Friday Celebration Worship
This week in our celebration worship we spent time thinking about the importance of sharing what we have with others. We talked about how sharing can be shown in many ways, such as sharing our time, our kindness, our ideas and the things we have. It was wonderful to see so many examples of children living out this message throughout the week. We also celebrated British Science Week and the fantastic learning that has been taking place across the school. The children have been asking brilliant questions, investigating new ideas and showing great curiosity about the world around them. Alongside this, our clubs have been running brilliantly and it has been lovely to see so many pupils taking part, developing new skills and enjoying activities with their friends. We also celebrated the children who have demonstrated our school values this week. In Reception the values award went to Beau, in Year 1 it was Fiia, in Year 2 it was Lenny, in Year 3 it was Eli, in Year 4 it was Iris, in Year 5 it was Neveah and in Year 6 it was Eden. Well done to all of you for showing our values so clearly in school. We then looked at the team values points for this week. In fourth place was Darwen Tower, in third place was Whitehall Park, in second place was India Mill and in first place was River Darwen. Well done to everyone for continuing to work hard and earn values points for your teams. We also celebrated a number of fantastic achievements outside of school. Zachary received a certificate in Kids with Bricks and was named builder of the week, which is a brilliant achievement. Willow was awarded star of the week in gymnastics and also received a swimming certificate for being able to close her eyes under water. Cassius was awarded a football trophy for excellent scoring and tackling during his matches. Thea and Evie were awarded their 100 Years of World Thinking Day badge. Ella achieved a contract at Crewe Alexandra football club for the next two years and has been playing for them already for over two years, which shows great commitment. Darcy received a badge for completing her Brownie promise. Daisy also brought in two medals from a gymnastics competition where she achieved second and third place. We are very proud of all the effort and dedication shown by these pupils. This week’s attendance awards went to Year 2 and Year 4, so a big well done to those classes for their excellent attendance. We also shared a few reminders about upcoming events. On Sunday there will be a Mother’s Day service at St Barnabas Church at 11.00am where some of our children will be singing for their Mums and Grandmas We are also looking forward to Let’s Go Sing at Blackburn Ice Arena. Reception will soon be hosting their stay and play session and the Scholastic Book Fair will be returning to school next week. On Friday we will be taking part in Rock Your Socks Day to raise awareness for Down Syndrome Awareness Day. Year 4 will soon be heading on their residential trip and Year 5 will be taking part in Bikeability. Friends of St Barnabas will also be hosting a Chocolate Easter Bingo which we are sure will be lots of fun. We finished our worship with thoughtful prayers led by Iris and Elijah, helping us reflect on the week and be thankful for all the opportunities we have to learn, grow and support one another and prayed for peace for those who are living amongst conflict. We also said a special prayer for our Mums and Grandmas for all of the amazing things they do for us and we hope they all have a wonderful Mother's Day on Sunday.
Whole School Worship with Rev Matt
Our Whole School Worship was led by Rev Matt this morning. We started with a prayer and then Rev Matt introduced our challenge - Would you rather. Where would you rather live ,in a castle or a yacht? A cave or a hot air balloon? An aquarium or a zoo? The challenge was linked to our Bible story as it was about the place we live in. The Bible story Rev Matt shared was about where our home is . It was The Prodigal Son which is about a son who foolishly wastes his inheritance, yet is welcomed back with loving arms and forgiveness by his father. It teaches that God’s love is unconditional and that it is never too late to ask for forgiveness and come home. In our time to think session we looked at what the perfect home would look like and how it would feel to know that you could live in God’s perfect home. We learnt that our perfect home would be filled with love, happiness and joy.
Year 3 Class Worship-Year 3 Explore Robotics and Respect
During our class worship, Year 3 were inspired by a recent news story about humanoid robots performing at China’s Lunar New Year Gala. We used the theme "Beyond the Battery" to explore our Christian value of Respect while discussing how technology is rapidly changing the world around us. During our "Pupil Talk" session, the children were fascinated by how robots could spin, jump, and dance to music. This inspired them to develop some truly innovative ideas for robot jobs in our own lives. They suggested that robots could be designed to help with difficult chores, assist people with disabilities, help them with their homework, give out hugs and teach the children a dance routine. We also took time to think deeper about the difference between a living person and an object made by human hands. Reflecting on Psalm 115, we discussed how technology can mimic the way we move, but it can never replace the unique life that makes every human being special. We talked about how, unlike robots that follow instructions, humans have their own feelings, imaginations, and the ability to show true kindness. To conclude our worship, Archie shared a prayer thanking God for the skills that allow us to build and invent. We asked for the wisdom to use our inventions to treat every person with the dignity and respect they deserve. It was a fantastic session that encouraged the children to look "beyond the battery" at the true value of the people around them.
Year 4 Class Worship and Horrible Science Assembly
Today, Year 4 had an extended class worship. The first part followed on from yesterday's collective worship about sharing what we have. We talked about ways we have shared with others and times when someone has shared something small, but it has had a big impact on us. We added some of our ideas to our kindness kite. We also took part in the Big Live Horrible Science Assembly for British Science Week. The topic was light & space, with guest speakers, including British astronaut Tim Peake. The children recapped some of the information they had learned in Years 2 & 3, and learned lots of interesting new facts that will help them when they meet their Year 5 space topic. They also completed challenges in groups based on the information presented.
Whole School Worship - Sharing What We Have
Our kindness kite focus for this week, ‘Shared what they had’, linked perfectly with today’s story, the Feeding of the 5000. Before sharing the story, Mrs Ham asked children to about times they have shared with others. These included smiles, toy and clothing donations and even car sharing. After watching the story, the children reflected on the benefits of sharing and how God provides for his people in abundance, just like how the small amount of food multiplied upon Jesus’s faithful request to God. In reflection, we considered what we could share with others throughout Lent and made pledges to do so. We brought our worship to a close by sharing our wonderful singing voices with one another, practising some Easter songs for our upcoming service.
Whole School Singing Worship - Monday
In singing worship this morning, our whole school came together to welcome in the new week. We had lots of fun singing our favourite Easter songs and teaching them to our Reception class. The whole school joined in as Year 3 began by singing We have a King who rides a donkey, followed by Year 5 with Lord of the dance, Year 2 led us with Give me oil in my lamp, and finally Year 6 led us in a very energetic rendition of He is alive! A great way to fuel our energy and mindfulness for the week ahead!
Friday Celebration Worship
It has been another very busy and exciting week here at St Barnabas. In Worship we have been taking time to reflect on both Lent and Ramadan, thinking about kindness, reflection and helping others. We have also had a fantastic week celebrating World Book Day, sharing our love of reading and enjoying all the brilliant costumes and book characters we saw in school. Our classes were also lucky enough to take part in the Pinocchio dance workshop and performance, which was fantastic to watch. There has been lots happening beyond the classroom too, including the River Darwen team disco and our wide range of clubs, such as Kids with Bricks club. Many of you have also been taking part in the Times Tables Rockstars competition and showing great enthusiasm for practising your times tables. We have now completed our Big Winter Wander and together we have raised £175 for WWF, which is an amazing achievement. Thank you to everyone who took part and supported this. Our RotaKids have also been showing kindness in action by collecting teddies for Darwen Asylum Refugee Enterprise and Darwen Rotary which will help support children less fortunate than us. We also had the World Book Day Dolly Peg Competition run by the Friends of St Barnabas and the judges were very impressed with the creativity and effort that went into the entries. The award for Best Book Character goes to Phoebe for Greg the Sausage Roll. The award for Most Creative goes to Ida for the Highway Rat. The award for Best Use of Materials goes to Molly for Molly and the Goldfish Fairy. The Judges’ Choice award goes to Alfie. The award for Most Imaginative goes to Alice for Stitch and the Outstanding Effort award goes to Elliot. Well done to everyone who took part and a huge thank you to our FOSB for organising the competition as well as contributing money to the Pinocchio workshops. A massive thank you to our parishioner Glenda for undertaking the difficult task of judging the competition. Our Values Awards where we recognise children who have been showing our school four Be's of being kind, respectful, safe and ready to learn. In Reception the award goes to Erina. In Year 1 it goes to Cassius. In Year 2 the award goes to Thomas. In Year 3 it goes to Albie. In Year 4 the awards go to Cassidy and Alfie. In Year 5 the award goes to Olivia and in Year 6 the award goes to Isabelle. Well done to all of you for showing our 4 Be's and Christian values so clearly in school. We also had some pen licences to award this week in Year 3. These go to Harry, Molly and Eddie. Well done for showing such neat and consistent handwriting across the curriculum, not just in English. We celebrated our team values totals for the week. In fourth place was Darwen Tower. In third place was Whitehall Park. In second place was River Darwen. And in first place this week was India Mill. Well done everyone! We also have lots of wonderful sports and out-of-school achievements to celebrate. Olivia, Eleanor and Annie have been awarded a certificate for celebrating 100 years of World Thinking Day at Rainbows. Alessia has been awarded her Level 1 for back bends in dance. Poppy has been awarded a teddy for really good dancing. Carmen and Renee have both been awarded their yellow belts in kickboxing. Albie has been awarded player of the week for good tackling. Martha has achieved her 20 metre swimming certificate. Haydn has been awarded a trophy for scoring seven goals in football. Olivia has also received a certificate for a fantastic backwards roll in gymnastics. Callie has been awarded a certificate for completing two years of JuJitsu. Maggie has received a Brownie doll and her promise badge. Annabel has been awarded star of the week in dance and swimmer of the month. Jack has been awarded a certificate for completing a silver swimming challenge and Piper-Jo has achieved her 50 metre swimming certificate. Well done to all of you for your hard work and dedication outside of school. A special well done also goes to our Cross Country team who showed fantastic determination when competing in rainy weather and muddy conditions. They ran over a mile, which is a brilliant achievement. We also held our inter-house competition for football and bench ball and the winning house was India Mill. Well done to everyone who took part. Our WOW group had some exciting news to share as well. Our school is now number one across all Blackburn and Darwen schools for walking to school last month. That is an incredible achievement. Year 4 are the overall winners for walking to school and badges will be given to all children who walked to school. Our attendance awards this week go to Year 2 and Year 3. Well done for coming to school every day and being ready to learn. Finally, just a reminder that Reception will soon be performing their Mother’s Day Service next Wednesday at 9.00am and there will also be the Mothering Sunday Service at St Barnabas Church where children are invited to come along and sing to their mums. To finish our worship we had lovely prayers from Olivia and Darcy and we sang the Butterfly song.
World Book Day Oracy Worship
What a fantastic morning we had celebrating World Book Day! Children from Reception, Year 1, and Year 2 came together for a special Oracy Talk Assembly, where the hall was filled with the sound of meaningful discussion. Working in trios, the children were challenged to dive deep into their love of literature by sharing their favourite books and characters, providing thoughtful "whys" for their choices. The energy peaked during a fascinating debate on whether reading gives you a "superhero power." After some deep exploration, the children concluded that reading truly is a superpower; they decided it makes you incredibly clever and has the unique ability to expand your imagination beyond the classroom. Mrs. Wilkinson was immensely impressed by the level of maturity and respect on display. It was a "super" oracy worship, with children across the three year groups demonstrating excellent communication skills by taking turns and listening intently to one another. It was wonderful to see our youngest learners not only celebrating stories but also developing the confidence to articulate their ideas with such clarity and enthusiasm.
Whole School Worship
During today’s whole school worship, we reflected on what we might give for Lent. We explored how Lent is a time of sacrifice, remembering Jesus’ sacrifice, but also a time to give — not only by giving something up, but by giving more of ourselves. We thought about how we can share smiles, kindness, love and live out our Christian values in simple, meaningful ways each day. The children shared thoughtful ideas about small changes they could make, both at school and at home, to show patience, forgiveness and generosity. We also focused on this week’s Kindness Kite theme, “Share what you have,” reminding ourselves that even the smallest act of generosity — sharing time, helping a friend or offering encouraging words — can make a big difference to others.
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Whole School Worship - Ramadan
During worship, we were also treated to a special and informative reflection on Ramadan, thoughtfully led by Miss Kachwalla. The session helped us to understand the importance of this sacred month in Islam — a time of prayer, fasting, reflection and generosity. We learned about how Muslims around the world show dedication, self-discipline and compassion during Ramadan, and how values such as kindness, gratitude and community are central to this time. It was a wonderful opportunity to deepen our understanding, celebrate diversity within our school community and reflect on the shared values that bring us together. We also looked at the similarities between Lent and Ramadan and how they were both important times to give to others and give food up or fast to feel closer to God.
Friday Celebration Worship
What a wonderful and incredibly busy first week back we have had in school. On Monday we welcomed special visitors into our school and they were so impressed with the children’s beautiful behaviour, their hard work and their fantastic oracy skills. We are so proud of the way our children represent our school community. A huge thank you to Miss Kachwalla for organising Mad Science, it was a brilliant experience and the children absolutely loved it. This week we have also spent time reflecting on Lent, thinking carefully about what we might give up and how we can grow closer to God during this special season. It has been lovely to see so many children taking part in our amazing after-school clubs and joining in with the Big Winter Wander. We are delighted to celebrate our Values Award winners this week. In Reception, Mason and Phoebe have shown our school values so beautifully. In Year 1, well done to Thea. In Year 2, congratulations to Joey. In Year 3, Alice and Evie have impressed us all. In Year 5, well done to Miles, and in Year 6, congratulations to Beau. Our Pen Licence this week goes to Scarlett in Year 4, what a fantastic achievement for your presentation and handwriting. In our Team Values results, fourth place goes to Darwen Tower, third place to Whitehall Park, second place to India Mill and in first place this week is River Darwen. A huge well done to River Darwen who will get to wear their own clothes on Friday for their disco, enjoy your celebration. We also have so many wonderful sporting achievements to celebrate. Alice has been awarded a trophy in cheerleading for coming second place. Bowen has received a football trophy for his excellent skills. Ida and Layla have both earned a badge for riding trot in horse riding. Phoebe has achieved her 10m swimming certificate and Stage 3. Olivia and Eleanor have earned a Rainbows badge for baking, trying different foods, completing a duck hunt and caring for animals carefully, and Eleanor has also achieved a water skills certificate. Maggie has been awarded a purple belt in martial arts for her fantastic kicking and punching, as well as achieving Stage 3 in gymnastics. Annabelle has received the hardest worker certificate in dance and has the amazing opportunity to go to New York for a dance show, we are so proud. Callie and Charlie have both achieved their 50m swimming certificates. Lyla has won medals in dancing. Seb and Scarlett have received certificates from a sports club during the half-term holidays and Scarlett's netball team also won the league. Tristan has been awarded a purple belt for punching and blocking. Ted has won a huge trophy for BMX racing for coming second in his age category. Lydia has awarded Olivia from Brownies for being kind and helpful. Grace has achieved dance medals for coming second and third. A special well done to our Year 5 football team who played six games, drawing two, narrowly losing one game 1–0, and winning three – a fantastic effort and great teamwork. Well done to Year 1 and Year 3 for achieving the highest attendance this week, your commitment to being in school every day really does make a difference. Looking ahead, we are excited for World Book Day next week. On Tuesday we have special Pinocchio dance workshops and a performance to look forward to. Don't forget to get your dolly peg book character entries in too. On Thursday, children can either dress as a book character or come in their pyjamas. Reception will be performing for Mother’s Day on Friday 13th March and we warmly invite families to join us for our Mother’s Day Sunday Service at church on Sunday 15th March where all of our children are welcome to sing to their Mums. Thank you to Olivia and Ava for leading us in our prayers this week.
Whole School Worship with Rev Ben
Today we had a Whole School Worship which was led by Rev Ben. Rev Ben started with a challenge in which he asked for 4 volunteers. Naomi, Edward, Darcy and Tristan had to build a structure from marshmallows and spaghetti in only two minutes. This proved super challenging with Naomi and Edward coming out as winners with the best structure. Our Bible story was about building things in the right way - Wise and Foolish Builders. A wise man builds on rock, surviving storms, while a foolish man builds on sand, resulting in his house collapsing. It teaches children to obey God’s word to stand firm against challenges. Jesus says that if you listen to him and build your life on his words then you will have a firm foundation.