IB Primary Year Programme (PYP) at RBIS

IB Primary Year Programme (PYP) at RBIS

(Note that the IB organization uses British spelling for 'Programme'. RBIS uses American spelling except when giving the formal titles used by the IB organization)

At RBIS, our mission is to inspire life-long learners to be responsible global citizens who have respect for themselves, the earth, and diverse cultures. The RBIS community including our Board of Directors, faculty, staff, students, and parents, recognize that the International Baccalaureate (IB) and the Primary Years Programme (PYP) aligns with our school's guiding principles and fully supports the development and implementation of the PYP Program.

IB Mission Statement:

• The International Baccalaureate aims to develop inquiring, knowledgeable and caring young people who help to create a better and more peaceful world through intercultural understanding and respect.

• To this end the organization works with schools, governments and international organizations to develop challenging programs of international education and rigorous assessment.

• These programs encourage students across the world to become active, compassionate and lifelong learners who understand that other people, with their differences, can also be right.

PYP Curriculum:

The PYP strives towards developing an internationally minded people who, recognizing their common humanity and shared guardianship of the planet, help create a better and more peaceful world.

The PYP curriculum fully supports core subject areas including language and mathematics as well as science, social studies, the arts and physical education.

The curriculum is expressed in three interrelated ways:

• the written curriculum—what do we want to learn?

• the taught curriculum—how best will we learn?

• the assessed curriculum—how will we know what we have learned?

Written Curriculum

RBIS has developed a Programme of Inquiry (POI) with the guidance of the six transdisciplinary themes. The POI identifies investigations into important ideas, identified by the teachers, and requiring a high level of involvement on the part of the students. These inquiries are substantial, in-depth and usually last for several weeks.

The program has five essential elements—concepts, knowledge, skills, attitudes, action—are incorporated into this framework, so that students are given the opportunity to:

• gain knowledge that is relevant and of global significance.

• develop an understanding of concepts, which allows them to make connections throughout their learning.

• acquire transdisciplinary and disciplinary skills.

• develop attitudes that will lead to international-mindedness.

• take action as a consequence of their learning.

• Curriculum model.

1. The Knowledge that students learn is based on six transdisciplinary themes of global significance provides the framework for exploration and study.

2. Our curriculum is driven by Concepts. Students learn through these concepts and explore open-ended questions which guide learning experiences as well as guide the focus of each unit of inquiry.

3. Students' learning experiences focus further developing Skills in the area of research, thinking, communication, social and self-management.

4. Throughout the program, students develop a greater sense of self and begin to develop positive attitudes which promote healthy relationships with others and good citizenship.

5. Student initiated Action can be a powerful result of the learning process and successful inquiry. Action extends student learning and may have a wider social impact which may look different at each grade level.

The Taught Curriculum

Units of Inquiry (UOI) are developed to support the investigation of these six transdisciplinary themes. Each UOI is developed through a science and/or social studies focus and identified skills and learning outcomes linked to the RBIS Language, Mathematics, Arts, Information Literacy and Technology, and Personal Social and Physical scope and sequences. The UOI is also a collaboration of head teachers, single subject teachers and student services specialists.

Inquiry-based Instruction

Instruction at RBIS follows an inquiry-based model allowing students to explore and engage in learning through many ways. The early childhood curriculum is a play and inquiry based program, providing developmentally appropriate activities that foster creativity, positive self-image, independence, and respect. Kindergarten program utilizes classroom structured learning centers that are structured meaningful, hands-on experiences which encourage exploratory learning and prepare children for their elementary school years. The elementary program further develops academic and self-management skills and supports conceptual based learning that extends beyond the walls of the classroom. Students construct, apply and transfer knowledge to real-world problem solving.

The Assessed Curriculum

Assessment is an important part of each unit of inquiry as it both enhances learning and provides opportunities for students to reflect on what they know, understand and can do. The teacher's feedback to the students provides the guidance, the tools and the incentive for them to become more competent, more skillful and better at understanding how to learn.

Rainbow Bridge International School is a candidate school* for the IB Primary Years Programme (PYP). This school is pursuing authorization as an IB World School. IB World Schools share a common philosophy—a commitment to high-quality, challenging, international education—that RBIS believes is important for our students.

* Only schools authorized by the IB Organization can offer any of its three academic programmes: the Primary Years Programme (PYP), the Middle Years Programme (MYP) or the Diploma Programme (and in addition the IB Career-related Certificate). Candidate status gives no guarantee that authorization will be granted.