Year 1 - History
In History, Year 1 are learning about Sir Francis Drake. The photographs show the children following the route of Sir Francis Drakes circumnavigation of the world on his galleon, The Golden Hinde.
Year 1 - Science - Melting Materials
Year 1 have been learning about the effects of heat on different materials. We exposed ice cubes, chocolate, sugar and wax to heat and recorded our findings.
Year 1 - Art and Design - Knotting and Winding
In Textiles, Year 1 have been experimenting with knotting and wrapping techniques. They practised knotting wool to a stick and then winding it around until the whole stick was covered.
Year 1 - PE - Jumping
Year 1 have been learning how to jump in P.E. They thought about how to use their arms and their legs to help them jump further.
Year 1 - Science - Classifying Objects According to Their Properties
Year 1 have been learning how to classify objects according to their properties.
Reception and Y1 - Guided Reading
Reception and Year 1 have been developing their early reading skills. They have been applying their phonetic knowledge to help them decode the words in the book and they have been working on improving their fluency when reading. The children have really enjoyed these interactive reading sessions and have used the Chromebooks to use the ebook feature, this has been a real hit too!
Year 1 - History - Sir Francis Drake
in History, Year 1 have been learning about Sir Francis Drake. In these photographs, the children are using the vocabulary they have learned about life aboard a galleon to produce posters.
Friends of DSJ
We are looking for new members of our Friends at Darwen St James group. The group was created to help raise funds for school by thinking of ideas and planning fundraisers throughout the year. Past events include; *Film night *Bingo night *Family evening *Summer Fair *Christmas Fair All the money we raise is used in school - we have developed the nurture room and we are currently renovating the library areas around school. If you would like to find our more or if you would like to volunteer, please speak to Miss Sears.
Year 1 - R.E - Baptism
Year 1 are learning about Baptism in R.E. In this lesson we were exploring different forms of Baptism ceremonies from around the world. We talked about the images and wrote down our thoughts and questions.
Year 1 - Textiles
Year 1 are learning about weaving in our Art unit of Textiles. In these photographs, the children are embellishing strips of fabric with pom poms, glitter and sticky shapes. In our next lesson, they will use these to weave a whole class piece of work.
Mrs Simms and Mrs Williamson - A New Adventure Awaits!
On Friday we say a sad farewell to Mrs Simms and Mrs Williamson as they leave us for pastures new. We would like to thank them for all of their hard work and dedication at Darwen St James. I am sure you will join us in wishing them luck for the future. Mrs Williamson and I would like to send a heartfelt thank you for all your support over the last 13 years whilst we have been at Darwen St James, however this Friday will be our last day in school as we both move on to new adventures. We would also like to thank the children for all their hard work and dedication over the years and we are sure they will continue to flourish throughout the years to come.
Free School Meals - Extended!
As you all are aware, we received funding last year and we were fortunate to be able to offer free school meals to all of our children. We thought that this would be run until the end of March, however we are thrilled to announce we are able to extend this to the 26th April. From 29th April children who are not on free school meals will have to pay for their lunch and there will be a slight increase in cost and the new charge will be £2.50 per day. Now is a good opportunity to look into seeing if your child will be eligible for free school meals if you haven't yet applied by visiting Blackburn with Darwen Borough Councils website here https://www.blackburn.gov.uk/schools-and-education/school-meals
Online Safety - What Parents and Educators Need to Know about Township
Potentially addictive online games are nothing new, but the specifics of this kind of media can vary enormously – and, as a consequence, the risks in each individual game are just as diverse. The city-builder Township is no exception: providing its legions of devotees with accessible, satisfying fun … but exposing them to potential hazards at the same time. However, any safeguarding issues that the game might have can (with a little knowhow) be neutralised – allowing young players to have some engrossing fun without adults needing to worry about children’s data, their money or their mental wellbeing. Our guide outlines how to help young gamers enjoy Township safely and responsibly.
Easter closure information
Easter closure information
Easter Competition Winners
A huge well done to the winners of this years Easter competition! Rev Kev and Miss Greenwood had the difficult decision of selecting 3 winners form each class. We had over 20 family entries too, which was great! Congratulations to those winners.
Online Safety - Wake up Wednesday - Clickbait
While scrolling online, you’ll almost inevitably have come across posts or links with headlines like “You Won’t Believe These 10 Crazy Facts about …”. Such lurid language – and the often-dubious nature of the content it promotes – has become something of a running joke on the internet. Yet while these articles are often laughed at by communities online, they can have an insidious side. Clickbait, as it’s known, can frequently function as part of a trap: intended to draw users in for the sake of advertising revenue or, in worse cases, masking an attempting to collect their personal information. This #WakeUpWednesday guide explores the various risks of clickbait and offers some top tips for evading the pitfalls of this controversial marketing technique.
Easter Egg Competition
This year our competition theme was the Paris Olympics and we have had some eggstrodinary entries! Well done ot every family that entered this years competiton, the judges have had an eggstremely dificult decision this year! The winners will be announced in our special Easter Worship tomorrow, you are all welcome to join us.
Year One - Guided Reading
In Guided Reading, we have been using our pointers to help us track our reading. We also used them to point to tricky words or graphemes too.
Measles Guidance
Please see the latest guidance for measles.
BwD Family Hub Website
Fantastic news! Our website is live! The Start for Life Family Hub Website is the gateway to information of where services are, it details everything a family will need in those 1001 critical days and beyond. Our Family Hubs and Children Centres are our Single point of access to those start for life, wider services and family help. The Hubs and Children Centres are the physical places where a family can visit and speak to a trained staff member, face to face, who will provide them with straightforward information or advice on a wide range of family issues spanning the 0-19 (25 with SEND) age range and connect them appropriately to further services across that age range if they need more targeted or specialist support.
10 Top Tips for Parents and Educators: Encouraging Open Conversations at Home
Cultural and technological changes have made the experiences of today’s children vastly different to our own childhoods; it can be challenging to engage youngsters in open, honest conversation – especially about more sensitive topics. This, combined with many children’s instinct to avoid “rocking the boat”, can make it difficult to stay up to date with the goings on in their lives. However, it’s hugely important that trusted adults still offer an empathetic ear and feel able to encourage young people to open up about their day-to-day activities. This #WakeUpWednesday guide provides ten top tips for promoting open conversations with children – helping to make sure there’s someone they know they can turn to in times of need.
Year 1 - Maths - Numbers to 50
In maths we have been learning about numbers to 50. We looked at how to represent numbers using tens and ones. We used a 50 square and found different numbers based on their tens and ones. E.g. I am thinking of a number with 1 ten and 7 ones - The children then had to find and circle my number.
Year 1 - Computer Science - Coding
Year 1 enjoyed a great coding lesson in computing today. They made planes move along runways and take off by organising their code. Later they made scary ghosts and bats move across a haunted house!
Year 1 - Maths - Number Problems
We have been looking at missing number problems in maths today. We had a first, then and now story and the children had to work out how many frogs jumped in the pond. 3+_=8
Year 1 - Science - Planting Seeds
Year 1 had a great afternoon planting seeds and learning the names of common flowers.
Year 1 - Phonics - Popcorn Pop!
In phonics this morning, we played 'Popcorn Pop', reading words with the 'ea / e-e' digraph.
Year 1 - English - Ordering a Poem
In English this morning, the children thought about the shape of the poem and worked in pairs to put the poem in order.
Year 1 - World Book Day
Year 1 have had a great Book Day afternoon. We read Sloth in The Slow Lane and learned some key facts about sloths. Later, we made a sloth mask and some children did a collage.
Year 1 - English - When I am by Myself
We started our new unit in English today, a poem called 'When I am by Myself'. The children have been learning the shapes for the poem which will help them with the sequence when they are writing their own. We played a game called 'Show me'. After learning the names of the shapes, the children worked with a partner and matched them to the different parts of the poem.
Year 1 - PE - Athletics
In PE, the children have completed a relay race as part of their athletics unit.
Year 1 - Maths - Subtraction
In Maths today, we have been subtracting by counting backwards on a number line.
Year 1 - Little Red Riding Hood
Year 1 have been collecting vocabulary to use in their writing about Little Red Riding Hood. They focused on the characters and the woods. The children worked in pairs completing a 'Role on the wall' activity. For this, they had to think about how the wolf felt and what he looked like.
Year 1 - Funky Food
This week Year 1 started their new D.T unit of Funky Food. We started this unit by doing a survey of our favourite fruits and vegetables. The photographs show the children completing a tally chart as they asked their friends questions. Then Year 1 produced pictograms of what they found.
Online Safety - Self Regulation
As infants, we all rely completely on adults to help us resolve situations that are causing us to become upset or stressed. This is known as co-regulation. The next phase, once autonomy has begun to develop, is called self-regulation: this is when children start to become capable of exercising more control over their impulses and behaviour, and managing their own emotions. This vital developmental milestone, however, isn’t reached spontaneously. Learning to self-regulate requires sensitive guidance from trusted adults – simply talking with children about their thoughts and feelings, for instance, can ease the route to self-regulation. This #WakeUpWednesday guide has some expert tips for supporting children to reach this goal.