Donuts for Dads Event
Good afternoon, Thank you so much to everybody who came to our Donuts for Dads and for making the event a huge success. We haven't got an official total but it is around £300 so thank you so much for your kind donations. Further pictures will be available on our gallery on our website. https://www.stbarnabasdarwen.co.uk/photo-galleries/donuts-for-dads We do have plenty of doughnuts available so there will be a doughnut sale after school tomorrow to sell the remaining doughnuts for a donation. All of the money will be spent to benefit our children in school. Thank you to our FOSB and to our staff for helping to set up, for running and for tidying up after the event too. I will post the raffle draw results shortly. Thank you, Mrs Wilkinson
Year 1 Class Worship- Picture News
In today's class worship, Year 1 explored this week's Picture News, focusing on the question: "What do animals need to be happy and healthy?" The children identified essential needs such as food, water, shelter, sleep, care, love, and space. We then watched a video explaining a new government initiative aimed at enhancing zoo environments to better care for animals. The children learned about how this initiative will benefit various animals, including elephants, giraffes, stingrays, owls, and other birds of prey, by providing them with more space to move, exercise, explore, and play. Our worship concluded with heartfelt prayers from Mollie, Callie, Lydia, and Harry. They expressed gratitude to God for creating such wonderful creatures, including sea life, and prayed for hope that animals in zoos receive the care, love, and space they need to live happy and healthy lives.
Year 1- Year of Prayer- Resilience
This week, as part of the Diocesan Year of Prayer, Year 1 reflected on the theme of resilience, praying for God’s strength to help us persevere—even when things feel challenging or we feel like giving up. To bring this theme to life, the children chose 12 classroom items. Miss Flynn then hid these items around the classroom, and the children were tasked with finding them. Some were tucked away in tricky spots, but with determination, teamwork, and a resilient mindset, they rose to the challenge! The activity was great fun, and the children thoroughly enjoyed this week’s focus in our Year of Prayer.
Year 1 Attend the Children’s Literature Festival at Darwen Library
Today, Year 1 had an exciting adventure at the Children’s Literature Festival 2025, held at Darwen Library—and what a fantastic time they had! They had the wonderful opportunity to meet the delightful author Saira Shah, who engaged the children with her inspiring story Super Nani and Captain Yaz. The book explores the heartwarming beginning of a unique friendship between two characters—Yasmin and her Nani—who speak different languages, English and Punjabi. Despite the language barrier, they found a magical way to communicate through gestures, key words, and a dash of imagination, all with the help of Yasmin’s favourite superheroes and a special rag doll. Following the story, we continued with the superhero theme. Our Year 1 children were given a thrilling mission. A meteor was hurtling toward Earth, threatening to erase all the wonderful books in the library. To save the day, the children had to transform into superheroes—choosing their own superhero names and special powers. Working together, they rose to the challenge and saved the library from disaster. A huge thank you to Darwen Library for inviting us to the Children’s Literature Festival 2025, and to the wonderful Saira Shah for inspiring our children and helping to spark a love of reading. We’re excited to share that Saira Shah will be launching her book at Waterstones Blackburn on Saturday, June 28 at 11am. All children are warmly invited to join a special Storytime session, followed by superhero fun! If today’s excitement is anything to go by, it promises to be a wonderful event.
Year 1 Design and Technology- Exploring Structures
This afternoon in Year 1, we explored the different parts of a windmill, including the structure, rotor, and rotor blades (or sails). We then discussed what makes a successful structure, agreeing that it should be able to stand on its own—like buildings, tables, chairs, bridges, and windmills. We looked more closely at windmills and noticed that they are often made from strong materials such as metal or concrete to help them remain sturdy and durable. Next, we investigated stability by experimenting with a paper cup. We thought about whether it would be more stable in its usual upright position, upside down, or on its side. We decided it was most stable when upside down, as the wider base helped it stand more firmly. We also explored ways to make the cup even more stable. Phoebe and Vienna suggested attaching wood inside the cup, Haydn thought we could use two cups together, and Callie suggested adding Blu Tack to the inside. In the end, we chose to double up the cups and use Blu Tack for extra weight. We’re looking forward to continuing our work and adding to our structures in the next lesson!
Collective Worship- Pentecost
This morning Mrs Ham welcomed all of the children and staff back to our school after our half term holiday. We started worship by listening to a special prayer written by St Francis, 'Make me a channel of your peace' as that is our special Year of Prayer prayer for the week. We then learnt about Ascension and Pentecost with the help of some super actors and actresses who played the part of the disciples and the wind and fire. We enjoyed joining in with actions to the rhyming Bible stories and we learnt that Pentecost was a special time when God sent His Holy Spirit and it was then the birth of the church. We reflected on how Jesus is always with us through the Holy Spirit that God sent and thought of ways that we could show God's love to each other. We then said a special prayer for Pentecost and sang 'Let me walk beside you', said Jesus one day' song and focused on the 'come follow me forever, with you I'll always stay' which was the promise that Jesus made to his disciples before he ascended into heaven.
Welcome back to school!
We are looking forward to welcoming everyone back to school tomorrow! We hope you all had a fantastic half-term break of living life in all its fullness and the children are feeling refreshed and ready for an exciting final half-term of the school year. Upcoming Events & Important Information This week is packed with fun and important events, so please make a note of the following and see here for further details https://www.stbarnabasdarwen.co.uk/events * Year 4 will be completing their multiplication times tables check throughout the week and Year 1 will also be completing their phonics screening check on Wednesday or Thursday. Monday: Year 4 will be visiting their linking school, St Matthew's in Blackburn. A reminder that they will need a packed lunch please in a disposable bag. Tuesday: FOSB Non-Uniform Day! To help us prepare for our "Donuts for Dads" afternoon, Tuesday will be a non-uniform day. Children are welcome to wear their own clothes in exchange for a donut donation. Years 1-5 will also be walking to Darwen Library for a special Children's Literature Festival at different times across the day. Please ensure your child is wearing sensible shoes and brings a coat. Wednesday: Donuts for Dads We'd love to invite all Dads and Grandads to join us in the school hall at 2:30 PM for our special "Donuts for Dads" event. Come along and enjoy some delicious treats with your children! Reception Dads are welcome into the Reception class for a special Father's Day stay and play at 2.30pm and can then take their child to the FOSB Donuts for Dad event in the hall. Thursday: Class and Individual Photos Reception and Year 6 will have their class photos taken. Additionally, Year 6 students will have individual photos taken for their memories books. Please ensure children in these year groups come to school in smart school uniform on Thursday. Friday: Year 6 Northern Games Gaelic Football competition in Manchester. The squad will be informed tomorrow. There will be NO Celebration Worship this Friday. Saturday: Whitehall Park Table Top Sale Everyone is welcome to the Whitehall Park Table Top Sale fundraiser on Saturday, June 14th, from 1:00 to 4:00 PM in the Rose Garden. This event is being held by the Whitehall Park Supporters group in association with our school. If you're interested in having a table to sell your goods for £5.00, please contact Marjan on 07837364728 or email [email protected]. See you all tomorrow, classroom doors open at 8.45am to give all children time to get into their class with their coats and bags off ready for a prompt 8.55am start. We're looking forward to a brilliant last half-term filled with learning, fun, and memorable events. Let's achieve great things and live life in all its fullness!
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Friday Celebration Worship
This morning, we started our worship by reflecting on our theme for this week which was ‘Heaven on Earth.’ Mrs Ham asked us to think about things that we have done in school this week to support this. We had answers such as encouraging each other, helping people up when they are hurt and sharing our kind words and manners. We reflected on many of our other highlights this week which have included prayers for our fears and worries as part of our Diocesan Year of Prayer, enjoying a worship with Rev Matt on the theme of dedication and perseverance, learning the Makaton sign for ‘sad,’ Year 4 welcoming St Matthews into our school on Monday as part of their linking schools project, two of our Worship Our Way group members (Daisy and Grace) attending the Pupil’s RE Conference 2025, Year 4 delivering a whole class worship on Mental Health Awareness, our Year 5/6 Netball Squad representing our school brilliantly in the DPSSA Netball league again last night and coming away with two victories, our Year 5/6 Netball team who attended the Bee Stinger Netball finals at St Bedes on Tuesday and being crowned the BwD champions, Isaac, Ivy, Charlie and Oscar attending the Times tables Rockstar competition at Belmont on Wednesday afternoon and our Year 3/4 mixed cricket team for playing brilliantly at Darwen Cricket Club on Wednesday showing super teamwork and determination. Furthermore, we congratulated Peyton and Elliott in Year 4 for working hard to achieve their pen license, our Year 1 and Year 4 classes for being our attendance winners this week and Darwen Tower as our value award winners this week with 393 points. We then moved onto congratulating this week’s individual value award winners. Well done to Max, Leila, Lenny and Maggie in EYFS and KS1 and Cassidy, Alfie, Reuben and Tyler in KS2, Well done to these children for working incredibly hard across the curriculum and consistently displaying exceptional behaviour through demonstrating our Barney’s 4Bs (being kind, safe, respectful and ready). We then moved onto congratulating all of our out of school achievers. Well done to Ralphy for being the coach’s dream and showing super skill at football, Charlie and Isabella for achieving their red belts at kickboxing, Annabel for being a super committed Rainbow, Fletcher for being award the Player’s Player of the Match in a recent football game, Cassius for achieving Stage 2 in his swimming, Hendrix for taking part in the Squirrel’s Sports Day, Callie for swimming 25m and being award the dragon at jiu jitsu, Thea for being a superstar Rainbow and achieving Olivia doll, Olivia for achieving Stage 3 in her gymnastics and Esmae, Leonora and Desmond for competing in the micro-league at Darwen Leisure Centre. To end our worship, Mrs Ham wished us all a lovely restful holiday and we had a singalong to ‘Our God is a Great Big God’.
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Happy half term!
Dear Parents and Carers, As we reach the end of another busy half term, we want to extend our sincerest thanks for your continued support. Your partnership is invaluable, and we truly appreciate everything you do for our school family. It's been another fantastic week, full of learning, achieving great things, and fun! Here are just a few of the highlights: * Year 4 had a wonderful time welcoming visitors from their link school, St. Matthew's. They're already looking forward to visiting them on the first Monday back after the holiday! *Our incredible netball team has been on a winning streak! They won the final of the Bee Stinger Netball competition and will now go on to represent our borough – a truly amazing achievement! Our netball squad also won all of their games for the third week in a row in the netball league. *Year 3 enjoyed a fascinating session learning all about Judaism from Lennox's auntie. *Our Reception class had a fantastic time with Muddy Monday, hunting for bugs, and a brilliant forest school session building habitats and dens. *A big well done to our Year 4/5 cricket team for their outstanding sportsmanship in the cricket competition. *Reception class also enjoyed learning all about Islam from Miss Kachwalla. *Two of our WOW group members and Mrs. Araujo had a brilliant day taking part in the Diocesan RE Conference. *Year 4 led a super worship all about how we can support our mental health and wellbeing – an incredibly important topic. *We had great fun in Worship with Rev. Matt, especially with the mystery game and learning about the miracle of Tabitha being brought to life. For all of the news in detail from each class see our news page: https://www.stbarnabasdarwen.co.uk/news You can find details of our upcoming events next half term here: https://www.stbarnabasdarwen.co.uk/events Thank you to our staff team for their phenomenal hard work and unwavering dedication this half term, as well as supporting and transporting at sports competitions. Now, it's time for a well-deserved break! We wish you all wonderful two-week half term holiday. Take this time to rest, recharge, and truly live life in all its fullness! We look forward to welcoming everyone back refreshed and ready for an exciting next half term on Monday 9th June! Enjoy your holidays, Becky Ham
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Worship with Rev. Matt
Today in worship with Rev. Matt, the children began with an engaging game involving a mystery box. Selected children had to reach inside and guess the hidden item using only their sense of touch. This fun activity led into a meaningful Bible story about effort, kindness, and being present for others. Rev. Matt shared the story of a woman named Tabitha, also known as Dorcas, who lived in the town of Joppa. Tabitha was known for always doing good and helping those in need — especially widows and the poor. She spent her time sewing clothes for people in her community and showing love through her actions. Sadly, Tabitha became very ill and died. Her friends were heartbroken and sent for Peter, one of Jesus’ disciples. When Peter arrived, he prayed for her — and miraculously, she came back to life! This amazing moment reminded everyone that the good we do for others matters, and that God sees and values our efforts. The story encouraged the children to think about how they can show kindness and be a positive presence in the lives of others, just like Tabitha.
Year 1-Year or Prayer- Knots (Thinking About Our Fears and Worries)
This week, the theme for the Diocesan Year of Prayer, 1 is ‘Knots’. For this, Year 1 had to think about the fears and worries that they experience whilst tying a knot into a ribbon. Year 1 shared worries such as moving into a new classroom with a less familiar teacher, hearing loud noises, our pets or family being poorly, being told off for not making the right choice and coming face to face with scary creatures such as spiders or crocodiles. To symbolise letting go of these worries, Year 1 undid their knot whilst asking God to take away these worries and fears.
Year 1 PE- Athletics
This afternoon in PE, Year 1 enjoyed an athletics session on the MUGA. They enjoyed demonstrating lots of the skills (hopping, jumping two feet to two feet, rolling a ball, running, changing direction and underarm throwing ) that they have been focusing on in their PE lessons to complete an obstacle course.