Whole School Harvest Celebration
This morning, we celebrated Harvest with a very special worship service at St Barnabas Church, led by our wonderful WOW group and Mrs Araujo. It was a joyful celebration filled with singing, gratitude and reflection. A huge well done to Reception, Year 1 and Year 3, who did a tremendous job of sharing what they have been learning in their RE lessons. Reception bravely opened our worship by singing ‘Thank You for the Harvest’, followed by Year 1, who expressed their gratitude to our farmers for all their hard work with a lovely rendition of ‘Thank You to the Farmers’. We also heard from Year 3, who shared beautiful prayers expressing their gratitude for all that we have, as well as leading us in a shared prayer using Makaton. We are incredibly proud of all the children for their thoughtful contributions. This year, we are supporting DARE, RotaKids and The Bishop’s Appeal. A heartfelt thank you to our school community for your generosity in donating non-perishable food items and pre-loved winter coats. Your kindness and support make a real difference to others. Looking ahead, please remember that we will be taking part in the Big Barney’s Assault Course Challenge on Friday 6th November to raise money for the Jehovah Rapha Healthcare Centre in Liwolo. The funds raised will help ensure that people can access essential healthcare. We would be very grateful if you could ask family and friends to sponsor your child and support us in this important mission. Finally, thank you for your continued support throughout this half-term. We wish all our families a wonderful and restful half-term holiday!
The Great Big Barney's Assault Course Challenge
An urgent need in South Sudan! A serious healthcare crisis is emerging and support to local healthcare centres such as Liwolo will end by September, with hospital services stopping by December. Without this support, many communities will be left without accessible medical care. The nearest healthcare facilities are several hours away and remain out of reach for many families due to distance and cost. Through the Bishop's Harvest Appeal, our Diocese will support the Jehovah Rapha Healthcare Centre in Liwolo, ensuring that people are able to access essential healthcare. Each child will take part in our Great Big Barney’s Assault Course Challenge, which has been planned by our WOW group, at school on Friday 6th November. Please ask family and friends to sponsor your child to complete the course and help us raise funds for this year’s cause. We would love to see photos of your children in training over the half term ready for our assault course challenge, so please send them via Class Dojo. Donations can be made through the QR code or here: https://www.parishgiving.org.uk/donors/find-your-parish/bburn-diocesan-harvest-appeal-blackburn?fbclid=IwY2xjawVEK0JleHRuA2FlbQIxMABwZG9mAWJyaWQRMDgwVEJYN0EzQ2lGbWVYT2VzcnRjBmFwcF9pZBAyMjIwMzkxNzg4MjAwODkyAAEebvIKZ7uGENPZjIfVN8P5b-WLjoYcHdWChA0xXbNPY1YwSgVkEwXRXG-vFV0_aem_70SfP6U3cGv2vCM-UXD3YA
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WOW Group - Harvest Planning
We are proud to present this year’s WOW (Worship Our Way) Group, who are all raring to get started. In their first full session they got to work planning some exciting challenges for each class to take part in to raise funds for the Bishop’s Harvest Appeal. Each child will be bringing home a sponsor form soon for their harvest challenge, which they will complete in school after half term. We are sure they will have fun with this year’s appeal!
The WOW Group - Toy Swap Shop
A huge thank you goes out to all those who brought their pre-loved toys in to exchange in the WOW group’s Toy Swap Shop on Tuesday. It was a lovely event which all the children enjoyed and it helped towards our school’s mission to increase our sustainability, reduce climate change and protect God’s green earth. Swapping out your toys ensures they don’t end up in landfill unnecessarily and also brings joy and excitement to other children. We hope to run other swap events in the next academic year so keep a lookout for those appearing in the school calendar.
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The WOW Group - Recycle to Read Campaign Launch Assembly
This week, the WOW group spoke to the rest of the school about ways we can reduce waste when it comes to our toys. They launched our Recycle to Read campaign by explaining that throughout June and at the beginning of July families can take their broken plastic toys to Tesco Extra in Horwich, Leyland or Chorley and place them in collection bins to earn points for our school. These points will go towards earning free books for the school. If our families are unable to get to the specified stores, school will be collecting broken plastic toys on their behalf. The WOW group also introduced our Toy Swap Shop event, which will be held on Tuesday 9th June after school. Children who bring in a pre-loved toy on Monday 8th or Tuesday 9th June will be able to visit our Toy Swap Shop to choose a replacement toy to bring home. It’s the perfect time to have a half term sort-out!
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Whole School Worship
Today Rev Matt led our Whole School Worship which focused on understanding that during difficult times we can listen to God. We started with a challenge where we had to listen to different noises and identify what they were. First there was a cat, then a plane, a lion, a microwave, the wind.This highlighted the importance of listening. Our Bible story this week was the story about the road to Emmaus. After Jesus rose from the dead, two sad followers were walking to Emmaus when Jesus joined them, but they didn’t recognise him. He explained how the Bible predicted his resurrection. Later, while breaking bread together, they realised it was Jesus before he vanished. Excited, they ran back to tell others he was alive! Rev Matt told us that Jesus performed many other signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not recorded in the Bible. But they are written that you may believe. He also asked us how does God help us when something is hard? The children gave some lovely answers such as showing us the way, giving us support and being the guiding light. We finished with a special prayer and then sang One, two, three Jesus is alive!
Whole School Worship with Rev Ben
Our Whole School Worship was led by Rev Ben this morning and we started by highlighting the fact that today is St George’s Day. Today many people across England will celebrate the country's patron saint, St George. Patron saints are chosen as special protectors or guardians over all areas of life. Next, six children were selected to play Rev Ben’s fishing game. It focused on Peter the fisherman who also reminds us of St George. The six children had to work in two teams to fetch and carry the most fish to win the game. Peter was an ordinary fisherman on the Sea of Galilee who became one of Jesus' closest friends and leaders (apostles). Jesus changed his life by telling him he would become a "fisher of men," meaning he would help people learn about God instead of catching fish. Peter was known for being brave, impulsive, and for walking on water with Jesus. The children watched a clip about Peter and then answered the following questions: What happened in today’s Bible story? Why do you think you might be a better friend if you know you sometimes need to be forgiven yourself? The children answered that Peter had let Jesus down, but Jesus still forgave him. Being courageous is knowing that we don’t always get things right.
The WOW Group - Spiritual Garden Activities
Our WOW group split off into smaller groups to deliver their planned activities across lunchtimes last week. The group pictured invited children to hunt for natural materials around them and then use them to show off their creativity, making pictures. The children loved exploring different shapes and colours in nature and sharing their designs with their friends.
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The WOW Group - Spiritual Garden Activity Planning
This week, the WOW group planned some spirituality activities to carry out at break times in the spiritual garden. They chose an activity in groups of 3 and prepared all the resources they needed. They then decided which year groups they would invite to play.
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Wow Group: Tree Planting
What a fantastic afternoon our WOW group had on our school grounds! They had a wonderful time planting a brand-new orchard across two different areas of the school- next to the MUGA and next to our infant yard. We added a variety of plum, apple, and pear trees to our landscape, and it was a great learning experience for everyone involved. Ian and Aileen joined us to explain the life cycle of the trees, teaching the children how they will first burst into blossom during the spring and early summer. They learned that once those flowers are pollinated, they will begin the transformation into delicious fruit, just in time for the start of the autumn term. WOW group really got stuck into the hard work, digging the holes, positioning the trees, and carefully installing guards and stakes to keep them secure. It was a joy to see them working so well as a team, showing great care for our new environment. We are all really looking forward to watching these trees grow over the coming years, and we certainly can’t wait to eventually taste the fruits of our labour!
W.O.W. Group - Messy Church: The Sower
The WOW group ran their final messy church this week. They did a fantastic job planning a fun session based on the Parable of the Sower. First, they read the story and discussed its meaning and how Jesus wanted his followers to root their faith in God. Then the participants decorated a plant pot. Once the pots were decorated, the children filled them with rich, nutritious compost and added Nigella or Candytuft seeds.
The W.O.W. Group - Messy Church
Our fantastic W.O.W. Group have been busy planning and this week was our first messy church of the year. The theme was “promises” and the session began with a reading of the Parable of the Two Sons. The attendees compared the two sons in the story - the one that promised to do a job for his father but never did it, and the one who originally grumbled but then decided to help - and agreed that promises don’t mean anything if they are not kept. The W.O.W. Group then led an activity in which participants decorated promise jars and wrote down a promise that they vow to keep. They then drew messy church to a close with a prayer asking God to help us to keep our promises.
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