IB PYP

What is an IB Education?

The IB continuum of international education for 3 to 19 year olds is unique because of its academic and personal rigour. We challenge students to excel in their studies and in their personal growth. We aim to inspire a quest for learning throughout life that is marked by enthusiasm and empathy.  The IB aspires to help schools develop well-rounded students with character who respond to challenges with optimism and an open mind, are confident in their own identities, make ethical decisions, join with others in celebrating our common humanity and are prepared to apply what they learn in real-world, complex and unpredictable situations. The IB offers high-quality programmes of international education that share a powerful vision Informed by the values described in the learner profile, an IB education:

  • focuses on learners - the IB’s student-centred programmes promote healthy relationships, ethical responsibility and personal challenge
  • develops effective approaches to teaching and learning - IB programmes help students to develop the attitudes and skills they need for both academic and personal success
  • works within global contexts - IB programmes increase understanding of languages and cultures, and explore globally significant ideas and issues
  • explores significant content - IB programmes offer a curriculum that is broad and balanced, conceptual and connected. IB learners strive to become inquirers, knowledgeable, thinkers, communicators, principled, open-minded, caring, risk-takers, balanced, and reflective. These attributes represent a broad range of human capacities and responsibilities that go beyond intellectual development and academic success.

The Primary Years Programme (IB PYP) 

The Primary Years Programme (PYP): The PYP is designed for students aged 3 to 12. It focuses on the development of the whole child as an inquirer, both in the classroom and in the world outside It is a framework guided by six transdisciplinary themes of global significance, explored using knowledge and skills derived from six subjects areas, as well as transdisplinary skills, with a powerful emphasis on inquiry. 

The IB Learner Profile

The aim of all IB programmes is to develop internationally minded people who, recognizing their common humanity and shared guardianship of the planet, help to create a better and more peaceful world. As IB learners we strive to be:

  • Inquirers: We nurture our curiosity, developing skills for inquiry and research. We know how to learn independently and with others. We learn with enthusiasm and sustain our love of learning throughout life.
  • Knowledgeable: We develop and use conceptual understanding, exploring knowledge across a range of disciplines. We engage with issues and ideas that have local and global significance.
  • Thinkers: We use critical and creative thinking skills to analyse and take responsible action on complex problems. We exercise initiative in making reasoned, ethical decisions.
  • Communicators: We express ourselves confidently and creatively in more than one language and in many ways. We collaborate effectively, listening carefully to the perspectives of other individuals and groups.
  • Principled: We act with integrity and honesty, with a strong sense of fairness and justice, and with respect for the dignity and rights of people everywhere. We take responsibility for our actions and their consequences.
  • Open-minded: We critically appreciate our own cultures and personal histories, as well as the values and traditions of others. We seek and evaluate a range of points of view, and we are willing to grow from the experience.
  • Caring: We show empathy, compassion and respect. We have a commitment to service, and we act to make a positive difference in the lives of others and in the world around us.
  • Risk-takers: We approach uncertainty with forethought and determination; we work independently and cooperatively to explore new ideas and innovative strategies.  We are resourceful and resilient in the face of challenges and change.
  • Balanced: We understand the importance of balancing different aspects of our lives—intellectual, physical, and emotional—to achieve well-being for ourselves and others.  We recognize our interdependence with other people and with the world in which we live.
  • Reflective: We thoughtfully consider the world and our own ideas and experience. We work to understand our strengths and weaknesses in order to support our learning and personal development.

The IB learner profile represents 10 attributes valued by IB World Schools. We believe these attributes, and others like them, can help individuals and groups become responsible members of local, national and global communities.

The Six Transdisciplinary Themes

The most significant and distinctive feature of the IB Primary Years Programme is the six transdisciplinary themes. These themes provide IB World Schools with the opportunity to incorporate local and global issues into the curriculum and effectively allow students to “step up" beyond the confines of learning within subject areas.

  • 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 shar 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.

Each theme is addressed each year by all students. (Students aged 3 to 5 engage with four of the themes each year.) In addition all PYP students have the opportunity to learn more than one language from the age of seven. These transdisciplinary themes help teachers to develop a programme of inquiries–investigations into important ideas, identified by the schools, 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. Since these ideas relate to the world beyond the school, students see their relevance and connect with it in an engaging and challenging way.  Students who learn in this way begin to reflect on their roles and responsibilities as learners and become actively involved with their education. All students will come to realize that a unit of inquiry involves them in in-depth exploration of an important idea, and that the teacher will collect evidence of how well they understand that idea. They will expect to be able to work in a variety of ways, on their own and in groups, to allow them to learn to their best advantage.

What Will My Child Learn at NUN Schools?

NUN Schools believe that students become a subject by making their own inquiries with their voice, choice and ownership in the IB learning process. The Primary Years Program offers a transdisciplinary approach to learning, providing a holistic understanding of the world.

There are six transdisciplinary themes that provide the framework for exploration and construction of knowledge.  Teachers and students plan transdisciplinary themes while designing inquiry units to understand the concepts more deeply. During this process, students develop an understanding of important concepts, gain approaches to learning skills, develop specific profiles, and learn to take socially responsible actions.

We believe in the holistic development of children and harness their potential curiosity and innate talents to create well-balanced, confident individuals and lifelong independent learners.

At NUN Schools, we strive to raise global citizens who respect cultures, nurture the diversity with an open mind and try to inspire, empower and transform for a better world.