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
WOW Year Group Winners for October
A huge WELL DONE to Year 4 who gained the most walk to school badges for the month of October! It was great to see so many more children gaining their badges this month now we can take part in school through choosing to do the 1K A Day too. Thank you to parents and carers too for all of your support with this super initiative.
Year 3- Science- Sorting and Classifying Food
Today, Year 3 scientists continued their exploration of nutrition, building on their knowledge from Year 2. They identified the five key food groups: carbohydrates, proteins, dairy, fruits, and vegetables. They learned that a balanced diet, incorporating foods from each group, is crucial for optimal growth and health. Carbohydrates provide energy, proteins repair and build tissues, dairy strengthens bones, and fruits and vegetables supply essential vitamins and minerals. To reinforce their understanding, the children sorted pictures of food into their food groups and explained the benefits of each. Through this experience, Year 3 developed their scientific skills of observation, classification, and data presentation.
Friday Celebration Worship
Today, we started our celebration worship by reflecting on the wonderful week that we have had in school. We lit a special candle for All Souls Day on Sunday to remember all those who have sadly passed away and reflected on the positive behaviour that we’re seeing around school such as holding open the doors for each other and using our wonderful manners. We also thought about all the amazing experiences that we have had in school such as Reception showcasing their Diwali learning to the whole school, Year 1 and Year 3 visiting Nightingale Farm, Years 3, 4, 5 and 6 fully embracing their dance sessions led by Rothwell Arts and the WOW group for giving the harvest donations to DARE (Darwen Asylum Refugee). Firstly, we congratulated the amazing children who took part in the 6 week Cre8ability programme which has allowed them to explore many of their creative talents such as painting, sculpting and being musicians and learning about their superpower emotional intelligence. We then presented Jasper, Vienna and Maggie in EYFS and KS1 and Ella-Grace, James, Quinn and Matthew in KS2 as our individual value award winners. Well done to these children for working extremely hard across the curriculum, showing a positive attitude to learning and using exceptional manners. We then congratulated our out of school achievers. Well done to Eleanor who has recently made her Rainbows promise, Ava for achieving her Stage 1 swimming certificate, Fletcher for being awarded with his 25m swimming certificate, Lyla and Darcy for achieving a medal for their incredible gymnastic talent, Lydia and Naomi for receiving a letter from the head of royal correspondence thanking them for their very thoughtful letter to Princess Charlotte, Grace for being an amazing dancer, brownie and physicist, Olivia for being an incredible captain and leading her, Eliza for being an outstanding footballer and Sofia for achieving her intermediate award in gymnastics. We also congratulated our Year 4/5/6 girls football team who attended the DPSSA football league presentation evening last night and coming in 3rd overall, Year 2 and Year 5 on being our amazing attendance winners, India Mill for winning the Inter-house sports competition before the holidays and River Darwen as the value award winners this week. We also congratulated River Darwen as being the half-termly award winners for last half-term. They will be awarded with a non-uniform day and disco next week. Our heads and deputies also announced that they will be selling the Remembrance Day merchandise every break time next week to raise money for The Royal British Legion. To end our worship, we sang ‘When the Saints Go Marching In’ in celebration of All Saints Day. We thank all those who could attend celebration worship and we said an extended thank you to the rest of our school family for all of your continued support. We wish you all a lovely and restful weekend.
Worship with Rev. Matt
During this week’s worship, Rev. Matt engaged the children with a game of ‘Real or Fake,’ encouraging them to think carefully about what they see and question whether images are genuine or not. This led into the story of Elijah, who courageously stood against people worshiping a statue made of sticks and stones, teaching the children about the importance of true faith over false idols. To close, Rev. Matt invited the children to reflect on what they would like God’s help with, creating a moment of thoughtful prayer and connection.
Year 3- Nightingale Farm- Learning about Animals including Humans
Today, Year 3 had a great time walking to Nightingale Farm. They were thrilled to see a variety of animals up close, including chickens, goats, sheep, pigs, and two adorable ducklings named Salt and Pepper. As they explored the farm, the children learned about animal classification and diet. They asked insightful questions about animal health, behaviour, and reproduction. In small groups, they also engaged in a hands-on activity, labeling parts of animal skeletons on activity sheets. They identified bones like the pelvis, spine, and vertebrae. Throughout the walk, Year 3 were captivated by the beauty of the Autumn season. They paused to admire the colourful leaves, the misty morning, and the friendly greetings from passersby. This experience fostered a deeper connection to nature and a sense of spiritual wonder. Thank you to Nightingale Farm for a great day! All of the photos can be found here: https://www.stbarnabasdarwen.co.uk/photo-galleries/year-3-nightingale-farm-oct-2024
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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!
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.
Year 3 - P.E- Dance
Today in P.E., Year 3 had an amazing time with Miss Vicky and Miss Sian, who will be teaching the children dance skills throughout this term. The session was filled with energy and excitement as the children enjoyed a fantastic warm-up, followed by learning basic acrobatics, practising cartwheels, and even trying out headstands. Some children felt a bit nervous at first, but everyone tried extremely hard and encouraged each other along the way. A special shoutout goes to our Star Learner, Jacob, for his enthusiasm and for asking fantastic questions.
Year 3- D.T- Running stitch
Building on their skills from Year 2, the little elves have started a new unit on textiles this afternoon, preparing for our school Christmas fair. By the end of this unit, the children will design and create a Christmas-themed pouch, practising essential techniques along the way. Today, they focused on mastering the running stitch, aiming for regular-sized stitches and learning the importance of knotting both ends to secure their work. They also revisited how to thread a needle and tie a knot. Although threading needles and stitching proved challenging today, we’re excited to see their skills and confidence grow as they work toward completing their Christmas creations.
Year 3- English- History-Understanding Mummification Through Experiment
In History, this afternoon, Year 3 continued their learning on the Ancient Egyptians with a writing stimulus focused on mummification. To support their writing unit, where they’ll explain the mummification process, the children “mummified” an orange. They cut the orange in half and removed the inside (representing the internal organs), then carefully dried it using a mixture of salt and baking soda. After removing the insides of the orange (just like the Ancient Egyptians removed internal organs), the children carefully dried the inside of the orange using salt and baking soda. This mixture acted like the natron salt the Egyptians used to preserve bodies by drawing out moisture. Next, they filled the orange with more salt and baking soda to prevent decay and dryness. Finally, they wrapped the orange carefully in strips of cloth to resemble linen bandages, just as the Egyptians would have wrapped their mummies. Over the coming days, the oranges will be left to sit, allowing the "mummification" process to take effect. The children will observe any changes and use this experience to help explain the process of mummification in their upcoming writing unit.
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.