Primary Years Programme Model (Discoverers - Grade V)
At aLphabet international, the IB PYP curriculum is designed to challenge our learners to think for themselves and support ‘Student Agency’, where students take responsibility for their own learning with the principal and teachers as co-collaborators. Children are born thinkers and inquirers, so our process of teaching and learning is tailored to nurturing their curiosity and wonder, through exciting lines of inquiry.
Each term at aLphabet is structured around a trans-disciplinary theme under which the Unit of Inquiry (UOI) lasts for approximately 6 – 8 weeks.
Each theme looks at various lines of inquiry which are aligned to the key and related concepts. They are connected to each other as well as the central idea and transdisciplinary theme. Each theme framework integrates hands on learning and student-initiated play.
- For example, during the theme “Sharing the planet” at the Lower Kindergarten (Explorers) level, an inquiry is made into the rights and responsibilities to share finite resources with other people and with other living things. Our students brainstorm into the needs of living things for their survival and how living things differ from non-living things.
- The lines of inquiry are: responsibility in caring for living things, life-cycles, characteristics of living things.
- The theme “How the world works” at the Grade III level is conceived around the central idea that changes in the Earth and its atmosphere have an impact on the way people live their lives.
- The lines of inquiry are: how the different components of the earth are interrelated, why the Earth has changed and it is continuously changing, human response to Earth’s change.
The curriculum is designed to integrate and enhance literacy, numeracy, stand-alone units, language development, ICT and extra-curricular activities. We believe in a balance of skills and content. We address our students’ academic, social and emotional well-being. Every activity planned from role-play, story time and open-discussions to writing, reading & number rote-counting is structured to make our students think, ask the right questions, communicate, discover, explore & reflect. Jolly Phonics is used to teach literacy. Songs are a powerful way to teach concepts to students and we incorporate movement as well. We believe that thinkers stem from readers, therefore our learners are encouraged to spend the first 10 minutes in class reading a book of their choice. Class work is performed individually, in pairs as well as in groups. We drive the belief that it is possible to get students to think deeply and ask questions that drive their learning, no matter what grade level they are in. We inspire student inquiry.
The Subject Areas
The subject areas implemented as a part of the PYP curriculum are:
- Language
- Arts
- Social studies
- Mathematics
- Science
- Personal, social & physical education
The Transdisciplinary themes
The six transdisciplinary themes are at the heart of the IB curriculum at aLphabet and help develop the learner’s conceptual understandings across various subject areas. These themes target the enhancement of knowledge, skills, concepts, attitudes and action across all grades by allowing children to learn about themselves and the world around them. The themes are a structured framework for learning in each grade and across all year levels, under which learner profile attributes are developed and demonstrated. Each theme unveils itself through a Unit of Inquiry (UOI) which is an in-depth exploration of a concept. Under each UOI, students will inquire into a central idea or conceptual understanding, guided by the investigations and questions designed by the teachers.
Who we are
Inquiry into the nature of the self; beliefs and values; person, physical, mental, social and spiritual health; human relationships including families, friends, communities, and cultures; rights and responsibilities; what it means to be human.
Where we are in place and time
Inquiry into orientation in place and time; personal histories; homes and journeys; the discoveries, explorations, and migrations of humankind; the relationship between and the interconnectedness of individuals and civilizations, from local and global perspectives.
How we express ourselves
Inquiry into the ways in which we discover and express ideas, feelings, nature, culture, beliefs, and values the ways in which we reflect on, extend and enjoy our creativity; our appreciation of the aesthetic
How the world works
Inquiry into the natural world and its laws, the interaction between the natural world (physical and biological) and human societies; how humans use their understanding of scientific principles; the impact of scientific and technological advances on society and on the environment.
How we organize ourselves
Inquiry into the interconnectedness of human-made systems and communities; the structure and function of organizations; societal decision-making; economic activities and their impact on humankind and the environment.
Sharing the planet
Inquiry into rights and responsibilities in the struggle to share finite resources with other people and other living things; communities and the relationship within and between them access to equal opportunities; peace and conflict resolution.
Developing the Learner Profiles
At aLphabet international, The Learner Profiles are used consistently while communicating and are regularly put in practice by teachers with our young students to reinforce their predominance in creating internationally-minded life-long learners. They are explored, developed and revisited throughout the themes, units and across all subject areas. Students learn and are encouraged to apply these attributes in their work as well as all their interactions outside the classroom, in other learning spaces, at home and with the wider community. While learning, our students are prompted to recognize these attributes in their peers and give feedback. As and when our teachers see these attributes come alive by our learners, they communicate the impact.
https://www.ibo.org/programmes/primary-years-programme/what-is-the-pyp/how-the-pyp-works/