The PYP is designed for students between the ages of 4 and 11. It focuses on the growth of the whole child as an inquirer, in school and in the world beyond. It aims to build upon conceptual understandings by using a student-centred, inquiry-based and transdisciplinary approach to teaching and learning.
At the centre of all learning in the PYP is the student. They use their own initatives to take responsibility and ownership, becoming agents of their own learning. Through inquiry-based learning, students in the PYP develop knowledge, conceptual understandings, skills and the attributes of the IB Learner Profile.
Transdisciplinary Learning
Learning in the PYP is transdisciplinary in nature. It embodies the relevance between, across and beyond subjects, incorporating the perspectives of various disciplines and providing students with deeper conceptual understandings. Transdisciplinarity offers students a broad and balanced learning experience.
In the PYP, there are six transdisciplinary themes which are explored yearly. These themes have been chosen by the IB as they have global significance regardless of the location or background of the students. The themes serve as a starting point of inquiry: who we are, where we are in place and time, how we express ourselves, how the world works, how we organise ourselves, and sharing the planet.
Inquiry-Based Learning
An inquiry-based approach to teaching and learning allows students to be actively involved and take responsibility for their own learning. It nurtures students’ curiosity and promotes lifelong learning, providing students with authentic and relatable learning experiences to explore the world around them and develop deeper conceptual understandings. Voice, choice and ownership are key features in the inquiry process, building student agency and encouraging them to extend their ideas and take action.
Although most learning is experienced through inquiry and within the Programme of Inquiry, there is scope for stand-alone lessons to take place. This may occur in subjects such as Mathematics and Language where learning does not coincide with a Unit of Inquiry.
Approaches to Learning
Approaches to learning in the PYP form an essential foundation which further inspires lifelong learning. They encompass five categories of interrelated skills, which are: communication, research, self-management, social and thinking. These skills aim to support students in becoming active and dynamic participants of the process of learning and increasing their sense of agency.