The Primary Years Programme
International School Twente (Primary) is an authorized IB World School. IB World Schools share a common philosophy- a commitment to high-quality, challenging, international education- that we believe is important for our students.
The Primary Years Programme is one of 4 programmes which form the International Baccalaureate, an international curriculum which was founded in 1968; The Primary Years Programme (ages 3-11) , the Middle Years Programme (ages 11-16) and, respectively, the Diploma and Careers Programmes (ages 16-19).
Serving as the foundation for the MYP and DP, , the PYP helps to emplace the skills, attitudes, concepts, knowledge and actions that not only empower students for success in these programmes, but the larger world.
The PYP offers a student-centred, internationally-minded approach to education. Responding to challenges and opportunities facing students in our rapidly changing world, it reflects the best of educational research, experience and leadership from IB World Schools around the globe.
The Programme centres around the viewpoint that children are agents of their own learning, and partners in the learning process. It leverages people and relationships to build a learning community that inspires students to take responsibility and ownership of their learning. PYP students develop the 10 attributes of the IB learner profile, knowledge, conceptual understandings, and skills to make differences in their communities, their own lives, and on a global scale. A key facet of this framework is the importance of developing student’s self-efficacy, so that they are active participants in their own learning, and motivated to take action as a result of their learning.
In the PYP, learning is transdisciplinary, organised under 6 themes, which are global, timeless and relevant. They guide the learning process and are shared throughout the school. The six themes are:
Who We Are: An 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: An 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: An 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: An 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 Organise Ourselves: An inquiry into the structure and function of organisations; societal decision-making; economic activities and their impact on humankind and the environment.
Sharing the Planet: An 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
Learning within the themes is kept significant, relevant, challenging and engaging by the use of Seven Key Concepts: Form, Function, Causation, Perspective, Connection, Responsibility and Change. These concepts act as a vehicle to help transfer learning. (Consider the role “form” plays in the way buildings are structured, or the way digits in a number are arranged.) These Key concepts also help teachers plan appropriate learning goals from the curriculum, in order to ensure learning across the 6 units is sufficient and appropriate. Each unit of inquiry lasts approximately 6 weeks, and is further developed by a Central Idea and related concepts to make it appropriate for the age of its learners.