page. We will also be walking during the school day in our classes to achieve our target so any sponsorship will be greatly appreciated. Your sponsorship can change lives. Every £1 raised through the Big Lent Walk will help fight poverty globally in countries like Afghanistan, Colombia, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and South Sudan. This year, CAFOD’s Lent Appeal is helping fishing communities feed their families in Liberia, and SCIAF’s Wee Box Appeal is focused on women and girls in Rwanda facing gender-based violence. Also in Ethiopia, CAFOD and SCIAF are working together to respond to the devastating food crisis there. Years of drought caused by the climate crisis means families are no longer able to cope, but your support means we are working with people right now, providing them with water, emergency food and healthcare. With your hard work and sponsorship this Lent, we can change families’ lives for good and tell poverty to take a hike. Please access our page here where you can sponsor your child: https://schools.walk.cafod.org.uk/fundraising/st-barnabas-big-lent-walk Thank you for your kindness, Mrs Wilkinson
Year 4 - RE: What is God Like?
In RE, we’ve been looking at psalms this week in Year 4. We looked for the symbolism used to describe God and talked about what it reveals about Christian belief.
St Barnabas Big Lent Walk
Good morning, Next Wednesday 14th February, is the start of Lent. During Lent, our school will be fundraising for CAFOD. We will be taking part in the big Lent walk where we will collectively try and walk 200km. Please help us to raise as much money as possible by sponsoring our whole school family. If you have been on a walk, please either sponsor and leave a message with how many km you have walked or send me a message and I can update our page. We will also be walking during the school day in our classes to achieve our target so any sponsorship will be greatly appreciated. Your sponsorship can change lives. Every £1 raised through the Big Lent Walk will help fight poverty globally in countries like Afghanistan, Colombia, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and South Sudan. This year, CAFOD’s Lent Appeal is helping fishing communities feed their families in Liberia, and SCIAF’s Wee Box Appeal is focused on women and girls in Rwanda facing gender-based violence. Also in Ethiopia, CAFOD and SCIAF are working together to respond to the devastating food crisis there. Years of drought caused by the climate crisis means families are no longer able to cope, but your support means we are working with people right now, providing them with water, emergency food and healthcare. With your hard work and sponsorship this Lent, we can change families’ lives for good and tell poverty to take a hike. Please access our page here where you can sponsor your child: https://schools.walk.cafod.org.uk/fundraising/st-barnabas-big-lent-walk Thank you for your kindness, Mrs Wilkinson
Rev Matt’s Worship - Temptation
Today in whole-school worship, Rev Matt talked about temptation and how the devil tried to tempt Jesus in the desert. We thought about what tempts us and what we might do if we wanted to celebrate Lent.
Year 3- R.E- How did/does Jesus change lives?
This afternoon in R.E. Year 3 listened to "The Calling of Levi". After the story, we made two lists: one about what mattered to Levi (Matthew) before Jesus called him, and another about what became important after Jesus called him. We talked about why his priorities changed after meeting Jesus. Meeting Jesus made Levi think differently about what's important in life, like his beliefs and values. Jesus' teachings and being around him made Levi rethink what matters most and make good changes in his life. Levi became a better person after meeting Jesus because he used to do a job collecting taxes, which was important for money. But when he met Jesus, he decided to follow Him and be a friend. So, what became important to Levi was being friends with Jesus and learning from Him, instead of just collecting money. It shows how meeting someone special can change what's important to us.
Rev Ben's Worship: Turning to God
This week, Rev Ben told us the story of John the Baptist and how he preached about the importance of turning our lives to God. We spent some time thinking about what it means to turn to God.
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Year 3- Class Worship-To drive or be driverless?
During our class worship today, we watched this week's story. According to the Transport Secretary, Mark Harper, there's a possibility that by 2026, motorists might find themselves completing journeys in driverless vehicles – cars that can navigate without human control. Year 3 are worried about the idea because they felt uneasy and thought it could be unsafe not having a driver. But, we used this chance to discuss the British Value 'Rule of Laws'. The children were reminded about how everyone must follow the rules when driving to keep things safe. We thanked God for the wonderful world and everything in it. To conclude our worship, the children sang the hymn, 'Our God is a Great Big God.'
Year 4 Class Worship - Picture News - Is an e-reader better than a book?
In Class Worship this morning we focused on Picture News, which asked the question - Is an e-reader better than a book? A study from Spain found that print reading could boost skills by six to eight times more than digital reading. Our class was a complete split but the children discussed their ideas behind their choices and then looked at various ways in which we can read. We then looked at what we prefer to read and ordered these from favourite to least favourite. Reading messages from friends came top and reading instructions was our least favourite!
Year 4 - RE: Looking in Hearts
If there’s one thing our Year 4s are good at, it’s demonstrating our Christian values. In RE, this week, we discussed how God chose people to do important jobs and that it was all about what was in their hearts. The children wrote about the values in their hearts and what actions they take that show the good in their hearts.
Rev Matt's Worship- Courage
After the fun of finding that it has snowed this morning, we had a whole school worship led by Rev Matt. He showed us lots of different images of people waiting and then read us the Bible story of Anna and Simeon waiting for Jesus. They had to wait a long time, many years, but they trusted in God and knew that he would send his special son, Jesus. We enjoyed joining in with the 'tick tock, tick tock' everytime Rev Matt said the word waited. We then reflected on how Anna and Simeon showed courage and thought of ways that we can show courage this week. We finished singing one of our favourite songs, My Lighthouse. How will you show courage this week?
Year 4 - RE: Hanukkah
To finish our Year 4 Christmas RE unit, we learned about the significance of light in the Jewish celebration of Hanukkah. We discussed the story and how the Jews felt about their sacred temple being destroyed and the miracle of the oil lasting longer than it should have. We also made our own Dreidels and played a few games.
Rev Ben’s Worship: Courage and Epiphany
This morning, Rev Ben came in to talk about courage and how the wise men showed courage on their journey to meet Jesus. The children shared their bravest moments and they enjoyed joining in with the Bible story and especially Rev Ben’s impression of a grumpy and mean King Herod. We reflected on how the wise men showed courage, how we can show courage this week and how it helps us to know that Jesus is always with us. This doesn't mean that the fear goes away but Jesus helps us to face our fears and be courageous, just like the wise men.
Epiphany Collective Worship
It was wonderful to have our school family back together again for our first collective worship after the Christmas holidays. Today we focused on Epiphany which is when the three wise men went to see baby Jesus. Our Reception class Kings helped up to learn about the special gifts that they gave to Jesus and what they symbolised. Gold= King Frankincense= God and Myrrh = Sacrifice. We then watched a short film called 'Far from home' which we thought was about modern day refugees but the more we watched it, the more we realised that it was very similar to the Nativity story. We discussed how Mary, Joseph and Jesus had to flee as King Herod wanted to kill Jesus. We reflected on how they must have felt and how it must feel for those children nowadays who are living in places that aren't safe, such as in Palestine, Israel and Ukraine. We then thought about how we can support refugees who arrive in our country seeking safety. We had some brilliant answers such as give them a warm welcome, donate toys, food, clothes and money etc. We then looked back at some of the generous work we have been doing to support Darwen Asylum and Refugee Enterprise such as donating toys, books and chocolate at Christmas time. We finished with a prayer and sang 'We three kings' and noticed what the three gifts symbolised- King, God and sacrifice, in the song.
Christmas Church Service
Thank you to everyone who was able to join us this morning for our Christmas Church Service. I have attached some photos and snippets for those of you who were unable to join us due to work commitments. A huge well done to our Key Stage 2 children for showcasing what they have been learning in RE this half term and a special thank you to Year 6, who led our service. We thanked Rev Ben and Rev Matt for their service to our school family. We also gave a special gift to Glenda, who has decided to retire from her volunteering role in school. Thank you so much Glenda for everything you have done for our school family over the years. It was wonderful to hear about all the great ways that our children have been spreading love and joy to our community through singing carols, delivering Christmas cards to the elderly and donating toys and gifts to the Rotary Club and DARE (Darwen Asylum and Refugee Enterprise). Thank you so much for your generous donations.
Year 4 - Visit to the Rose Garden
Year 4 class had a great time in the Rose Garden. They chose their top 3 card designs and then we all sang some of our favourite carols. Merry Christmas to you all!
Thank you from DARE ( Darwen Asylum and Refugee Enterprise)
Thank you so much to our staff team and our Year 1 kindness elves for donating Christmas items to Darwen Asylum and Refuger Enterprise. The donations have been used to create Christmas hampers for families in need. They were distributed at the DARE Christmas party and were gratefully received.
Reception Christmas Party
Reception have had a super morning at their Christmas party and were so excited to have a special visitor in class - Father Christmas! They each got a present for being such good boys and girls.
KS1 Christmas Cracker
We are so proud of our Year 1 and 2 children for their fantastic Christmas Cracker performances. To see all of the photos, please click here: https://www.stbarnabasdarwen.co.uk/photo-galleries/ks1-christmas-cracker Here is the video of the dress rehearsal : https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=NtkPAWaaymw Please see class dojo for the secure links to the videos. Thank you so much to everyone who came along to support and for the wonderful Christmas clothes that you provided for your child. A huge thank you to our KS1 team, Miss Flynn, Mrs Hegarty, Miss Baxendale and Mr Norris for all of their efforts to create such an amazing show! Our children certainly brought lots of joy to everyone who watched and we hope you enjoyed it as much as we did. Well done Year 1 & 2, you are little singing superstars!
Year 3- Class Worship- Are decorations an important part of celebrations?
During today's class workshop, Year 3 discussed the significance of decorations in celebrations. Some children express that decorations are important as they bring joy and help spread the purpose of the celebration. However, the majority felt that spending money on decorations is worthwhile only if they can be reused each year. As we reflected on the discussion, we reminded ourselves that Christmas is a special time to celebrate the birth of Jesus, who is considered the most precious gift. We thanked God for the festive season and, most importantly, for the gift of Jesus. The children decided to end class worship by singing the carol 'Away in a Manger.'
Collective Worship- Love at Advent
This morning in collective worship we focused on Love for the fourth week of Advent and Colton and Sophie lit our fourth candle on our advent wreath. We reflected on how we have been showing love to our community by donating toys and chocolates to DARE (Darwen Asylum and Refugee Enterprise) and Darwen Rotary Club and through our wonderful carol singing at our Christmas Fayre, Darwen Market and our church yesterday evening for the Carol Service. We then thought about others ways that we can show love to each other and our community this advent. We had some lovely ideas such as to smile at people, give hugs, donate clothes that are too small for us, show kindness to each other and help out your parents. Mrs Ham said that it was particularly important to show kindness and love to each other this week after such a long term and everyone is feeling tired and excited for Christmas. We watched a clip from Mrs Ham's favourite Christmas film, 'A Muppet's Christmas Carol' and watched how the mean and grumpy Scrooge started to smile and enjoy himself when the Christmas spirit sang 'Wherever you find love, it feels like Christmas' song and others showed him love and kindness. We then joined in with a lovely prayer asking God to help us show love and kindness to everyone around us and to be grateful for everything we receive. We finished by practising our Christmas carols ready for our church service on Friday morning.
Year 1 RE- The Nativity Story
Year 1 loved watched the Reception class perform the nativity last week so this week they have really enjoyed using the figures to act out the story themselves. Well done Year 1.
Rev Ben Worship: Isaiah the Rescuer
Rev Ben led our worship today. We began our worship with a listening game. Rio, Jay, Lucy and Isaac hummed a Christmas song and the children had to use their listening skills to guess the song. Our story from the Bible is all about listening well. Isaiah was a prophet and he came to tell people that God’s people’s hearts needed rescuing. People did not listen. God wanted to rescue people as he was compassionate and loving. God sent Jesus to rescue God’s people but we need to listen really carefully to the Christmas story. Christians believe that if we listen carefully, Jesus can still change us today. Christians believe the rescuer came at Christmas in a manger. We ended our worship by singing ‘Rescuer’.
Reception: Rev Ben Visit
Our Ducklings had a visit from Rev Ben today. Rev Ben brought in some figures to tell us about the Christmas story. Christians believe that Jesus is the star of the story. We need to really think about Jesus and if we listen really carefully to the story, it can change us from the inside out if we let it. Rev Ben finished his visit with a special thank you prayer. Thank you Rev Ben for visiting our class, we always enjoy your visits.
Joy at Advent Collective Worship
This morning in our Collective Worship we lit our third advent candle for Joy. We learnt that J is for Jesus, O is for others and Y is for yourself. We reflected on the joy that Jesus brought to the world and how he came so that we could live life in all its fullness. Mrs Ham reminded us of some of the ways that we are bringing joy to others by donating books and toys to DARE (Darwen Asylum and Refugee Enterprise), making cards for the elderly in care homes and our choir are singing in Darwen Market and in our church. We then discussed with a partner how we can bring joy to others and ourselves this advent. We had some fabulous answers such as give toys and clothes to others in need, spend time having fun with our friends and family and show kindness to others. We also realised that we all find joy in different ways as we had so many different answers for what brings us joy such as playing with friends, chocolate, being with our family, school, reading, etc. We then watched the new John Lewis advert and discussed how everyone finds joy in different ways and has different Christmas traditions. Some children commented that the advert made them think that 'it's not what's on the outside that counts, but what is on the inside'. We finished our worship with a prayer and then practised our Nativity songs ready for our church service next week.
Year 2 - RE
This week, we started our Christmas learning in RE we are going to be looking how good news about the birth of Jesus spread and how it made the world feel. We began by looking at what is the news and how do we find out about it. We read our happy newspapers from our library and watched Newsround. We made a note of the various ways we can consume the news and the impact it has on our lives.
Reception Nativity
We are so proud of our Ducklings who performed the Nativity today. Their singing was beautiful and they told the story using their loud, clear voices. Their confidence shone and it was enjoyed by all!
Year 4 - RE: How did Jesus bring light?
Some super acting was displayed in RE in Year 4 this week. We learned about who Jesus helped most and why, role playing the well-known religious figures Zacchaeus, Matthew and the rich young man. The children were tasked with spotting the parts in each story where Jesus brought light.
Whole School Peace Chain
During our second week of Advent, we are focussing on praying for peace. Throughout the last week, all classes have created a whole school peace chain. Continuing from yesterday’s worship, we discussed different ways that we can find peace. Ruby said that she had listened to her mum this morning to create a peaceful home environment. Darcy said she had shown peace to her younger sibling. Isaac said he had helped his parents and Percy said he had gone to bed earlier. We will continue to focus on peace throughout this week and the whole of Advent. Our peace chain is displayed in our school entrance for you all to see.
Whole School Worship: God the Rescuer
Rev Matt led our worship today. We began our worship by watching a selection of videos to discuss if people were in trouble. Rev Matt told a story from the bible about Abraham. The story discussed how Abraham wanted a child but he couldn’t because he was old. Abraham trusted God and one night God told Abraham that he would have lots of children one day. God’s promise came true and they called their son, Isaac. Rev Matt explained that when Abraham was in trouble, he needed a rescuer who was God. God made the impossible, possible. God is compassionate and will always look after us. Christmas is a time to remember this. We ended our worship by singing ‘Rescuer’.
Year 2 - RE
This week, we completed our RE topic looking at Holy books from different faiths. We have been learning about the Bible and understood that different faiths have their own book which they follow. We looked in more detail at the Jewish Torah and the Islamic Qu’ran. We spotted similarities between how religions see their holy book as special and one that should be looked after. We also found that each book contains rules and stories which are used to help people be good citizens.
Rev Ben’s Worship- Jeremiah : Down in the well
This morning Rev Ben led our Worship about God's Compassion. We started with a fun listening game where Rev Ben blind folded some children and the rest of us had to make the animal noise of the animal on the screen. The children who were blindfolded were able to realise what it was like to not be able to see, just like the person in this week's Bible story, Jeremiah. We listened and joined in with the Old Testament Bible story all about Jeremiah being stuck in a deep, dark well. We loved joining in with the repeated refrain and we learned that God helped Jeremiah get out of the well. We reflected on how God can help us when we are feeling stuck or in a dark place. We then thought about how God sent His saviour, Jesus to rescue us all and how at this time of Advent, we are thinking about the special birth of Jesus. We finished our Worship singing 'Jesus, strong and kind'.
Year 6 R.E.- Pilgrimage
In R.E. Year 6 started to look at the pilgrimages of other religions. They focused on Hajj (an Islamic pilgrimage) and Kumbh Mela (a Hinduism pilgrimage). Once they had made some notes on these pilgrimages and how they are undertaken, the children then discussed how they are similar and different to the Christian and Jewish pilgrimages covered in earlier lessons.
Rev Ben’s Worship: Samuel and David
This week in Rev Ben’s Worship, we learned the story of Samuel, Jessie and David. We talked about the qualities God looks for in a king and the importance of having a kind heart.
WOW Group Worship: Respect and Tolerance
Well done to our fantastic WOW Group, who led their first whole-school worship this year today. In recognition of Inter Faith week, they talked about respecting each other’s differences and they taught us about tolerance and how we can show it to one another.
Year 6 R.E.- Judaism Workshop
This week in R.E. year 6 were visited by Samantha Hambling who led a Judaism workshop all about pilgrimage. Year 6 asked some impressive and mature questions and realised how religions are very similar, but also have some notable differences.
Year 4 - Judaism Workshop
We had a special visitor in school on Tuesday. Samantha came to teach Year 4 a bit about the Jewish day of rest: Shabbat. The children were fantastic! They listened with interest and asked some insightful questions. They enjoyed trying on the traditional garments and looking at artefacts, and they particularly loved tasting some challah bread.
Reception: Jesus walks on water
Today we learnt how Jesus is special and how he performed miracles. We listened to the story ‘Jesus walks on water’. The children retold the story using Godly play and enjoyed drawing parts of the story in our RE scrap book. Callie said “Jesus helped Peter get up from the waves”. Percy said “Jesus walked on water”.
Year 3- Interfaith week- Rules of living session by a Jewish visitor
As part of Interfaith week, we had a special visitor in our classroom who shared insights into Jewish traditions and the rules of living. The children learnt about the different rules that Jewish people follow. We learnt about the prayers, the Torah and the clothing that men and women wear. The children also got to taste Challah, a delicious and traditional Jewish bread commonly served on the Sabbath.
Year 5 - Interfaith Week
Today, as part of interfaith week, Year 5 had a Jewish visitor who explained her religious beliefs and lifestyle. She focused on the story of Purim which is the Jewish holiday in which Jews commemorate being saved from persecution in the ancient Persian Empire. The children explored the story and began to contextualise the true meaning of the story and what it means to the Jewish community. The children explored the huge celebrations that take place and the various ways that Jewish people celebrate Purim. The children loved listening to the story and learning how other religions feed into their own religion.
Year 1 Interfaith Week- Learning about Shabbat
As part of interfaith week, Year 1 enjoyed a visit from a lovely Jewish lady called Samantha. Samantha told us all about Shabbat which she explained as the Jewish day of rest when Jewish people remember the story of creation where God created the world in 6 days and rested on the 7th. Samantha told us that Shabbat happens each week on a Friday evening through to a Saturday evening. We learnt that it involves a Friday evening meal where the table is laid ready for a three course meal, a candle is lit and a prayer is said over wine or grape juice which is called Kiddush. We also learnt that Jewish people enjoy a bread called Challah during the Shabbat meal which is covered by a special cloth. Samantha even brought some Challah in for us all to try-we really enjoyed it! We also learnt that Shabbat involves a trip to the synagogue to pray. Samantha told us that the Torah is read out when the Jews visit the synagogue and it has its own special ark where it is stored when it is not in use. We also learnt that Jewish men often wear a kippah and a tallit to the synagogue and a Jewish married woman will wear a hat. Samantha also told us that because Shabbat is the day of rest, Jewish people are not allowed to work with the exception of some professions such as doctors. We learnt that hoovering, washing up, doing the laundry and building are all things that Jews should not do on Shabbat. As well as this, we learnt that Jews are not allowed to use electronics such as phones, computers, iPads, PlayStations etc.. on Shabbat and should spend quality time talking and playing games with family members.
Year 3- Remembrance Day
In their guided reading sessions this week, Year 3 have been learning about Remembrance Day. They have guided information about when the war began and ended and why people wear poppies today. They also talked about the word 'peace' and how everyone wants to have peace in the world. They wrote individual prayers to remember the people who died in the war and the sacrifices they made for our country.
Reception - All about Diwali
Reception have been learning about Diwali, the festival of light which is celebrated by Hindus every year. They have been busy making Diwali cards, Rangoli patterns and Diwa lamps.
Reception: Vicars are special!
Today, our Ducklings had a lovely visit from Rev Ben and Rev Matt as part of their RE unit. They told us all about their special job. Rev Matt showed us his special garments and Rev Ben showed us his special collar. Rev Ben explained how being a vicar is all about showing how we love, know and follow Jesus. We watched a video about how Jesus chose his special followers called disciples. Rev Ben explained that the disciples were ordinary people just like vicars are! Rev Ben showed us how vicars celebrate holy communion and we held the special chalice and plate. Rev Matt then explained how vicars invite people to be part of the church through baptism. We all enjoyed our visit, thank you so much!
Rev Matt’s Worship: God’s Compassion for Gideon
Rev Matt’s Worship this week was about victory against the odds and staying faithful to God. He told us the story of Gideon and how he defeated the Midianites, even though his army was small. He trusted in God and God showed Gideon compassion. We also discussed how we can show compassion to people who need our help.
Whole-School Worship: Remembrance
With Remembrance Day fast approaching, Mrs Ham began the week with a worship about why and how we remember those who have died due to war and those who serve our country and protect us. She explained the significance of the poppy and we discussed which Christian and British values are shown by people in the armed forces. We ended our worship time with a prayer of thanks to those in the armed forces and prayed for peace around the world as we sang ‘A song of peace’.
Whole School Worship with Rev Ben
Rev Ben taught us all about the value of thankfulness this week. He told us the story of the Jews being freed from slavery and how they lost sight of the good things God had given them, so they were left to wander in the wilderness for 40 years. The children loved interacting with the story and shared their ideas on how we can focus on the good.
Year 4 - RE: The Transfiguration
After exploring the events of the Transfiguration of Jesus, the children in Year 4 examined a variety of artwork depicting the event and made note of the key common features and how they show His importance. The children then worked in teams of 3, 4 or 5 and created their own interpretations of the Transfiguration using chalks on the playground. They all captured the key message well.
Whole-School Worship: Allhallowtide & Praying for Peace
This morning Mrs Ham reminded us of the Christian season of Allhallowtide starting with All Hallows’ Eve tomorrow - Hallow means Holy and it is a time to be mindful of the good we can do in the world, All Saints’ Day on Wednesday - when Christians remember the good the saints have done, and All Souls‘ Day on Thursday - when we think of those who have died and are in heaven. We discussed Remembrance day which is coming up shortly, where we remember soldiers who have died in the wars. We also thought about the conflict in Israel and Gaza and prayed for those who are suffering in this war. We watched some newsround videos to learn about how children in Gaza and Israel are being affected and we thought of some ways that we can be like saints and help. Peyton said we can pray to God for them and Darcy, Jack and Naomi said we can donate money, clothes and toys to the children who have lost their homes and belongings. To finish we sang a 'Song of Peace' where we wished for a world where hate and war would cease and the everyone in the world could live in peace.
Harvest Church Service 2023
A huge well done to our WOW (Worship our Way) group and our choir for leading our Harvest Church service and to Reception, Year 1 and Year 2 for their wonderful contributions. Thank you so much for your generosity shown towards Darwen Food Larder and DARE (Darwen Asylum and Refugee Enterprise). All of the photos can be found here: https://www.stbarnabasdarwen.co.uk/photo-galleries/harvest-church-service-2023 and the videos are posted on classdojo.
Whole-School Worship: Moses Saves God’s People
This week, Rev Ben led our worship, teaching us all about the story of Moses parting the Red Sea, and how that was all a part of God’s great rescue plan. The children loved acting out the story. We also spent some time reflecting on God’s generosity towards the Israelites.
Year 4 - RE: People Challenging Authority
In RE this week we were learning about people who have famously spoken out against their authority figures in order to affect change in the world. The children worked in groups to research Rosa Parks, William Wilberforce, Oscar Romero or Greta Thunberg. They considered why these important people felt they had to speak up and how their acts of courage brought about important changes.
Whole-School Worship: Jacob and Esau and God’s Forgiveness
Rev Matt joined us for worship today. He talked about good and bad, and then read the story of Isaac’s sons, Esau and Jacob. We then reflected on how God taught Jacob to be truthful and how He showed forgiveness.
Reception: Learning about Islam
This week our Ducklings learnt all about Islamic prayer beads. They are what Muslims use to pray to God. They are called ‘Subha’. We had a look at a variety of prayer beads and learnt that there are 99 beads which represent a name that is given to God. Some of the names include the kind, the light, the strong, the first, the guide and the loving. Thank you to Miss Kachwalla for bringing her prayer beads in.
WOW group led Class Worship
In our Class Worship session this morning, our WOW group members Luca, Annabelle and Grace used Picture News to lead the session. We focused on ‘Record Breakers’ and is it correct that anyone can break a world record? We learnt that over 30,000 applicants submit their achievements each year but only 2,638 were selected to be published in the Guinness World Records 2024 . We prayed for the ability to show perseverance and determination along with all of the special people involved in trying to break records.
Year 1-Making a Sukkah
Year 1 have been learning about the Jewish Festival of Sukkot. In the creative and construction areas they have been building a sukkah. They have learnt that some Jews celebrate harvest by building a sukkah and spending time in there during their harvest festival (Sukkot). For example, they might enjoy a meal to give thanks or to say a prayer of thankfulness. They do this to remember all of the Jews that had to sleep in the wilderness as they fled from slavery and to give thanks for many things such as food and shelter.
Year 3 - Class Worship- Thanking God for creating the universe and everything in it.
In our class worship, we explored the joy of discovering new places and celebrated India's historic moon landing near the south pole. We also explored famous explorers from the past and thanked God for creating the universe. We ended our class worship by singing, 'He's Got the Whole World'.
Year 4 - RE: Revealing Jesus’s Authority
In our RE lesson this week, the children were researching Bible stories to find reasons why Christians believe Jesus is the Son of God.
Monday Worship
This week, we practised singing songs for Harvest. It was wonderful to welcome our Ducklings into their first whole school worship. Our older children showed them what to do and helped them with the words and actions. Our choir will be performing this Sunday at church. We would love to see as many of you there to help sing our wonderful harvest songs.
Reception: RE God’s Plan
This week in RE, our Ducklings were thinking about God’s plan for us. We had a special visitor, baby Rupert who came so that we could compare how we grow. We decided Rupert wasn’t ready for school just yet. “He can’t walk” said Bella, “He can’t ride a scooter” said Haydn. Hollie said that he could only play with baby toys. We then thought about God’s plan for us as we grow up. We discussed what we wanted to be when we grow up. Percy said a rock and roll star, Thomas said a builder, Harry said a farmer and Elsie said a nurse.
Year 5 - What is the Bible?
This week Year 5 have been looking at what the bible is and where it came from. We sought to answer these following questions to gain a deep and detailed understanding of what the Bible is: Where does the bible come from? What’s in the Jewish bible? What’s in the story of the Old Testament? How did Jesus carry the bible forward? The children discussed that the Bible started in the Old Testament through ancient Jewish scriptures that were masters in literature and answered life’s many unknown questions. We learned and understood that the Jewish Bible referred to as the Tanak referred to all the early workings of the Bible and how the carried and spread Gods word. Then we discussed the varied ways that Jesus carried the story forward to inspire the masses to follow in the footsteps of Christianity. We understood the first person accounts that were written and when Jesus began to carry this story forward we enter the New Testament of the Bible.
Collective Worship with Rev Ben - Noah’s Ark
Today, we started with a fun game of floating and sinking in our collective Worship with Rev Ben. He then told us the story of Noah and his Ark and his mission to rescue God’s creation. We considered how we could help to take care of God’s world.
Reception: RE
Last week our Ducklings learnt about the creation story. Following on from this, we learnt about how we are all unique and how God made us all to be special. We looked at our hands and fingerprints and learnt how nobody is the same as us! God made us all special. We read a story called ‘When God made you’.
Year 6 R.E.
In R.E. Year 6 have been looking at how following Jesus’ teachings has an impact on lives today. They looked at Jesus’ life journey and thought about how individual events might influence the way in which Christians live their lives.
Tuesday Collective Worship with Rev Matt
Rev Matt came to lead our worship and told us the story of Adam and Eve, and how God showed his generosity, staying with them even after they disobeyed his orders. We also discussed how we can show generosity this week.
Monday Collective Worship- God’s Big Plan
We started our worship by paying respect to all of the victims who lost their lives 22 years ago in the devastating 9/11 terrorist attack in New York. We lit a candle and said a prayer. Mrs Ham then reintroduced God’s Big Story to us and we looked at each concept and discussed what they mean: Creation (the beginning of the world), Fall (when people started to sin) , People of God (People in the Old Testament of the Bible), Incarnation (Jesus was sent to create peace on Earth), Gospel (spreading the good news of Jesus), Salvation (Jesus is crucified and appears as a spirit) and The Kingdom of God. We then watched a video which started with creation. We talked about our favourite things that God created. Rio said’ The sun and the moon to create light and dark,’ Sienna and Elliott said ‘The people’, Maliki said ‘The animals’ and Sonny said ‘The food.’ Followed by the Fall when people started to destroy the world. Then God gave us the People of God such as Moses and Abraham who were sent to teach us how to be good people. However, people didn’t listen so God sent Jesus to us in the flesh and this is what incarnation means. Bishop Philip explained that incarnation means that Jesus came as one of us, to share our life and so that we could share in his life and learn from his actions, stories and explanations. Bishop Philip then explained the definition of Salvation as Jesus coming to save us from a place of danger (the fall) by dying on the cross. As Jesus died on the cross and came back to life, he was our rescuer. He died for all of us brought us to a place of safety. We all look forward to learning more about God’s Big Plan in our collective worships and our RE lessons this academic year. Finally, we ended our worship by singing, ‘Our God is a Great Big God.’
Collective Worship with Rev Ben and Rev Matt
In worship today, Rev Ben got us all thinking about being creative and our greatest and most generous creator - God. We enjoyed watching two teams of children compete to create the best animal from just sticky tape and newspaper. We also reflected on how we can be generous with our creations in school this week.
Year 4 - RE: Jesus Was a Jew
In Year 4, we started our RE with a little artefact exploring, learning about and experiencing the Jewish festival of Rosh Hashanah, and we ended with a big reveal: Jesus was Jewish! We couldn’t believe it! There were lots of ‘Mrs Ham shocked faces’ when we found out, but I think most of us would agree that the best part was eating apple pieces dipped in honey and wishing for a sweet new school year.
Year 4 - Exploring Church
We finished off our RE unit with a trip to St Barnabas Church to look for symbols of Christianity. The children were so knowledgeable, remembering lots of our learning this term. Thanks to Rev Ben and Rev Matt for inviting us in.
Year 1 Building Homes Jesus’ World, Our World
This week in our RE lessons we have been comparing the buildings Jesus would have lived in and around. We have built our own cuboid homes and made a year 1 village. We recognise that when Jesus was on Earth there was no electricity, houses were not made from bricks and they often had flat roofs and no glass in the windows.
Year 4 - Linking Schools Litter Pick
The final part of our Linking Schools project was to make a pledge to take part in social action. Year 4 chose to do a community litter pick. The council supplied the equipment and off we went, cleaning up Knowlesly Road, Watery Lane and Whitehall Park. We filled 3 bin bags and 2 recycling bags - a super effort, class!
Year 4 - Visiting our Link School
Another fantastic experience with our linking class! This week, Year 4 visited St Matthew’s Primary School in Blackburn for our final team project. We visited the Mosque next door to learn about its features, and we took part in team crafts. We have loved our year of linking!
Monday Worship: St Barnabas and St Paul and Welcome to Rev Matt
Today, Rev Ben led our worship and we welcomed Rev Matt who will be working at St Barnabas Church too. We began our worship by thinking about a time where something happened to us and where we couldn’t wait to tell others about it. Amelia couldn’t wait to tell others when her Mum had a baby. Mason couldn’t wait to tell others that he had been on the television! We thought about how St Barnabas and St Paul were generous about the message about Jesus and how they told Jesus’ story to people for the first time. Rev Ben shared a video with the children about their story. On Saturday, Matt became Rev Matt and was ordained at Blackburn Cathedral. Rev Matt wanted to become a vicar because he wanted to spread the word of Jesus and to find out more about Jesus. Rev Matt spent three years at vicar school. He said he was most excited to learn more and for the children to learn with him. We gave Rev Matt a huge St Barnabas welcome. We ended our worship by singing ‘story of the cross’.
Year 2 - Stained Glass Windows
In R.E Year 2 have been exploring what makes a church a church. The children have been understanding the various aspects of the church and understanding their place within the church. The children have focused on stained glass windows and how they tell Jesus’ stories and teaching. The children then had a go at creating their own stained glass windows using lots of colours and materials.
W.O.W. Group - Messy Parables - The Unforgiving Servant
This week in the Messy Parables workshop, the children looked at the importance of forgiveness through the parable ‘The Unforgiving Servant’. They then had fun making bookmarks with a message of forgiveness. Well done to the W.O.W. Group; they are doing a fabulous job organising and delivering these workshops.
Year 4 - RE: Features in a Synagogue
After exploring the significance of certain Christian features found in churches, Year 4 explored some features found in synagogues and looked for the significances of these important features of Judaism.
Year 1 Visit to St Barnabas Church
Today Year 1 went to St Barnabas Church as part of their RE unit: Our world, Jesus’ World. Rev Ben helped us to learn more about Jesus’ world and let us think and discuss how it is different living on Earth today compared to when Jesus was alive. The children really enjoyed listening to the story of the prodigal son and either watching others act out the story or being actors and actresses themselves. They looked for images of Jesus within the church and we looked at the clothes and signs of different lifestyles people would have had back then. Year 1 have certainly enjoyed having their RE lesson with Rev Ben in church today.
Monday Worship: Fruits of the Spirit
Mrs Ham shared some photos of fruit trees and asked the children to name the fruit on each tree. We saw tangerines, pears, pineapples and strawberries to make a few. She told us that in the Bible, St Paul wrote in one of his letters about the fruit of the spirit. Mrs Ham had a fruit bag and asked some children to pick out a fruit from God’s fruit bowl. The children had to think about different fruits and discuss what they mean with a partner. The first was faithfulness. Wilson said if you trust each other then you would be faithful. The next fruit was self-control. Hamza said it is all about not reacting. The third was kindness. Archie said it is about helping people or giving to others. The next fruit of the spirit was love. Darcy said if you show love then they will show it you back. Sonny said giving somebody a hug shows love. The next was goodness which means being really good! The next fruit of the spirit was joy. Grace said if you are a nice person to be around then you will bring joy to others. Gentleness was then pulled out of God’s fruit bowl. Neve said you should be gentle with both your words and actions. Sofia pulled out patience. Daisy said it is all about waiting. Hamza said do not say hurry up! The last fruit of the spirit was peace. Mrs Ham wanted us to have a little peace whilst we reflected on our worship today. We ended our worship by singing ‘Fruit of the spirit’.
Reception- Pentecost
This afternoon, Reception have been learning about a celebration in the Church calendar called Pentecost. We watched a video of the story and then acted this out. First, we sat in a circle and prayed just as the disciples did, we then had some children act out the huge gust of wind that was felt by the disciples as the Holy Spirit arrived and blessed them with the ability to speak in different languages. Finally, we spoke in different languages such as, ‘Bonjour,’ ‘Ciao,’ and ‘Konnichiwa,’ to teach everyone about Jesus. We created some flames, doves and wind as these are symbols of the Holy Spirit, and we also drew some pictures of the disciples and wrote in different languages in our RE sketchbook. Well done Reception.
W.O.W. Group - Messy Parables - The Mustard Seed
Last week was the W.O.W. group’s first Messy Parables session. We read the Parable of the Mustard Seed, talked about how one little thought or belief can grow into something great, and made our own self-belief badges. All in all, a brilliant first session, with a few biscuits thrown in for good measure. This week, the parable is The Unforgiving Servant.
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Year 5- R.E- What are the outcomes of our choices?
In R.E. this term, we are studying and exploring the lives of prominent women mentioned in the Bible. We are focusing on their significant roles, contributions, and the lessons we can learn from their experiences. This afternoon we learnt about Deborah, Deborah served as a judge in Israel during a time when the land was oppressed by the Canaanites for 20 years. People would come to her for legal judgements and guidance in settling disputes. She was known for her wisdom, righteousness, and fair judgments. In groups, the children engaged in discussions about the significance of making the right decisions and asking for help when necessary.
Year 4 - Great Big Live Assembly for Refugee Week
Year 4 enjoyed being part of the Great Big Live Assembly this morning. We learned a lot about refugees and how they are being welcomed into our society. It truly has been a day of welcoming others as we welcomed our friends from our link school too. More photos to follow
Year 3 RE- Rules for Living
Year 3 have been learning all about the 10 commandments and why God gave people rules to live by and what their reaction to these rules might of been.
Year 2 RE Church Observations
As part of our RE unit, year 2 have been down to our local church, St Barnabas, to explore and to see what makes a church a church. The children were tasked with a scavenger hunt to find all the objects that are most symbolic to a church and to write down why they exist within the church.
Whole School Worship: Encouragement
This morning in worship, we started with an encouragement song with the lyrics 'we all need encouragement, like the air that we breath'. Mrs Ham explained that yesterday was St Barnabas day and he was known as a great encourager. She then reminded us of how we have a special connection with St Paul's in Hoddlesden as we share our vicar, Rev Ben with and how St Barnabas and St Paul had a special connection in the Bible too. We then learnt about how St Paul became a follower of Jesus with the encouragement of his friend, St Barnabas. We then discussed how we can all show courage like St Paul and encourage each other like St Barnabas in the many upcoming events such as sports day, transition days, end of year assessments and productions. We are looking forward to learning more about St Barnabas and St Paul from Rev Ben in his worships over the next few weeks.
Year 4 - Recreating Church
After writing an extensive list of what all churches “need”, the children realised that actually very little was needed once we headed up to Whitehall Park to have our outdoor worship. We created a cross from fallen twigs, found a tree stump for a lectern and spent time marvelling at God’s creations all around us. We had some bible readings about Pentecost and the beginnings of the church and some lovely impromptu prayers. A very peaceful morning.
Year 4 - Learning about Holy Communion
It’s been a busy week in RE in Year 4. At the beginning of our Church unit in RE, Year 4 was given the opportunity to pose their own questions about church. This week we answered the question, “Why do people have bread and wine in church?”, by performing a mock holy communion. We used brioche to represent the body of Christ and red grape juice to represent the blood of Christ.
Year 4 - Linking Schools
After discussing the things that we care about most in the world last week, Year 4 has spent this week considering how we can take social action to improve the things we care about. “Kindness” was definitely a key theme. Next, we will decide on 3 actions and share them with our linking school, St Matthew’s, Blackburn.
Reception- Buddhist Prayer Flags
In R.E we have been learning all about prayer, this week we have been learning about how Buddhists pray and we have been looking at Tibetan prayer flags. We found out that there are five different coloured prayer flags which represent different elements such as earth, air, fire, space and water. A prayer flag is a printed image on paper or cloth intended to be fixed wherever the wind blows. The flags often contain images of animals along with words of kindness such as the wind horse, dragon, snow lion, tiger and garuda.
Whole School Worship: Pentecost
Today in our worship we learned about the events of Pentecost and how the church began. We had some fab actors acting out when the Holy Spirit descended and flames appeared on the disciples’ heads. We sang a special song to welcome the Holy Spirit into our Worship and reflected on how excited the disciples must have felt when they received the Holy Spirit. We thought about how we could show Jesus' love through our words and actions this week.
Year 4 - Linking Schools
As we began Phase 2 of our Linking Schools project, we spent some time considering what things in our world that we care about. We wrote our ideas on paper leaves ready to go on our class kindness tree.
Reception: How do Muslim’s pray?
Reception loved their visit from Miss Kachwalla. She explained all about how Muslim’s pray and showed some of her prayer mats. Miss Kachwalla also showed the children what she has to wear and tried a Burkha on for the children to see. The children then decorated their own prayer mats.
Rev Ben Worship: Ascension
Rev Ben began his worship with a game of charades. We watched the bible story of the Ascension. When Jesus went up to heaven, it made his followers sad. However, Christians believe it is a good thing as Jesus is not limited to one time and place. Everyone, everywhere can speak to him. Jesus is always able to help us. Rev Ben asked us to think about how Jesus serves us from heaven and how we might want Jesus to serve us today. Rev Ben blew bubbles for his prayer time. As he blew the bubbles, we remember how Jesus will always listen to us as he can always hear us because he is in heaven. We ended our worship by singing Waymaker.
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Year 5- R.E- Bible Detectives
In our R.E. lesson this afternoon, we embarked on an exciting journey as Year 5 Bible Detectives, exploring what happened after Pentecost. The children worked in pairs, diligently skimming and scanning Acts 2-5. They showcased exceptional skills in locating key information and piecing together the narrative.
Year 1 RE Baptism pictures
Year 1 have been drawing and painting their own version of a baptism or christening as part of our current RE topic. They have included a child being christened, the vicar, godparents, family and friends.
Year 1- Mock Baptism
This afternoon, Rev Ben welcomed us into St Barnabas Church to experience a baptism first hand. Rev Ben baptised baby Ben Barnabas and made the parents, godparents and other guests make promises to look after Ben and teach her to be kind and respectful. We also made a promise to be good role models to her. Rev Ben showed us the font and blessed Ben with the water to symbolise that he had been baptised. Rev Ben told us that it isn’t only babies that get baptised but you can in fact be baptised at any age. Rev Ben also showed us the baptism candle which represents the light of God and the bible you get given when you’ve been baptised. We said thank you to Rev Ben for showing us what happens at a baptism and making us feel so welcome. We then went back to school and had a little party to celebrate Bens baptism. We enjoyed a drink of juice, a cake and played some fun party games.
Rev Ben Worship: Kings Coronation
Today, we thought about the kings coronation. We began our worship by playing a game. The teams from years 5 and 6 had to get their captains ready for the kings coronation. The children voted for their favourite and it was an even split. Well done to all of the children for being great sports! Rev Ben asked the children to think about what makes a good king. The children said the king has to be kind, generous, honest, dedicated, responsible and respectful. In the bible, Jesus explained how a king is a servant. King Charles needs to serve by showing justice and mercy just like Jesus did. Thank you to Rev Ben for leading our worship today. We are looking forward to our coronation celebrations in school this week.
Reception: Prayer
As part of our new RE unit, Reception have been learning about the importance of prayer. We looked at why we pray. Marley said it is so that God can listen, Mila said to thank God for everything he has made and Eddie said so that we can talk to God. We thought about the different types of prayer and said prayers using pipe cleaners. We then hung our pipe cleaners onto our prayer tree.
Year 4 - Taking on the Hop, Skip, Jump Challenge
Year 4 class donned their Easter crowns and took part in some hopping, skipping and jumping challenges for East Lancs Hospice.
Monday Worship: Looking after God’s World
Mrs Ham showed the children the big frieze and focussed on the creation. This morning we thought about Earth Day and God’s creation and had a think about all of the things that are damaging God’s creation. We threw globes around the room to think about how we are damaging our Earth. We watched a video of Greta Thunberg who is helping our world. Greta challenged world leaders to take action on climate change. Greta shared some advice to help look after the world and the children shared their ideas of how we can make a positive difference. Finn said “we can stand up for what is right”, Hamza said “use both sides of paper”, James said “stop throwing litter on the floor”, Darcy said “turn the tap off to save water” and Annabel said “switch off the lights”. The children looked through a bin and had a think about what they could do with the items instead of just throwing items into a bin. Eliza chose a bottle. Some of the children said they could use it for junk modelling, you could reuse it or you could use it as a bath toy. Harriet chose a Maltesers box. The children suggested you could use if to make a fairy house or a puppet. Harry chose a plastic bag. Ella said that you could use it as a bin bag and Scarlett said you could reuse it when you go shopping. Rosie chose some paper and the children discussed how it could be used to make a paper aeroplane and then put into the recycling bin. This week, Mrs Ham asked us all to think about how we can help to protect God’s creations and how we can protect our world. We finished our worship by singing ‘God’s world’.
Year 5- R.E- Easter- A visit from Rev Adam
We invited Rev Adam to our class worship today. He shared the life of Jesus which was represented on a cube. Each picture on the shape demonstrated the life of Jesus. The children were able to ask questions that they had prepared earlier. Before leaving, Rev Adam read the 'Ascension Day' which celebrates Jesus's ascension to heaven after he was resurrected on Easter Day.
Year 2 - Pentecost
During our RE lesson we have been following on from the Easter Story. The children acted out and understood the messages that were told and celebrated during the Pentecost. Children explained what an important celebration it is in the Christian calendar and now it is considered to be the birth of the church.
Easter Service
Rev Ben began our worship by leading us in prayer. Mrs Ham and our heads and deputies then led our Easter service 'The Greatest Story Ever Told'. We began with Palm Sunday and then moved onto the garden of Gethsemane. Our news reporters explained what happened whilst year 4 shared their artwork of the betrayal. The reporters continued with their report from Calvary hill. Year 5 shared their crucifixion artwork. When Jesus died, the earth shook. Year 3 shared their artwork whilst we sang lord of the dance. Reporters were then at the tomb where they reported that Jesus’ body has disappeared. Jesus had risen from the dead! A huge thank you to our heads and deputies for reports on the biggest news story ever to be told. Wow group led our prayers at the end of our service. Year 6 then shared their artwork whilst we sang give me oil in my lamp. Thank you to all of our wonderful parents, carers and families who came to our Easter service, it was lovely to be able to share it with you.
Spring Chicken = Mrs Price
It wouldn’t be Easter at St Barnabas without a visit from the Spring Chicken! All of the staff and children had a great time singing and dancing this afternoon to the Spring Chicken song. Then we unmasked the chicken just like the masked singer by shouting ‘Take it off, take it off!’. This year the chicken was Mrs Price as this will be her last chance to join in our Easter celebrations as she is soon flying the St Barnabas nest as she has gained a promotion to Senior School Business Manager at a Special High School in Bolton. We will be so sad to see Mrs Price leave St Barnabas on Friday 21st April as she has worked tirelessly with passion and determination at our school and has supported several schools in our Trust for the last 8 years. We wish her all the luck in the world in her new role and know that she will shine, just like she has at St Barnabas. I’m delighted to announce that Mrs Howarth will be taking on the role of our School Administration Manager and will be supported in the office by a new member of our team, Mrs Cole. She is looking forward to joining our school family after the Easter holidays. On behalf of our whole staff team, thank you so much for your continued support and we hope you have a wonderful Easter holiday.
Reception- Sensory Easter Story
In Reception we acted out a sensory version of the Easter story. We used our senses to recreate the different parts of the story, such as movement and the touch and smells that we would encounter.
Year 3- Easter Artwork
Year 3 have been on a beautiful walk to the Rose Garden in Whitehall park today. We walked sensibly, taking in the lovely views and stopping to be still, listening to the birds and water close by. Once we arrived we explored the Rose Garden using the paths, looking at each classes art work displays. We then completed a quiz where we answered questions by finding the relevant piece of artwork. We invite you all to visit the Rose Garden during the Easter period and enjoy all of the artwork on display.
Year 5 - Easter Artwork Walk
The whole school has created some fantastic artwork showing all the different parts of the Easter story. Today we went for a walk up to the Rose Garden in Whitehall Park to have a look at the pieces of work that have been chosen to be displayed. Whilst we were there we had a little sing song of some of the Easter Hymns we have been learning in our worships.
Whole School Worship with Rev Ben
Today in Worship, Rev Ben spoke about the awe and wonder in the events of Easter Sunday. He asked us about how the resurrection changed Mary Magdalene’s life and how the Easter story may make a difference in our lives.
Year 4 - Easter Artwork Walk
Our Year 4 class, loved visiting the Rose Garden at Whitehall Park yesterday. And what lovely weather we’ve had for it. The children really enjoyed viewing the Easter art created in school, saying prayers and singing songs with the children from Reception class. They even came back to the classroom to write some Easter scavenger hunt clues for the other classes. We hope you and your families have a chance to visit too.
Easter Artwork in Whitehall Park
The children have all been learning about Easter in RE. As part of their learning, they have created some Easter artwork which is displayed in Whitehall park. It will be displayed over the holidays so it is a great opportunity for you to visit with your family.
Year 1 Planning Recounts
Today Year 1 were planning their recounts ready to write tomorrow. They have chosen a special celebration to write about and many children had photos of their special event to help them plan their recount. We planned an example about a birthday party together before the children went off to carry out their own plans in their books.
Reception: Easter Art
Reception class enjoyed visiting the rose garden to see all of the Easter art work. They chose their favourites and explained why. We then sang some Easter songs with Year 4 and said some prayers. We even had some time to develop our gross motor skills on the playground.
Whole School Worship: Palm Sunday
Today, we began our worship by watching a video about Palm Sunday. Mrs Ham and the children all read the parable from the rhyming bible whilst we had some talented actors acting the story out. James was the donkey, a vote meant that Mr Prescott was Jesus, Sonny, Alby and Riley were the disciples and Ted and Bobby were the religious leaders. A child from each year group led our prayers at the end of our worship.
Whole School Celebration Worship
In our Celebration Worship this morning we commemorated Year 6's trip to London, as well as the wonderful achievements of our pupils across all year groups. The class teachers gave out awards to pupils who have demonstrated our Christian values such as kindness, respect, and courage. We recognised the hard work and dedication of pupils who have excelled in various extracurricular activities, including our recent swimming gala and the Year 4 children for being brave and showing courage at Junction 4 skatepark. We also awarded the amazing attendance award to our Year 1 and Year 3 pupils, who have shown a commitment to their education and a passion for learning. Congratulations to the yellow team (Darwen Tower) for gaining a total of 317 points. This is a great achievement and a testament to the hard work and dedication of everyone involved. Well done and keep up the good work! We are incredibly proud of all our pupils and their accomplishments, and we know that they will continue to achieve great things. We want to thank Rev Ben for leading us in prayer and for reminding us of the importance of faith and community in our daily lives. To celebrate our students' achievements, we sang "Shine from the inside out," a fitting tribute to the incredible talents and hard work of our pupils.
WOW Group - Messy Church Planning
The WOW Group had plenty of ideas for a parable-themed messy church. The children have taken a parable in pairs and have started researching craft ideas and songs to put together a session in the Summer term. Keep your eyes peeled for the date coming soon.
Year 2 - Easter Symbols
During our Re lesson, we have been looking at a variety of symbols that are related to the Easter story and what they mean to Christians. We have designed our own stained glass windows with Easter symbols that will be displayed in Whitehall Park.
Year 1: Easter Story
Year 1 have been looking at correctly sequencing pictures from the Easter story. They have been remembering significant events including the resurrection and created some artworks to reflect this.
Rev Ben Worship: Gates to Heaven
This morning, Rev Ben led our worship. We began by playing a quiz. The children were split into team 1 and team 2. Rev Ben shared a variety of gate pictures and asked where they were from. Gates included Buckingham Palace, Arc de Triomphe, Ewood Park and Whitehall Park. Well done to Team 1. Rev Ben shared how Jesus is the gate. Rev Ben asked the children to think about what a gate is for and what we think Jesus is saying about himself. Tristen said a gate is about letting people in and out. Harlee thought the gate is there for Jesus to look after people. Jesus is the gate to protect his followers and to keep them safe. Rev Ben shared a photograph of the Thames barrier. It was built to stop parts of London flooding. If there is a high tide, the gates rise and stop parts of London from flooding. Christians believe that when we come to God, we face a barrier. The barrier is the things we have done wrong. However, Christians believe that Jesus takes away the barrier and creates a gate for us to walk through to God. Rev Ben invited the children to pray with him. At the end of our worship, we sang ‘Waymaker’.
Year 2 - Easter Story
In year 2, we have been looking at the Easter story and the symbols relating to Easter. We created our very own spinning wheel detailing the key moments of the Easter story.
Year 5- Religious Education- How does it feel to be victorious?
During our R.E. lesson this afternoon, we discussed the term 'Victory' as a starting point for our class discussion. Some of the things that came to mind were celebration, achievement, brave, joy, happiness and determination. The children then discussed what victorious meant to them and if victory and winning were the same thing. We then watched some of the greatest sports events. Many athletes hope to win, but they also strive to beat their personal best (PB) and so, even if they come last, if it is their personal best, they have been victorious.
Year 4 - Linking Schools Zoom Meeting
The class have loved meeting their link class today. We played games with our linking friends, like Would You Rather...? , Red Card Green Card and Draw a Picture in which children had to draw a picture on their whiteboards while it was balanced on the top of their heads. Thank you St Matthews- we can't wait to meet you soon!
Reception class- Palm Sunday
In Reception we learnt all about Palm Sunday. We retold and role-played the story and created our own palms using paint and collage. Heidi said “Jesus asked his disciple to find him a donkey”. James said “the people put palms on the road”. Marley said “the crowd shouted Hosanna!” Mila said “Jesus was a king being welcomed”. The children really enjoyed role-playing the story and continued during continuous provision.
Year 2 - Collective Worship
During today's worship, we were having a look at all the ways we can looking after our local area. The children were amazing at coming up with brilliant suggestions in how we can look after our local area such as: recycle and not litter, litter picking, protecting animals by creating bug hotels and spaces for food. After worship we ended by saying prayers about people we care about and to all those who have been affected by the earthquakes in Turkey and Syria. The children made a person out of a pipe cleaner while saying their prayer and placed that on our prayer tree.
Reception: Easter Launch
Today, we read ‘Clever Cub and the Easter Surprise’. We learnt about the Easter story. Elijah said “Jesus died on the cross”. Eva said “Jesus came back alive”. Lyla said “it was a miracle”. We then had a look at a hot cross bun and how it has a cross in it. It reminds us all of how Jesus died on the cross. We all tried a hot cross bun- they were very yummy!
Year 3 RE- Palm Sunday
Year 3 have been looking at the story of Palm Sunday. They worked in groups to put the story in order and then use the visuals to create their own descriptive sentences.
Reception: Caring for our Environment
Today, we discussed what recycle, reuse and reduce meant. The children discussed what bins we find at school and what bins we have at home. We discussed why it is important to recycle. Did you know that some bottles can be recycled to make a part of a plane? The children were amazed! The children went outside to look at our recycle bins as they look very different to the ones we have at home. We also discussed how we can reduce waste and reuse. The children did some junk modelling to show how we can reuse boxes and different objects. We discussed how important it is to look after and care for our world.
Betrayal, trust and forgiveness art - Year 4
In Year 4 RE today, we looked at artwork showing Judas’ betrayal of Jesus. We talked about how the artwork showed Judas betraying Jesus and why Jesus didn’t stop him. After discussing the artwork, we then took inspiration from it and created our own pictures of Judas’ betrayal.
Whole School Worship: Rev Ben
We began our worship by taking a moment to remember those who have been affected by the earthquakes in Turkey and Syria. Rev Ben began his worship by playing a game. 10 children were split into 2 teams and they had to use chopsticks to transport grapes from one container to another. The children worked well as a team and team 2 won! This morning we are thinking about grapes. Jesus said “I am the vine, you are the branches”. We need to stay connected to him in order to keep growing. We watched a short video to help us think about what Jesus meant. Christians believe that Jesus wants us to have fruitful lives. We can do this by sticking close to Jesus. What does being fruitful mean? Ella thinks it means to live a faithful life and Annabel said to be thankful. Rev Ben explained that to live a fruitful life, we need to show the fruits of the spirit- love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness and self control. We had time to think about what Christians believe the secret is to being fruitful. Daniel said connecting to other pupils and to Jesus. Isaac said showing our Christian values and following the 10 commandments. Archie said by putting other people first. We finished our worship by singing ‘way maker’.
Year 4 - Linking Schools
Today in our Linking Schools session we were exploring our similarities and differences and preparing for our inter-class Zoom session in two weeks’ time.
Year 3 RE
Year 3 have been looking at the different events within the Easter Story, we then built on this , considering the emotions around each scene in the story. Year 3 used a wide variety of words to convey the different emotions.
Reception: Muddy Monday
As part of our learning all about caring for our environment, we went on a litter pick around our local area. We used our fine motor skills to collect the litter using the litter pickers. We collected lots of litter and all received a certificate and sticker for being great litter picking superheroes. Thank you to Blackburn with Darwen Council for providing all of the resources we needed for our litter pick.
Year 3 R.E- Mother Teresa
Year 3 have been learning about Mother Teresa and the wonderful things she did throughout her life. We discussed how her Christian faith influenced the way she dedicated her life.
Year 1- Signs of spring
Yesterday we walked to Whitehall park to look out for some signs of spring. In science we looked at the changes between winter and spring. Our walk also linked in with our R.E lesson (Easter unit) as we were looking for signs of new life.
Year 4 - RE: Exploring the Importance of Trust
Year 4 had great fun playing trust games. They used great communication skills to untangle the human knot and showed how trustworthy they were to their peers during trust falls and on their blind trails. They spoke very maturely about who we trust and why we sometimes have to earn people’s trust by our actions.
Reception- Shrove Tuesday
The children in Reception have tried some pancakes for Shrove Tuesday. All the children tried the pancakes and enjoyed them. We discussed that Pancake Day is also called Shrove Tuesday. We talked about how Jesus went to the desert for forty days and forty nights with no food or water.
Shrove Tuesday
As today is Shrove Tuesday, Mrs Ham bought our whole school family pancake bites to eat to symbolise the start of Lent tomorrow. They went down a treat and many of the children were excited to have pancakes at home this evening too. We are looking forward to seeing lots of different ways that we can all give this Lent through demonstrating our Christian values of service, friendship and generosity.
Year 1- R.E
In R.E we had a discussion about what makes Jesus special. We created some valentines hearts to give to someone who is special to us.
Reception: The Lost Sheep
As part of Reception’s learning on stories Jesus told, we read ‘The lost sheep’. The children thought about how the shepherd would have felt at the beginning and end of the story. We then made these faces and helped Mrs Wilkinson to read the story from our rhyming bible. The children said that he would have been scared and upset but then happy at the end when he found his lost sheep. Archie said “God is like the shepherd” and Evie said “we are like the sheep”. We discussed when we have been lost and who found us too.
Year 2 - Jesus healed a paralysed man
During our RE unit we have been focusing on Jesus’ miracles. We acted out Jesus healing a paralysed man and discussed: How the people may have felt? Did other people believe what they saw? What did Jesus want to teach us with his miracle?
Year 4 - Considering the qualities of a good King
In RE this week, we have been looking at the story of David and King Saul and deciding why David would have made a better king. We also realised that the qualities of a good king were very similar to the qualities of a good friend.
Year 2 - Jesus healed the blind
In year 2 we have started our new unit in RE - Jesus our friend. We looked at his miracles and in particular, Jesus healing the blind man. We acted out the story and gained a detailed understanding of Jesus’ messages and how we can be the light just as Jesus is.
Reception: Daniel in the Lion’s Den
Today in RE the children in Reception learnt what a parable was. They listened to the parable ‘Daniel and the Lion’s den’. They retold the story and then we discussed a time that we had been brave, just like Daniel.
Year 5 - Explore and Interpret Parables
In our R.E. lesson this afternoon, we worked in small groups exploring and interpreting familiar parables e.g. the Good Samaritan, the Sower, the Wise and Foolish builders, and the Lost Sheep.
Year 2 - Prayer Pail
During class workshop time year 2 have been creating their own prayer topics. The children came up with some amazing ideas and we prayed for: those in need, how to be kind, how to follow is Jesus’ footsteps and prayed for our friends and family.
Year 1- Epiphany
On Friday we learnt about Epiphany. It took 12 days for the kings to meet baby Jesus and so the Epiphany is celebrated on the 6th January. Epiphany comes from the Greek word which means ‘making known’. The kings followed a big star which helped to make people know that Jesus had been born. One important thing that the festival of Epiphany reveals is that God doesn’t have favourites but welcomes people from any background and any nationality. Year 1 painted images of the 3 kings on their journey to find baby Jesus.
Reception: RE
This week we have begun our unit of stories that Jesus heard. We began with listening to the story about Moses’ mummy. She had to hide him in the river to keep him safe. We discussed the story and looked at how our parents show us that they love us.
Year 3 Christmas Artwork in the Rose Garden, Whitehall Park
Year 3 have produced some fantastic pieces of artwork, representing the shepherds visiting the stable and being in the presence of God. They have been displayed in the Rose Garden in Whitehall Park along with the Remembrance artwork. If you’re on a family walk in the area this Christmas holiday, please go along and appreciate the lovely artwork.
Reception - Christmas Service at Church
Reception class attended the Christmas Church Service. We joined in with the carols and practised our actions. The children listened carefully to the prayers shared by KS2 children.
Christmas Service at St Barnabas Church, Lead by KS2
This morning, the whole school came together for our Christmas Service at St Barnabas Church, lead by KS2. Over this term, KS2 classes have been preparing short presentations for the service, about an element of Christmas that they have been focusing on in R.E. In Year 3, the class presented pieces of artwork, focusing on the shepherd's visiting Jesus in the stable and being in the presence of God. Year 4 looked at Christingle's and created a fantastic rap, about the meaning of the Christingle and Jesus being the light of the World. Year 5 spoke about how different countries celebrate Christmas around the World. Finally, Year 6 spoke about Advent and what it means to them. Some children also shared their hopes and dreams for the future. The WOW Group also helped to lead parts of the service and we sang a selection of Christmas Carols as a whole school. Overall, we really enjoyed learning about different elements of Christmas and KS2 presented their learning brilliantly!
Year 4 - Hanukkah
To finish our Christmas RE unit, Year 4 learned about the Jewish festival of light called Hanukkah. They discovered the miracle of the menorah candle and the significance of light, and they made their own dreidels and used them to play the game.
Reception: Rev Ben Visit
Reception class enjoyed listening to Rev Ben. He explained how the church prepares for Christmas. Thank you for visiting!
Year 2 - Exploring how angels are portrayed.
During our RE lessons, we have been exploring how angels have been portrayed in different ways. We have looked at: traditional, stained glass windows, statutes, cartoon images and we looked at the similarities and differences between all of them.
Carols by Candlelight
A huge thank you to everyone who came along to the Carols by Candlelight Service. Our choir sang brilliantly and well done to Jenson for his lovely reading. It was wonderful to hear one of previous choir members, Isaac, singing a beautiful solo too. It really does feel like Christmas now.
Celebration Worship
In Celebration Worship this morning we looked at how our children continue to work so very hard in promoting our Christian and British values. We are all so very busy preparing for the Christmas Fair, school performances and Christmas Worship. We had our House Team Winners announced for this half term - Whitehall Park for the second consecutive time- well done. It is so lovely to see all of the children celebrating each others success as we had lots of awards for out of school sports today.
Out of School Superstars
Along with our Values Winners this morning, we celebrated our ‘Out of School Superstars’. It was lovely to hear about all of the different activities that the children have been taking part in. This week we presented awards for dancing, gymnastics, swimming, kickboxing, Beavers and cheerleading. Well done to each and every child that celebrated on the golden podium!
Reception class nativity- The little angel
We were so proud of our Reception class for their fantastic performances of their Nativity- The Little Angel. They all showed such courage and sang their little hearts out. Thank you so much to everyone who came to watch and we really hope you enjoyed it. A huge thank you to Mrs Wilkinson, Mrs Thompson, Miss Baxendale and Miss Bentham for all of their support and encouragement. Thank you also to Rev Ben for coming along to watch and leading us in prayer. Thank you to all of our parents for the amazing costumes that you provided for the children and for helping them with their lines and songs. I’m sure you will still have the songs in your head till about March!
Year 3 RE Artwork
Year 3 have produced some fantastic pieces of artwork, representing the shepherds visiting the stable and being in the presence of God.
Reception: Christmas preparations have begun!
The children in Reception have been busy this week rehearsing for their Nativity performance. We have started preparing for the birth of Jesus by decorating our classroom.
Year 5 - Inter Faith Week
Year 5 have enjoyed looking at artefacts displayed in our school hall about different religions. They were really fascinated to learn that Hinduism, Buddhism, Islam and Sikhism use Rosary beads.
Year 5 - Inter Faith Week- Islam
Year 5 have enjoyed learning about my religion (Islam). We looked at the similarities and differences between Christianity and Islam in detail. For example; both holy books (Quran/Bible) mention Jesus, Moses, David, Gabriel and Mary. We learnt about when the Quran (holy book for Muslims) was revealed and who it was sent down to. The children really enjoyed tasting some of the food that the prophet used to eat, such as, olives, pomegranate, bread and yogurt.
Year 4 Celebrating Interfaith Week
Year 4 were all fascinated in our Interfaith Week workshop. We loved learning about Islam and tasting some traditional foods linked to the faith. We'd like to say a huge thank you to Barnys' very own Misss Kachwalla for sharing her faith with us.
Year 4 - RE - Exploring how Jesus brought light
We always enjoy a bit of drama in Year 4, so it comes as no surprise that we had great fun acting out the story of Zaccheus and trying to spot how Jesus changed his life.
Year 1- Inter Faith Week
Year 1 had a special workshop yesterday afternoon (Thank you to Miss Kachwalla.) They learned all about Islam. The children found out about the 5 rules that Muslims need to follow, about the Arabic language, the name of the holy book and all about the 2 special Eid celebrations. Year 1 then went back to class to try some Sunnah food in class.
Reception: Nativity
Today the children learnt about the Nativity. They watched a video and learned about who was present. They then used the wooden characters to create a Nativity scene. The children discussed their favourite part and drew parts of the story.
Year 3 Inter Faith Week
This afternoon, Miss Kachwalla spoke to the class about the religion of Islam. Earlier in the week, Year 3 came up with some questions that they wanted to ask Miss Kachwalla, about her religion. The class really enjoyed learning about Islam and exploring some of the similarities between Christianity and Islam.
Year 3: Trying food that Prophet Muhammad liked
As part of Inter Faith week, Year 3 tasted a selection of Sunnah Food. During a workshop with Miss Kachwalla, the class learnt about some of the food that Prophet Muhammad liked. We tried olives, dates, pomegranate, melon, cucumber, cheese, pitta bread and yoghurt! The class particularly enjoyed dipping the pitta bread in the olive oil and yoghurt!
Year 2 - Inter Faith week food tasting
As part of inter faith week, year 2 have been exploring and tasting a variety of different foods related to Islam. All children have enjoyed inter faith week and have explored the similarities and differences between many religions.
Year 2 - Inter Faith workshop
Year 2 - Inter Faith workshop learning all about Islam with Miss Kachwalla, who is a Muslim. As part of our RE unit we have been looking at faiths across the world and have explored similarities and differences between each faith.
Monday Worship: Inter Faith Week
This week we are going to be thinking about how we can bring peace to the world. This links to our British Value of tolerance of those of different faiths and beliefs. Mrs Ham asked the children which biscuit, superhero and toy they preferred. Mrs Ham explained even if you like different things, you can still be friends and we can tolerate each other. Mrs Ham explained how we are all different which is called diversity. We all watched a film where some characters were unkind. The birds treated the other bird differently because he looked and sounded different. They were not showing tolerance. Peace begins with tolerance and respect for everyone. This week we will be also be showing our Christian value of respect to learn all about Islam as part of Inter Faith week. Our very own Miss Kachwalla will be sharing her faith with all of the children in school. This week we are really going to focus on how we can show tolerance and acceptance to everyone. We finished our worship by singing One World.
Reception: Inter Faith Week
The children had a special workshop by our very own Miss Kachwalla. They learned all about Islam. The children found out about the 5 rules that Muslims need to follow, about the Arabic language, the name of the holy book and all about the 2 special Eid celebrations. Reception class then tried some Sunnah food in class.
WOW Group Preparing for Interfaith Week
In preparation for our Interfaith Week next week, the WOW (Worship Our Way) group have been labelling artefacts from different world faiths. We hope the children enjoy exploring these in the hall next week.
Reception- Jesus walks on water
Mrs Ham had the pleasure of teaching Reception class RE this week. The children learnt about why Christians believe that Jesus is so special. They had great fun acting out the miracle of Jesus walking on water using different props. They showed Mrs Ham their best shocked faces when showing her how they thought Jesus’ friends, the disciples, would feel when they saw Jesus walking on water. Some children said that they might have thought he was a ghost, that he was magical and that he was the Son of God. They also suggested using instruments and their voices for the storm. Well done Reception class!
Year 1- Remembrance walk
On Friday afternoon we visited Whitehall park and Darwen cemetery to pay our respects for Remembrance Day. We are so proud of year 1 for showing lots of respect!
Reception- Feeding the 5000
In RE Reception have been looking at the story “feeding the 5000”. We also talked about why Jesus is so special and what makes him special.
Remembrance Day Worship
Lest We Forget - In Worship this morning we remembered all of the brave men and women who sacrificed their lives for us. We had a two minute silence to pay our respects with our school family and our Year 6 class shared their Remembrance Day Artwork. We then moved onto Celebration Worship where our ‘Value Points Winners’ were awarded with their certificates. Well done to all of our children this week!
Year 5 R.E- Visit from Reverend Adam
This afternoon, we had a visit from Reverend Adam from 'The United Reformed Church'. He came to talk to the class about the Bible. He answered lots of questions which the children had prepared. The children were also given the opportunity to explore different types of Bibles. We looked at 'The Police' Bible which had a section titled 'HELP'. This section directs you to passages that might help you if you're feeling lonely, if you're feeling afraid or if you just simply want to pray for someone you love. The children were also introduced to a song which might help to remember the books of the Bible. Reverend Adam also read his favourite story from the Bible, 'The Lost Sheep and Coin'.
Year 2 - RE - Judaism
The children investigated a variety of Jewish artifacts, explored the Jewish culture and began to compare their growing knowledge to other faiths and religions.
Year 4 - Linking Schools
This week, we have kicked off our Linking Schools project in Year 4, learning a little bit about our link school, St Matthew’s in Blackburn, and creating bunting about ourselves and what we enjoy.
Whole school Harvest service in Church
This morning our WOW group, Reception, Year 1 and Year 2 children led our Harvest service in church. Our wonderful choir led the singing during the service. We gave thanks to the farmers and our WOW group reminded everybody about the charities that we are supporting, The Mother’s Union in Burundi and DARE (Darwen Asylum and Refugee Enterprise). The children made us all very proud. A huge thank you to all of the parents, carers and family members that attended too, it was lovely to see you all.
Year 4 - RE: Is it ever right to challenge authority?
Year 4 debated whether it was right to challenge authority. They then carried out research about people who have famously challenged authority to make a change in the world. We have learned a lot from the efforts of Rosa Parks, William Wilberforce, Greta Thunberg and Oscar Romero.
Year 1-Harvest.
In R.E we have been talking about harvest around the world. Wow what an amazing variety of food God has provided us. We tasted a few different fruits but also different varieties of the same fruit. We tasted red and green apples and discussed if they tasted and smelt the same.
Year 2 - Local History Walk
In our history lessons we have been focusing on local history and the cotton industry. At this point in history, we have looked at why Gandhi visited Darwen. We have begun to explore the reasoning behind his visit- to allow India to become independent and free to make and sell their own cotton. As this was his mission, we went on a walk and explored where the Greenfield Mill used to be (where Gandhi visited) and the house in which he stayed in.
Year 2 - Exploring similarities and differences between two different faiths.
Year 2 explored the similarities and differences between Christianity and Islam. We were able to come up with lots of similarities between both faiths and learned how other religious people live their lives according to what they believe in.
Year 6 R.E.
This week in R.E. Year 6 met a Christian named Keziah. They compared how her life may be different to a non-believer and looked at how Jesus’ teachings have an impact on her daily life.
Year 3 Class Worship: Pebble Prayers
This week, the WOW Group provided the class with a new idea for how to pray. In class worship, we focused on Pebble Prayers. Some of the children took turns to come to our class prayer area and complete a Pebble Prayer. The children held a pebble in their hand, whilst saying their prayer and putting the pebble into the water. Thank you to the WOW group for this lovely idea for how to pray!
Year 2 - Class Worship
During class worship, we looked at the countries that have been affected by the flash floods. We discussed many ways that we can help those in need. We talked about: donating to charity, sending food and clothes to families that do not have then and reducing our carbon footprint.
Year 4 - Learning about Rosh Hashana
In RE, Year 4 learned about how Jews celebrate their new year. We listened to a Shofar blowing, tasted apples dipped in honey and wrote Prayers for a sweet year. Shana Tovah to our Jewish friends!
Monday Worship- Jesus taught us to be kind to everyone
It was lovely to see Reception join us for their first Monday Worship. This morning we looked at two stories that Jesus told. Elsa told us that these stories are called parables. The first parable we listened to was ‘The Good Samaritan’. We discussed how the Samaritan was the loving, kind neighbour. Harry said that your neighbour is everybody. We should be kind to everyone, no matter if they like different things, follow a different religion or look different to us. Next we listened to the parable, ‘The Lost Sheep’. We learnt that we need to care about each other. God loves everybody no matter what. Reception class told Mrs Ham that we are all unique and we should celebrate this. During our reflection, Mrs Ham asked us to think about how we can show kindness all of the time. We finished our worship singing ‘when I needed a neighbour’.
Reception - Everything Elmer!
This week in Reception we have been basing our work around the story of Elmer. The children have been busy making collages of the patchwork elephant, printing using sponges, playing Elmer dominoes in the Maths area and so much more. We talked about how Elmer is unique and not like the other elephants, just like God made us all special and unique to one another. What a super week!
Year 2 - Class worship
Year 2 - Class worship. We prayed for all the royal family and discussed the new king. We talked about how we would make the world a better place if we were in that position.
Year 3 RE: Harvest
In RE, our topic this term in Year 3 focuses on the festival of Harvest. This week, we started by thinking about some key questions, such as ‘Why do we celebrate Harvest?’ and ‘Who are we actually giving thanks for?’. Following on from this, we then looked at how Harvest is explored and mentioned in The Bible.
Year 4 - RE: Jesus the Son of God
In RE this week, Year 4 investigated stories from the Bible to find out how they show Jesus was the Son of God. They then presented their findings to their peers.
Year 5- R.E- Faith Walk
Year 5 have been on a faith walk around Darwen with John East as part of our RE curriculum, to visit churches from different denominations of Christianity. We visited St Joseph's, the United Reform Church on Duckworth Street and Spring Vale Methodist. The children had lots of opportunities to ask thought provoking questions which they had prepared earlier. They also had the chance to look around the church, explore the symbols displayed, do a quiz, look at artefacts and experiment a pretend wedding by two of our class pupils. During the walk, we stopped and looked at some of the historic buildings and ruins that are still standing to this date.
HM Queen Elizabeth II - Year 5
Year 5 have paid their respects to Queen Elizabeth II by placing their handwritten prayers on the school fence which we have turned into a prayer space. We have spent time in class and worship learning about all the wonderful things that she has done for us. She will be forever in our hearts and missed by all.
Year 2 - Sending prayers for the Queen
Year 2 putting their prayers for the Queen outside the school gates to celebrate her life.
Year 6- Is life a journey?
In R.E, Year 6 discussed what a journey is and whether they consider life to be a journey.
Year 4 - Prayers for Her Majesty
Today in Year 4, we tied our prayers that we had written to remember the Queen to the front of school to create a remembrance wall. We thanked God for everything she has done for us and how very special she was.
Learning about the Bible and other holy books- Year 5
This afternoon, the children in Year 5 have been learning about the Bible and other holy books and faiths. We have explored, Sikhism, Judaism, Hinduism, Islam and Buddhism. The children had the opportunity to try on clothes that are worn by other religions during prayer time. We learnt that the Jews have a special Seder plate. The plate symbolises modern liberation struggles. We also found that prayer beads (string of prayer beads) are used by numerous religions.
Year 3: Prayers of Hope
Today in R.E, Year 3 thought about some of their aspirations and hopes for the new academic year. Each child wrote their own prayer of hope to add to our prayer tree, in the worship area.
Year 2 St Barnabas Church Visit
Year 2 have had a lovely afternoon visiting Lillian and Glenda at St Barnabas Church! Lillian spoke to the children about the different things that happen in a Church and the different things that you will find in a Church, like the altar, font and lectern. We then created our own crosses and created our own class family of people. The children also managed to have a quick play on the organ!
Year 2 R.E: Jacob's Dream
This term in R.E, we have been exploring The Church and why it is a special place for Christians. We starting by thinking about our own special places and how we feel, when we are in our special place. This week, we looked at how holy and special places are represented in The Bible, with the story of Jacob's Dream. We read the story together and discussed the key messages, such as how in Jacob's Dream, he found his special place, talking to God and dreaming about heaven. The children then created their own artwork, representing Jacob's special place.
Year 3 Class Worship - Love one another
Year 3 have been learning about the Ten Commandments and that Jesus said that if we love one another as he has loved us then we would automatically keep the Ten Commandments. The children wrote some prayers and ended worship by singing “If I needed a neighbour”.
R.E - Year 5
This afternoon in R.E, the children shared their beliefs, dreams and goals in life and how they can achieve them. In small groups, they thought about the people that motivate them to keep going when things are difficult. Some of the people that motivate them are; parents, grandparents, carers, teachers, siblings and their peers. They then wrote a small paragraph about some of the things that they strongly believe in and won't give up on.
Religious Education- Year 5
This afternoon in R.E, the children have been writing letters of encouragement, encouraging friends and family to come to the church.
Year 3 Class Worship - Pentecost and the coming of the Holy Spirit
In Class Worship, Year 3 watched the story of Pentecost and wrote prayers to the Holy Spirit. They ended their worship by singing “Way Maker”.
Year 6 RE
Today during RE, year 6 have been thinking about the impact of how the Bible teachings can deepen our understanding of God. We then moved on to consider different perspectives, focusing on the story of ‘The tower of Babel’, how people of that time would react to the story compared to us today.
Year 3 Class Worship - Ascension Day
Year 3 watched a video clip of the story of Jesus’ Ascension into heaven when he returned to his Father. The children wrote some prayers and they ended the worship by singing “Shine”.
Reception’s Church Visit
Reception class really enjoyed their visit to St Barnabas church. They found lots of church artefacts such as stained glass windows, a font, an alter, a cross and an organ. The children made a cross to take home. Lillian then read a story to the children called ‘we are together’. A special thank you to Lillian and Glenda- the children loved their visit!
Year 3 Class Worship - Christian Aid Week
Year 3 watched the story of “The Good Samaritan” and thought about who their neighbour is. Everyone is our neighbour, no matter what their creed, race, colour or gender is. They listened to the words of the hymn “When I needed a neighbour”, wrote some prayers and ended the worship by singing “Chain of Love”. We can all do something to help a neighbour.
Bible Detectives- Religious Education- Year 5
This term in R.E, Year 5 are learning about the impact of Pentecost when Jesus left. To date, we have looked at the artwork depicting the event and analysed Peter's speech. This afternoon, the children were set up a challenge of being Bible detectives. They explored the book of acts and jotted down the key events related to the Pentecost.
Year 6 RE
Today Year 6 have taken part in a class discussion, thinking of words they would choose to describe God. They have then chosen which Art supplies they would like to create a card depicting their chosen word.
Year 1- Experiencing a Mock Baptism
This afternoon, Lillian welcomed us into St Barnabas Church to experience a baptism first hand. Lillian baptised baby Poppy and made the parents, godparents and other guests make promises to look after Poppy and teach her to be kind and respectful. We also made a promise to be good role models to her. Lillian showed us the font and blessed Poppy with the water to symbolise that she had been baptised. Lillian told us that it isn’t only babies that get baptised but you can in fact be baptised at any age. Lillian also showed us the baptism candle which represents the light of God and the baptism register which has all of the names of people that have been baptised in St Barnabas church for many many years. We said thank you to Lillian for showing us what happens at a baptism and making us feel so welcome. We then went back to school and had a little party to celebrate Poppy’s baptism. We sang the song ‘Shine From the Inside Out,’ enjoyed a drink of juice, a biscuit and played some fun party games.
Year 3 - RE - Comparing breaking rules to breaking the law and any consequences
Year 3 have been working in groups to consider the consequences of breaking rules to those of breaking the law. For example, would going to jail be a consequence of breaking a rule or the law?
Reception stained glass window
This afternoon in RE we have been looking at features of a church as it is a very special place for Christians. One of the features is stained glass windows, so we had a go at making our own in the creative area.
Year 4 - Questions About Ramadan
We absolutely loved seeing our friends from our link school, The Olive School, this week. We held a Q&A via Zoom so that we could ask them all about Ramadan and they asked us questions about Easter. We even sang ‘Oh When The Saints Go Marching In’ to them.
Year 3 PSHE - Earth Day
Year 3 have been exploring different ways that they can look after our planet Earth. They began by decorating a picture of the Earth with the things they love about it. Then they thought about what actions they could take to look after and protect the Earth.
Year 6 RE
Year 6 spoke about what the word ‘Messiah’ might mean to different people and why. Thinking about their own beliefs and the views of others.
Messy Church
A huge well done to our fantastic WOW group on running their first event! They did an amazing job of setting up and running our Easter Messy Church. They had great fun and they hope all those who attended did too.
Tuesday Collective Worship
Today, we recapped what happened at the last supper. Jesus gave a commandment on Maundy Thursday. He told everybody to “love one another as I have loved you”. Jesus also told everybody to live life in all its fullness. We should give our kindness to everybody, do good things and have fun! We watched ‘the super cool story of Jesus’. The video reminded us that Jesus gave his life and love so we can really live. Jesus came onto earth to show us how God loves. We discussed how we can live life to the full. Archie said “we can live in peace”, Emily said “we can live in harmony”, David said “we need to take care of ourselves”, Mason said “we can show love” and Ruby has cut her hair and given it to charity to spread kindness. Ruby also slept out to raise money for the homeless. She has shown how we can live life in all its fullness- we are very proud of how she has put other people first. We ended our worship by listening to a biblical story called ‘no more crying’. This week, we need to think about how we can love one another and how we can forgive others who may upset us. We also need to think about how we can live life in all its fullness.
Easter Artwork in Whitehall Park
Come along to the Rose Garden in Whitehall Park to see the lovely Easter Artwork created by the children at St Barnabas. Wishing you all a lovely Easter.
Easter Eggs for Darwen Asylum and Refugee Enterprise (DARE)
A huge thank you to everyone who donated Easter Eggs to DARE (Darwen Asylum and Refugee Enterpise). They were collected today and we were given these special thank you cards for our support to enable children in our community have a lovely Easter.
Easter Craft- Year 5
The Easter Bunnies have been getting ready for Easter. They have been making Easter baskets and Easter wreaths.
Happy Easter to our whole school family!
It wouldn't be Easter at St Barnabas without a visit from the Spring Chicken! Who do you think it was this year? Please click on the links to see the fun we had during our Easter singalong this afternoon. What a brilliant way to end such a wonderful term! Spring Chicken: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=neQs54K6Xec Give me oil in my lamp: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iSHy7KNuEes We have a King who rides a donkey: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aRaTXCw5Dko On behalf of all of our staff team I would like to wish you all a wonderful Easter half term holiday. See you all on Tuesday 19th April. Take care and God bless, Mrs Ham
Year 6 Rose garden walk
Today Year 6 had a walk up to the Rose Garden. Our school have displayed Easter Art work for the community to enjoy. Year 6 really enjoyed spotting the Art work they had created.
Year 3 - Easter Artwork
Year 3 walked to the Rose Garden at Whitehall Park to look at the amazing Easter Artwork on display.
Reception Muddy Monday
The rain didn’t stop our Muddy Monday! This week the children went to Whitehall Park to visit the rose garden. The rose garden has a selection of Easter art work that our whole school have created. The children really enjoyed looking at the different pieces.
Worship with the Kindness Coach
In our whole school worship this morning we welcomed the Kindness Coach, John Magee, in to talk about our kindness challenges over this half term. He was overwhelmed with all the kind acts we have been doing at St Barnabas and he spoke to us about continuing to be kind throughout our lives. Thank you to John for visiting our school.
RE
Today Year 6 have had a respectful discussion regarding appropriate words they can use to describe Jesus, reflecting his actions. They then built on these words by giving an explanation to justify their opinion.
Easter Artwork in Year 4
The children have been working so hard on their Easter artwork over the past few weeks. We have looked at ‘Betrayal and Trust : Judas and Peter.
Easter Artwork- Year 5
In our R.E lesson this week, the children have explored a wide variety of pieces of artwork depicting the Easter story including ‘The Crucifixion’ by John Reilly and ‘ The Resurrection’. Following on from that lesson, the children created abstract art celebrating the resurrection of Christ.
Reception: Easter Story Writing
We have been practising our Phonics by rewriting parts of the Easter story. The children have tried really hard to apply their learning. Well done, we are really proud of you!
Palm Sunday Worship
Today we learnt about Palm Sunday. When Jesus entered Jerusalem, he didn’t arrive in a fancy carriage but on a little donkey. People waved palm branches and were so pleased to see him. Many people gave him a warm welcome but some people were not impressed and were filled with feelings of jealousy. Mason said they could be feeling cross and Leonora said they could be angry. We helped Mrs Ham retell the story of Palm Sunday. Mrs Ham showed everybody a palm shaped as a cross. The crowd shouted Hosanna to welcome Jesus. Later in the week, leaders who were angry turned people against Jesus and he was crucified. This was all in God’s plan and on Easter Sunday, Jesus rose from the dead. In times of sadness, we can all be kind to cheer everybody up. Our Wow group led our singing and we sang ‘ We have a king who rides a donkey’.
Judas betraying Jesus
Year 6 have used their Art printing skills in RE today. Using a painting which depicts Judas giving Jesus a kiss on the cheek, revealing his identity, which lead to his arrest.
Reception Class Mother’s Day Worship
Wow! A huge well done to our amazing Reception children for giving their mummies and grandmas a lovely Mother’s Day Worship yesterday. I don’t think there was a dry eye in the house. Mrs Ham definitely had to get the mop and bucket out afterwards. They were all incredibly brave to speak and sing in front of all those people, so they should be very proud of themselves.
Y4 Easter Art Sneak Peek
We’ve been busy in Year 4 preparing our Easter artwork for the Rose Garden this week. Look out for it in Whitehall Park soon. In the meantime, can you guess which parts from the Easter story we’ve been studying? Clue 1: the betrayal Clue 2: the kiss Clue 3: the cockerel
Year 6 RE
Year 6 have been learning more about the Jewish Festival of Passover this week in Religious Education.
Pray for Ukraine- Infants
Our infant classes have helped to create a community ‘Pray for Ukraine’ prayer space at the front of our school. Each child has tied a blue or yellow ribbon, a prayer they have written or a hand print to the railings. We are hopeful that members of our community and all of our school family will tie a ribbon and say a prayer for the people of Ukraine.
Pray for Ukraine- Juniors
Our juniors added their prayers of peace for Ukraine this afternoon to our community prayer space at the front of our school. We have left a box of ribbons for our parents, grandparents, carers and members of our community to add a ribbon and say their own prayer of peace for Ukraine.
Easter- R.E - Year 5
This afternoon in R.E, Year 5 started the lesson by having a discussion about the word ‘victory’. What comes to mind when they hear and read the word? Are winning and victory the same thing? We then looked at Greatest Sports Moments and talked about many athletes hope to win, but they also strive to beat their personal best and so, even if they come last, if it is their personal best, they have been victorious.
Year 1-Easter and New Life
Year 1 have been learning about new life in their RE lessons in preparation for linking it to the Easter story. We have been completing some jigsaws to show the life cycle of a frog and chicken, and we have also been sequencing and writing about the life cycles of butterflies and chickens. We have started to explore the Easter story and making links with new life for example Jesus dying and being in the tomb being similar to a seed deep in the ground, the chick being inside an egg or a chrysalis and Jesus rising from the dead being similar to a beautiful flower flourishing, a chick hatching from an egg or a butterfly emerging from a chrysalis. Year 1 have also been making their own Easter gardens. They have been exploring ways to create the crucifixion, the tomb, the stone being rolled from the tomb and the resurrection.
Year 6 R.E.
How does the Seder meal help Jews to remember the festival of Passover?
Year 6 RE- Passover
Year 6 have been continuing their work on Passover, here looking at the Seder meal and linking it to the Exodus.
Jesus as a Miracle Worker Worship
In Worship, we focussed on Jesus as a miracle worker. Today we read the story of ‘Jesus and the 5000’. Mrs Ham and the children acted the story out and we also watched a video. Jesus only had 5 loaves and 2 fish but thanks to the little boy sharing his food, Jesus performed a miracle and was able to feed 5000 people! During our reflection, we discussed the importance of sharing and giving to others. This is so important during Lent. Edward suggested that he would share his PlayStation with his siblings, Isaac suggested that we could share our money with charity, Kaylen suggested we could share our time and Dominic suggested we could share our kindness. At the end, Neve came to the front and shared her fundraising cake sale idea with the school to help those in Ukraine. It is a super idea and we can’t wait to buy lots of cakes to support her fundraising and to help those and give back. We also read some prayers about compassion that Year 5 wrote to remember all of those that are affected in Ukraine.
Pray for Ukraine
We have been having discussions in Year 6 regarding the current situation in the Ukraine. They decided to create some prayers which will be on display at the front of the school. We have been discussing how we are able to help those in need by donating clothes, toys and time.
Celebration Worship
This morning in our whole school worship, we celebrated all of the amazing things that have been happening across school this week. Each class shared highlights from the week, including world book day, kindness challenges and shrove Tuesday. We also shared special prayers for Ukraine and thought about how we can help those who are most in need at the minute.
Year 6 RE
In RE Year 6 have been discussing the events of Passover and considering their own significant events and why they are to be remembered.
Year 5 -Pray for Ukraine
This morning during our class worship we had a discussion about the conflict happening in Ukraine at the moment. We talked about how people are showing compassion to the those in Ukraine by giving them shelter, food and resources at this tough time. The class wrote their own prayers on the Ukraine flag.
Shrove Tuesday Worship
Today in Worship we found out about Lent. Today is the day before Lent called Shrove Tuesday. We discussed what we know about Lent. Leonora shared that “Jesus gave up food and water for 40 days”. We spent a little time reflecting on what we could give up during Lent. Jenson shared that he will give up popcorn, Aidan said he will give up squash and juice, William said that he will give up his phone and Ivy said that she will give up chocolate. This also links to our kindness challenge. During Lent we can give something back and show kindness. Ella has been tidying her house and getting herself ready so that she can be kind and help her family. We can all make a difference by showing kindness. As it is fair trade fortnight we also discussed how we could swap items for fair trade. To celebrate Shrove Tuesday, Mrs Ham very kindly brought in pancakes for the whole school to enjoy!
Y4 Exploring Trust
In RE this week, our trust exercises really helped us to think about what trust is and what it means to be trustworthy. We also considered the impact of betrayal.
Year 3 Class Worship - Candlemas
Year 3 learnt about how Mary and Joseph presented Jesus in the temple. That is what we remember on Candlemas Day which is celebrated on 2nd February each year. We wrote some prayers and we ended our worship by singing “Shine”.
Children’s Worship Conference
Mrs Ham had the pleasure of taking two of our Worship our Way (WOW) group members to a special children’s collective worship conference today at The Foxfields Country Hotel. The children can’t wait to share the amazing worship ideas with the rest of WOW group and our school family.
Whole-School Worship - Candlemas
Today in worship we learned about Candlemas, and the story of Anna & Simeon and their incredible patience as they waited for God’s Son. We discussed why Jesus is referred to as the light of the world and how we can be a light to others.
Year 1 Class Worship
Following on from Mrs Ham’s whole school worship on Monday, Year 1 learnt some more information about WWII and how the Jews were mistreated. We learnt that the Jews had little freedom and were banned from doing certain jobs, from having pets, from going to parks and restaurants, from schools and from riding a bike amongst lots of other things. We reflected on how this must have made them feel. We also read a book about Anne Frank and the children were shocked to find out that she and her family along with many other Jewish families had to stay in hiding for a long time in fear. We then sang a song about peace and thought about how we can help to make a kind and peaceful world. We talked about sharing our beautiful smiles, helping each other, greeting each other kindly and sharing with each other regardless of people’s race or religion. We finished with some beautiful prayers for those who lost their lives and were mistreated in WWII and praying for a more peaceful and kinder world. Well done Year 1.
Exploring Parables- Year 5
Today in our R.E lesson, Year 5 have been reading familiar parables and unpacking the imagery Jesus gives us of the Kingdom of God.
RotaKids Planting bulbs- Year 5
Our RotaKids have planted crocus bulbs in the centre of the cross-shaped flower bed in the school yard, ready for spring. Thank you to Darwen Rotary Club for helping us and supplying the bulbs and equipment.
Holocaust Memorial Day Worship
This week in our whole school and class worships, we are learning about the Holocaust and what we can learn from it. This morning we watched a video with some school children interviewing a survivor of the Holocaust, Stephen Frank. We learnt how he had such a happy life with his family until he was taken away to a concentration camp because he was Jewish. We reflected on what it must have been like to be taken away from your friends and family and to be treated so terribly. We then thought about how we can be strong, courageous and kind when we see people in our lives being treated cruelly. We then prayed for all of the victims and survivors of the Holocaust. We were shocked to hear that if we had a minutes silence for each of the 6 million people who died then we would have to be silent for 11 and a half years.
Year 2 RE: Jesus heals a blind man!
This term in RE, Year 2 are exploring how Jesus was a friend to everyone. We have thought about what a miracle is and today, we looked at how Jesus performed a miracle, by healing a blind man. We also completed some blindfold games, to put ourselves in the shoes of Bartimaeus!
Year 1 Class Worship- Martin Luther King and Rosa Parks
Following on from Mrs Ham’s whole school worship earlier this week on Martin Luther King, Year 1 did some further learning and reflecting in their class worship time. We learnt about how black people were treated differently because they weren’t allowed to use the same toilets, same restaurants or go to the same schools as white people. We learnt about how black people had to sit at the back of the bus and give up their seats for white people. We thought about how this must have made the black people feel and we came up with the words heartbroken, sad, upset, angry and devastated. We also thought about how this would have made some of the white people feel having to leave the black people out as they didn’t have a choice and just had to do as they were told or they would be fined. We described Martin Luther King Jr and Rosa Parks as amazing and brave people as they fought for the world to be a fairer place where black and white people could be friends and live in a more peaceful and kinder world. We thought about how this fairer world is a much better place to live. Well done Year 1 for super acting and reflection.
Year 4 - Prayer work
In RE, Year 4 used sorting cards and the process of elimination to decide what’s most important about prayer. They were absolutely brilliant at explaining their choices and challenging each other. They then decided on the 5 most important things to them.
Year 3 -Martin Luther King Jr Worship
During our class worship, we watched a video clip about the life of Martin Luther King Jr. and how he was an activist for civil rights. He peacefully demonstrated for equality between whites and coloured people in America. He said that everybody is equal no matter what their race, creed or gender is. We prayed for equality and finished with a hymn “Chain of Love”.
Celebration Worship
During our whole school celebration worship this morning, we thought about the different ways that we have welcomed people with open arms this week. Each class also shared the different ways that they have been living life in all it’s fullness this week!
Reflecting on Mary, Joseph and Jesus as refugees
In worship this morning, we reflected on how Mary, Joseph and Jesus were affected by having to flee to another country. It helped us to understand how refugees today might feel and think about how we can help them.
Year 3 Epiphany Class Worship
We celebrated the feast of the Epiphany today during our class worship. We watched a video by Bishop Philip who talked about the gifts that the three wise men gave Jesus- gold, frankincense and myrrh. He also told us that we have gifts / things that we are good at from God and that we need to “show” these gifts. We ended our worship by thanking God for our special gifts.
Our first worship of 2022: Epiphany
Today, we learnt about the Epiphany. An epiphany is like a lightbulb moment. The 3 wise men or 3 magi had an epiphany about Jesus being born. Mrs Ham read a story called ‘One hump, 2 humps’ which the children really enjoyed acting out. The wise men followed a star to find Jesus. When they arrived in Jerusalem, they asked King Herod where Jesus resides. King Herod was very worried and decided he wanted to meet Jesus. He asked the wise men to tell him where Jesus was. King Herod plotted to kill Jesus. When the wise men arrived at the stable, the wise men gave Jesus gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh. In the night, the wise men dreamt about King Herod’s evil plan. They decided to not tell King Herod where Jesus was to protect him. The gifts that the kings gave Jesus were symbolic. Gold is a gift fit for a king; frankincense is a fragrance used by a priest and myrrh is a sweet liquid that is rubbed gently into someone who has died. This symbolises that the kings knew God’s plan. Mrs Ham asked the children to discuss what their special gifts are. These could be kindness, showing love and making people smile. The meaning of the epiphany is how everyone is important and God loves everyone.
Year 6’s Advent Adventure
Year 6 had a great time at the Rose Garden appreciating the advent artwork and singing Christmas songs.
Year 3’s Advent Adventure
Year 3 had a wonderful time on their advent adventure in Whitehall Park. They sang several Christmas songs too to get them in the festive mood!
Whitehall Park Visit - Reception
Reception have been out on a walk to the Rose Garden to see the Advent Art. We also had a sing song and a visit to the park!
The magical Christmas Jigsaw
We are so proud of Year 1 and 2 for their amazing performance of ‘The Magical Christmas Jigsaw’. They were all super stars! ⭐️
Y4 on an Advent Trail
Y4 went on a walk to look at the beautiful St Barnabas Advent art. We also created an Advent trail for KS1.
Christmas Cards with RotaKids - Year 5
This year, RotaKids ( Year 5 ) have been spreading ‘Acts of Kindness ‘ across Lancashire, Blackburn with Darwen and South Cumbria by sending a Christmas Card ( E-Card) to care homes.
Year 1 Nativity
Our Year 1 children made us all so proud with their wonderful Nativity. They sang beautifully and said their lines clearly and with confidence. The parents and grandparents loved it. You are all superstars!
Rose Garden - Year 5
This afternoon, Year 5 went up to the Rose Garden in Whitehall park. We were overwhelmed with the beautiful artwork that was displayed by our children. Before we left the park, we sang some Christmas songs based around the artwork to get everyone in the festive spirit.
Barny’s Advent Art!
Thank you to all the children who took part in our Advent Art competition and well done to the Winners; Daisy, Harry, Eliza and Kaycie! Everyone’s Art work was fantastic, and because of this, all of the Art work has now been put up on Display at Whitehall Park in the Rose Garden, so please visit if you can! Well done everyone ⭐️
Reception’s amazing Nativity!
Reception blew us all away with their fantastic Nativity Performance this week! The parents said how proud they were of the children and couldn’t believe the courage they showed in front of such a big audience. They sang their little hearts out and remembered their lines brilliantly. We are so proud of them - they are shining stars ⭐️
Year 3’s Advent Worship
In our class Worship we lit our second Advent candle and thought about those who might be feeling lonely this Christmas. We then prayed for them and thought about how we can show kindness to those who are feeling lonely.
Peace at Christmas worship
The second Sunday in Advent focuses on Peace. Today we have lit our second Advent candle. It is important to take a bit of time to have some peace during such a busy time of year. It is important to remember the meaning of Christmas and why we celebrate it. We looked at a picture today and discussed what we can see. The children discussed how the animal looked “heartbroken…sad…lonely.” The artist painted this to reflect loneliness at Christmas. We discussed why people may feel lonely at this time of the year. The little girl on the picture is trying to encourage the animal to come down. The girl is showing the animal love and kindness. This week we will be focussing on how we can bring peace and how we can reach out to those who are lonely. Our Rota kids in Year 5 are going to be making cards for people in care homes and our choir will be singing at Whitehall park to bring some Christmas cheer.
The Christmas Story- Year 5
During our R.E lesson this afternoon, we have been Bible detectives finding the nativity story in the Bible. We then compared Luke’s and Matthew’s gospel by looking at similarities and differences.
Reception - Jesus walks on water!
In Reception the children have been learning more about the Miracles of Jesus. The children listened to the Miracle of Jesus walking on water to help his disciples. After that, they used the outdoor area to act out the story with their friends.
Year 1 RE- Giving to others
As part of their RE unit, Year 1 have been making their calendars in the independent creative area. Tomorrow they will be taking these home and gifting them to their families. Next week, we will be reflecting on how this act of giving has made us and our families feel. Additionally, we are now in December so we have had some kindness elves visit our classroom. Everyday, the kindness elves are leaving a gift to add to a hamper. In the last week of school, we will gift this hamper to our local refugees in the hope that it will make them smile and bring them some comfort over the Christmas period. Again, we will reflect on how this act of giving has made both us and those who receive it feel.
Advent worship with Rev Nick
Today we celebrated the start of advent with a visit from Rev Nick. He read us a Bible story about Zechariah and Elizabeth who had to wait a very long time to have a baby. We talked about patiently waiting and being hopeful as we lit the first candle of Advent. We reflected on how we can bring hope to others this Advent and sang 'Shine from the inside out'.
Knife Angel Message
Two of our WOW (Worship our way) group members told our whole school, in Worship on Friday, about the Knife Angel. They attended a conference at Blackburn Cathedral a couple of weeks ago and learnt about angels being special messengers and they particularly focused on the special Knife Angel. It is made up of over 100,000 knives that have been used in knife crimes around the country. Many of the knives have writing calved into them which are messages asking for forgiveness to the victims and their families from the person who used the knife. The message is to try to eliminate knife crime in our local area and a knife amnesty box is next to it to encourage youngsters to surrender any weapons they may have. Most knife crimes occur by accident and it’s usually the person carrying a knife that becomes injured. Thank you to our WOW group members for delivering the important message of the Knife Angel to our school family. We hope this will discourage any of our children from carrying weapons when they are older. The Knife Angel will be at Blackburn Cathedral till 30th November if you are in the area and would like to admire it.
Sacred Books- Year 5
Year 5 have been exploring the importance of sacred books in other religions. We have discussed differences and similarities. Looked at the language that the books are written in and the focus placed upon them.
Interfaith Whole School Worship
In worship today we talked about the importance of having respect and tolerance for others, no matter what their beliefs. We are learning to celebrate each other’s differences.
Reception Class Sikhism Workshop
Reception class loved learning all about Sikhism as part of our inter-faith week celebrations. They really impressed us with their amazing dance moves!
Year 2 Inter Faith Week Visit
This morning, Year 2 took part in a session all about Sikhism. We learnt about what Sikhs believe and The 5 Ks and Guru Nanak. The class showed lots of respect and asked some really thoughtful questions.
Year 6 Interfaith Workshop
Year 6 have had an interfaith class on Sikhism this morning, looking at Sikh traditions and dances. Year 6 were very respectful and participated with great maturity.
Interfaith Week-Sikhism
As part of our Interfaith Week, we have had a special visitor in today. Prags taught us all about Sikhism. We looked at the 5Ks- Kesh, Kara, Khanga, Kachera & Kirpan and what they all mean. We have loved learning about another faith and asking questions to find out even more.
Interfaith Week- Year 5
This afternoon we learnt all about Sikhism as part of Interfaith Week. Year 5 had lots of questions for Prags and they were very inquisitive. We finished the workshop with a dance that involved the whole class. A superb workshop.
Year 3 Interfaith Workshop
On Thursday 18th November we had an Interfaith Workshop focussing on Sikhism. We found out lots of information about the Sikh religion and we had a traditional Sikh dance too. It was fabulous!
Year 1- Interfaith Week
Thank you to Prags for visiting us during Interfaith Week and giving our Year 1 children an insight into Sikhism. They found out lots of new information about Sikhism and the Gurdwara.
St Barnabas Remembers
Our Year 6 heads and deputies plus Year 5 and 6 WOW group members paid their respects on Friday in a special remembrance service at Darwen Cemetery. They laid a wreath made of poppy prayers, remembrance poems and art work. Please remember to come along to the Rose Garden in Whitehall Park to see a selection of remembrance artwork from each class.
St Barnabas Remembers
Today we all met on our Junior yard to observe a special two minutes silence to remember the soldiers that sacrificed their lives for our freedom. We prayed for peace in our world and sang ‘a song of peace’. Several of our classes have visited the cemetery this week to pay their respects and have admired our Remembrance Day artwork in the Rose Garden in Whitehall Park. #wewillrememberthem
Year 2 Remembers
This afternoon on Remembrance Day, Year 2 paid their respects, by visiting the Rose Garden in Whitehall Park and viewing all of the beautiful remembrance art, created by each class in school. We also shared some special remembrance prayers with Year 4 and looked at some of the different war memorials in Darwen. The children were so respectful and we are so proud of their brilliant art work!
Reception Remembers!
Today the children have celebrated Remembrance Day by learning all about the meaning of poppies. They learnt that poppies are a symbol of the fallen soldiers from the war. To remember the soldiers, the children took part in taking 2 minutes of silence at 11 o,clock. We also said prayers for our soldiers together. Throughout the rest of the day, the children have been creatively making poppies in lots of different ways.
Remembrance Day Art
This afternoon we have created some wonderful pieces of artwork in Year 3. The children choose their favourite piece from two designs and then set to work on their own version. We used charcoal and pastels to add depth which is very effective.
Remembrance Day - Year 5
Year 5 really enjoyed the walk to Darwen Cemetery and the Rose Garden. We spent some time looking at the war graves and the Remembrance Wall. It was a lovely opportunity to remember the people who have died in wars around the world.
Year 4 & Year 2 visit the Rose Garden
We loved our walk to the Rose Garden for Remembrance Day today. We chose our favourite poppy art, read poems and said prayers for those who have lost their lives due to war. A very peaceful, reflective afternoon.
Planning a Recount
Yesterday in English, we started our plan for our recount - to write a diary entry about our visit to Darwen Cemetery to look at the memorial and war graves. We ordered the photos that were taken on our walk and then wrote sentences next to these about what we want to include in our diary, including thoughts and feelings and time words.
Year 4 and the Sabbath
Year 4 have been singing, dancing, eating, drinking and reflecting on their week - all in the name of Shabbat. We have loved learning about the Jewish day of rest.
Remembrance Day Walk
In Year 3 we walked to Darwen Cemetery to look at the war graves and Remembrance Wall. We spotted different war graves across the cemetery of fallen soldiers from both the First and Second World wars. We also noticed that many of the soldiers who died were very young. Lest we forget ❤️
Remembrance in the Rose Garden
Well done to all of our children for their wonderful Remembrance Day Artwork that has been displayed in the Rose Garden in Whitehall Park for you all to enjoy. Thank you Mrs Govan for organising this and to our teachers for their creative ideas. We will remember them.
Year 3 Remembrance Art
Year 3 have been working hard on their Art work for Remembrance Day. They have used acrylic paint to decorate the bottoms of bottles and then some more paper versions using pointillism.
Thank you for your generosity this Harvest!
Thank you so much for your generous donations for Harvest this year. Darwen Asylum & Refugee Enterprise (DARE) were overwhelmed with your support and generosity. The donations were created into care packages along with the children’s maps of the local area, welcome to Darwen posters, prayers and poems which enabled refugees to receive a warm welcome to Darwen.
Hooray for Harvest!
Years 3, 4, 5 and 6 were amazing in our Harvest Festival today. Thank you to all those who attended or donated generous gifts of food or toiletries for local refugees. We were fortunate to be joined by John, Patsy and Shameem from DARE (Darwen Asylum and Refugee Enterprise) who have taken all of your donations, the children’s welcome posters, local maps, prayers and poems. They will be sorted into parcels for refugees who have joined our community in order to give them a warm welcome and will also be shared with others in need in our community. We heard a harrowing account from Shameem, who fled from Afghanistan seven years ago due to being persecuted as a female teacher there. She has only just managed to get two of her children here seven years later and they are now attending our local high school and are being supported by one of our past pupils, who remembers Shameem visiting St Barnabas several years ago. We are so thankful for the work that John and Patsy are doing to support people in our community who are in need and so grateful for your donations. We are so proud of our children for showing our Christian Values of generosity, friendship and respect through the warm welcome they have shown refugees through their prayers, poems, welcome posters, maps and songs.
A huge Harvest thank you!
Thank you so much for your generosity this Harvest! We were overwhelmed with your kind donations of food, clothes and toiletries for DARE (Darwen Asylum and Refugee Enterprise). They were presented to John, Patsy and Shameem from DARE. Thank you for helping to make a difference!
EYFS and KS1 Harvest Worship
Today, our infants led our Harvest worship. They were all superstars and they explained the importance of Harvest. Thank you to all who came to watch.
Year 2 Harvest Poetry
Over the past few weeks, Year 2 have been learning about harvest in English and have written their own acrostic poems around the theme of Harvest. During our KS1 worship this morning, Year 2 performed some of their poems and talked about the meaning and importance of Harvest!
The Jewish Festival of Sukkot in Year 1
Year 1 have been learning about Sukkot. They have been thinking about how the Jews were held as slaves long ago and they’ve been building Sukkahs just as many Jewish people still do today.
Year 4 RE: Research Using QR Codes
Year 4 have had great fun using QR codes in their RE research this week. They have been finding out about people who stand up to authority to protect our world and the people in it.
Year 6 Pilgrimage
In year 6, we have been learning about the pilgrimage of Hajj in Islam. The children have learnt about how and why Muslims go on Hajj and been extremely respectful when broaching this subject.
Reception: Exploring our differences in RE
During RE, we have been looking into how God has made us all special and unique. The children were able to discuss and understand what makes us all different. Hair colour, eye colour, and skin colour were the main differences in which the children could identify. However, after looking very closely at our palms through magnifying glasses, the children could see how we all had different hand and thumb prints which make us even more special to our God.
Year 5- Learning all about the Bible
Year 5 had a wonderful session with Rev David and Lorraine, this afternoon.We invited them into our classroom to tell us what they know about the Bible. They were able to answer so many of our questions which we had prepared as a class. We also had a chance to explore different Bibles.
Hooray for Harvest!
Year 3 have been learning all about how Christians celebrate the Harvest Festival. They are looking forward to our upcoming Harvest Festival and have started collecting toiletries to give to refugees in our community, to give them a warm welcome and show them our generosity and friendship.